One eSIM for Brazil - Rio, Sao Paulo and beyond
A single plan covers Brazil, so the same eSIM works in Rio de Janeiro, Sao Paulo, the Iguazu Falls and the northeast beaches. Install it before you fly, switch off airplane mode on arrival, and you are online for transfers, maps and messaging straight away.
Getting online at Sao Paulo and Rio
The eSIM connects when you switch off airplane mode at Sao Paulo Guarulhos (GRU), Rio de Janeiro (GIG) or Brasilia (BSB). Your rideshare, transfer and maps are ready before you reach the taxi line.
Coverage in the cities and the interior
Brazil's networks (Vivo, Claro and TIM) deliver strong 4G and growing 5G across the cities and the coast. Brazil is huge, though: the Amazon, the Pantanal and remote interior stretches drop out between towns, so download offline maps before venturing inland.
Brazil from the UK: visa-free, and get that stamp
British passport holders can visit Brazil for tourism for up to 90 days without a visa; Brazil's consulate in London puts it as 90 days per 12 months, with multiple entries. Your passport must be valid for six months after you arrive. Check that it is stamped on arrival - without the stamp you may be fined when you leave. Cash worth 10,000 US dollars or more must be declared online (gov.uk, updated 29 September 2026).
British Airways and LATAM fly non-stop from Heathrow to São Paulo in about 11 and a half hours, and British Airways also flies to Rio, though not every week of the year. Rio and São Paulo are three hours behind the UK in winter and four in British Summer Time; Brazil does not change its clocks, and the Amazon is an hour or two further behind.
Plugs, cards and your UK plan
Brazilian sockets are type N, and the voltage changes from state to state - 127 or 220 V, often red for 220 and white for 127 - so check your chargers accept both. The Foreign Office warns that card cloning at cash machines and in shops is common.
On a UK plan, EE charges £8 for 24 hours with only 500MB, O2 Travel is £7 a day, Vodafone £8 a day and Three £5 a day on most plans.