Long-distance buses and the low-cost flights, and the Carnival price rule

Brazil is huge, and the executive buses ("leito" seats recline nearly flat) are comfortable for overnight routes like São Paulo–Rio or Rio–Belo Horizonte; book on the companies' sites or at the rodoviária. Flights on Gol, Azul, and LATAM are cheap if booked ahead and the only realistic way to reach the Amazon or the northeast. Around Carnival (February or March) and New Year in Rio, hotels demand multi-night minimums at several times the normal rate; book months out or go elsewhere.