The beach in Rio de Janeiro famous for massive New Year’s Eve parties is Copacabana Beach.
Rio’s celebration, commonly called Réveillon in Copacabana, centers on the long waterfront of Copacabana Beach. At midnight, barges offshore launch a large fireworks display while huge crowds gather on the sand and along Avenida Atlântica. Free concerts and multiple stages have also become important parts of the event, making it one of the world’s most prominent public New Year celebrations.
New Year’s Eve festivities have taken place on Copacabana Beach since the 1950s. Early celebrations were influenced by Afro-Brazilian religious traditions, including Candomblé and Umbanda, whose participants often wore white for ritual observances. Wearing white remains a widely recognized Brazilian New Year custom, although modern celebrations bring together people with many different beliefs.
The beach’s scale can cause confusion with Rio’s other famous beaches, such as Ipanema, Leblon and Barra da Tijuca. Those beaches may host their own events, but Copacabana is the canonical location associated with Rio’s mass New Year’s Eve party. In some years, attendance has reached several million people, depending on estimates and the event program.