Brazil / Rio de Janeiro
Praia Vermelha
Praia Vermelha is a 274 m-long beach facing north-east on the Atlantic Ocean, 900 m north-east of Leme (Rio de Janeiro, Brazil). The sea averages 25.4 °C in March, its warmest month, and 21.3 °C in August; it stays at 21 °C or above all year.
Average sea surface temperature by month. Current month outlined.
Month by month
October at Praia Vermelha
Beach-day index 8.1/10 · Brazil median 8.1
| Measure | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sea °C | 25.1 °C | 25.1 °C | 25.4 °C | 24.9 °C | 23.6 °C | 22.6 °C | 21.9 °C | 21.3 °C | 21.3 °C | 21.8 °C | 22.5 °C | 24.0 °C |
| High °C | 29° | 29° | 28° | 27° | 25° | 25° | 25° | 26° | 28° | 29° | 28° | 29° |
| Low °C | 20° | 20° | 19° | 17° | 15° | 14° | 13° | 13° | 15° | 17° | 18° | 19° |
| Rain mm | 216 | 139 | 157 | 84 | 60 | 39 | 37 | 37 | 61 | 100 | 199 | 228 |
| Cloud % | 71 | 62 | 66 | 56 | 56 | 49 | 45 | 45 | 57 | 70 | 79 | 75 |
| Wind m/s | 2.0 | 1.9 | 1.8 | 1.8 | 1.9 | 2.0 | 2.1 | 2.3 | 2.5 | 2.4 | 2.3 | 2.0 |
| Daylight h | 13.4 | 12.9 | 12.3 | 11.6 | 11.0 | 10.7 | 10.8 | 11.3 | 11.9 | 12.6 | 13.2 | 13.5 |
| Record high/low | 40°/15° | 39°/15° | 36°/15° | 34°/11° | 33°/9° | 32°/7° | 34°/7° | 37°/8° | 40°/9° | 42°/9° | 40°/12° | 39°/12° |
| Beach index | 7.6 | 8.3 | 8.1 | 8.8 | 8.8 | 8.9 | 8.7 | 8.7 | 8.4 | 8.1 | 7.5 | 7.4 |
Long-term monthly averages: air from NASA POWER (2001–2020), sea from NOAA OISST (1991–2020); records are the extremes of 2001–2020. How the index works.
When to go
The beach-day index peaks in February and April–September; June scores 8.9/10 with highs of 25 °C, sea at 22.6 °C and 39 mm of rain.
In June that is 1.0 points above the median of the 659 beaches in Brazil covered by this atlas.
At its warmest the water here is 1.2 °C cooler than the Brazil median for March (26.6 °C).
Across the year the sea averages 23.3 °C, warmer than 72% of the coastal beaches in the atlas.
December is the wettest month (228 mm) and July the driest (37 mm); the yearly total is about 1,360 mm.
Daylight runs from 10.7 hours in June to 13.5 hours in December; in mid-June the sun rises at 06:30 and sets at 17:14 local time.
Orientation, sun and shore
The shore faces north-east (40°). Open water fills about 39% of the horizon close by, which makes it an open stretch of shore.
The sun sets over the sea in June; in mid-June it goes down at 17:14 local time on a bearing of 295°.
Sunrise is over the sea in August–April.
The opposite shore is only about 500 m away to the north-east, which keeps the water sheltered from big waves.
About 1 km offshore the sea is roughly 8 m deep and 7 m at 3 km, a shallow, gently shelving sea floor. Behind the beach the ground is about 79 m above sea level 500 m inland and 18 m at 1.5 km, so the beach is backed by steep slopes or cliffs.
Within 1 km, the land is 68% tree cover, 25% built-up land and 4% grassland (satellite land-cover map, 2021): a partly built-up setting. Water makes up 31% of that circle.
- Tree 68%
- Built 25%
- Grass 4%
Land cover: ESA WorldCover 2021 (10 m). Orientation from OpenStreetMap land polygons sampled in 36 directions; depths and heights from the GEBCO 2020 grid (about 450 m cells), indicative only.
OpenStreetMap shows no lifeguard station within 1 km. Seasonal lifeguard posts are often unmapped, so check on site.
Photos
From above
Facilities within 1 km
- 53Restaurants, cafés & bars
- 5Public toilets
- –Showers
- 2Drinking water
- 29Car parks
- –Lifeguard stations
- 21Hotels & guesthouses
- 5Grocery shops
- 4Water-sports spots
- 39Bus stops (1.5 km)
- 5Pharmacies & clinics
- 3Cash machines
- 5Bike rental
- 13Viewpoints
- 3Historic sites
Food and drink mapped within 1 km: 30 restaurants, 3 cafés, 19 bars and 1 fast-food outlet. Accommodation: 21 hotels and guesthouses.
Counted within 1 km of the beach (bus stops 1.5 km) from OpenStreetMap features and Overture Maps places, release of 2026-10. Unmapped does not mean absent.
Around the beach
Viewpoints
- Pão 250 m S
- Pioneer's Observation Desk 400 m N
- Navigator's Observation Desk 440 m N
- Mirador do Semaphore 560 m SW
- Cuidado Perigo 810 m W
- Mirador do Rio Sul 920 m W
Attractions & museums
- Parque Bondinho attraction 240 m W
- Rio Illusions | Museu de Ilusões museum 280 m W
- Cocuruto museum 480 m N
- Museu de Ciências da Terra museum 590 m W
- Forte Duque de Caxias museum 760 m S
- Mural Babilônia museum 760 m SW
Historic sites
- Pomnik Fryderyka Chopina w Rio de Janeiro monument 40 m NW
- Monumento Retirada da Laguna monument 120 m W
- Sugarloaf Mountain monument 240 m W
Nature
- Morro da Urca peak 500 m N
- Morro dos Urubus peak 530 m SE
- Morro da Babilônia peak 570 m SW
- Mirante do Telégrafo nature reserve 570 m SW
- Parque Natural Municipal Paisagem Carioca nature reserve 750 m SW
- Morro do Leme peak 970 m SE
Islands in view
- Pedra do Anel 820 m SE
- Ilha de Cotunduba 1.9 km SE
Diving & boat hire
- BikeRio - Estação 134 Pão de Açúcar 130 m N
- Mana Imua Va'a 660 m N
- BikeRio Estação Pedra do Leme 750 m S
- Kayak Carioca 770 m N
Getting there
| Airport | Code | Distance | Direction |
|---|---|---|---|
| Santos Dumont Airport Rio de Janeiro | SDU | 5.0 km | north |
| Rio de Janeiro Galeão – Tom Jobim International Airport Rio De Janeiro | GIG | 18.4 km | north-west |
| Francisco de Assis Airport Juiz de Fora | JDF | 131 km | north |
Straight-line distances from the beach; road distance is usually 20–40% longer.
Local transport: 39 bus stops within 1.5 km and 29 mapped car parks within 1 km.
15 towns and villages of 1,000+ people lie within 10 km (about 7.2M residents); within 30 km there are 27 (about 9.9M).
Reference
Praia Vermelha has an article on the PT Wikipedia: Urca.
Wikidata item Q203325.
When people look it up
The PT Wikipedia article was read 1,395 times in the 12 months to August 2026. Interest peaks in January (155 views), 2.0× the quietest month.
Map and nearby beaches
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Data on this page
- Air temperature, rain, cloud, wind, humidity: NASA POWER climatology 2001–2020, 0.5° grid.
- Sea temperature: NOAA OISST v2.1 monthly normals 1991–2020, nearest ocean cell 19.3 km away.
- Beach outline, surface, rules and public facilities: OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL), feature w15059191; restaurants, cafés, bars and lodging: Overture Maps places (CDLA-Permissive-2.0).
- Water body, status and length: Wikidata (CC0).
- Towns and time zone: GeoNames (CC BY 4.0). Airports: OurAirports (public domain). Sunrise and sunset: NOAA solar equations.
- Photos: Wikimedia Commons, author and licence under each image.
- Satellite view: Copernicus Sentinel-2 (ESA), scene S2C_23KPQ_20260721_0_L2A.
- Orientation: OpenStreetMap land polygons (ODbL). Depth and terrain: GEBCO 2020 grid.
- Settlements: GeoNames places with 1,000+ inhabitants.
- Land cover: ESA WorldCover 2021, 10 m (CC BY 4.0).
- Search popularity: about 4.4K Google searches a month for the name (KeywordTool, October 2026).
Data compiled 2026-10-13. Something wrong? Report a data error.