City Tour of Olinda Including Instituto Ricardo Brennand

Badge of Excellence

Recife, Brazil

5 hours (approx.)
Pickup offered
Mobile ticket
Offered in: English

Overview

Explore Olinda, a UNESCO World Heritage-listed city known as the 'Venice of Brazil', on a 5-hour guided tour from Recife. With your knowledgeable local guide, see the highlights and landmarks of the city, including the Francisco Brennard Museum, San Francisco Convent, and the city's local markets. Listen to engaging commentary from your guide during your journey in a comfortable van equipped with Wi-Fi. All entrance fees and round-trip transportation from Recife are included.

Explore Olinda, a UNESCO World Heritage-listed city known as the 'Venice of Brazil'
Listen to engaging commentary from your guide during your journey
All entrance fees and round-trip transportation from Recife are included
Travel in a small group for a more personalized experience

What's Included

Driver/guide
All activities
Hotel pickup and drop-off (selected hotels only)
Operated by a multilingual guide
Transport by air-conditioned VIP van
All taxes, fees and handling charges

Food and drinks
Gratuities

Meeting and Pickup

Pickup points

Select a pickup point

Pickup details

Hotels in Boa Viagem, Pina and Piedade Port of passengers in Recife

Operating hours
.9:00 am

Itinerary

Instituto Ricardo Brennand

2 hours • Admission Ticket Included

Caixa d'Agua Alto da Se / Elevador Panoramico

30 minutes • Admission Ticket Included

Convento de Sao Francisco

30 minutes • Admission Ticket Included

Mercado de Artesanato da Se

30 minutes • Admission Ticket Free

Mercado da Ribeira

30 minutes • Admission Ticket Free

Additional Info

Confirmation will be received at time of booking
Not wheelchair accessible
A current valid passport is required on the day of travel
Stroller accessible

Near public transportation
Infant seats available
Most travelers can participate
This tour/activity will have a maximum of 15 travelers

Supplied by

Cancellation Policy

You can cancel up to 24 hours in advance of the experience for a full refund.

Traveler Photos

Gallery picture 1 (from a traveler's review)

Gallery picture 2 (from a traveler's review)

Gallery picture 3 (from a traveler's review)

Gallery picture 4 (from a traveler's review)

Gallery picture 5 (from a traveler's review)

Reviews

4.5

based on 27 reviews

Total reviews and rating from Viator & Tripadvisor

We perform checks on reviews

Absolutely wonderful

Judi_K, Jan 2026

We had an absolutely delightful day with Marcela. She picked us up right at the gate of the port by the passenger terminal. Two of us use portable oxygen and walkers. Tour was extremely accommodating, everybody went out of their way to make things as easy as possible and limit as much walking as they could for us. We did more than I thought possible in the time that we had! We drove to Olinda and went all through the old town with a few stops for pictures. We went inside the Convento de São Francisco de Olinda, had a stop for a panoramic few as well as stopping to see the exterior of a church being restored, we even saw a carnival video being made on the way to a delicious lunch at the Castelus restaurant on the Ricardo Brennand grounds. We went through quite a bit of the museum there before heading back to our ship. We could’ve spent even longer at the museum if we had the time. Marcela shared so many stories and tons of history with us throughout the day, truly made our day memorable! I 100% recommend this tour!

Wonderful & Horrifying!

Nancy_H, Mar 2025

First off, we booked & paid for a private tour for 2 people. The tour guide told us no… it was with 6 people. So, with no other choice, we decided to make the best of it. The tour guide clearly stated our route, stops, and that we would return at 15:00/ 3pm. We enjoyed a day with the others and especially enjoyed sharing a delicious meal with our tour group at a wonderful local restaurant. The tour itself was very good. The guide was knowledgeable of the locations and history. However, at 2pm as the we came closer to our ending time of 3pm… it was clear we were running out of time and kept explaining to the guide that we HAD to be back on the ship no later than 3:30. He insisted on going to the last stop, which took an hour to get to. We insisted we did not have time, but he continued. He kept asking what time our ship sailed and we told him it didn’t matter what time it sailed, we had clear instructions of all aboard at 3:30. We made it very clear that we HAD to be back on at 3:30. He insisted we had time and promised to leave the last stop by 3pm and that we would be at the ship by 3:30. We did not believe it was possible and clearly expressed our concerns. He walked the others into the last stop ( a museum) and we chose not participate and remained at the entrance by the van and driver. Our tour finally left the museum at 3:15, made it to the ship at 4:10pm!! We would have been left had the ship officers not called me to find out where we were. TOTALLY UNACCEPTABLE!!!! Viator needs to have a SERIOUS discussion with this guide about the strict all-aboard requirements of a cruise ship! All the port shuttles were done and gone for the day… the ship had to ask the shuttle company to keep the building open and hold one shuttle bus & staff just to get the 6 of us back to the ship! Ridiculous! Embarrassing! Unprofessional! Rude! Extremely Stressful! All because the Tour Guide did not manage the timing of his tour & did not listen to us!

Response from Host, Mar 2025

Thanks for the feedback .this tour is not private, Guide will no longer be part of out team , thanks for the advise . This tour is not private, it says on voucher Transport by air-conditioned VIP van

Best tour ever

Brandi_J, Dec 2023

Recife and Olinda are beautiful cities in Brazil! Caio provided so much valuable information and took us all to the wonderful sites ! I will definitely recommend this tour!

Great experience

John_R, Feb 2023

Caio was a great guide. He covered just about everything in Olinda and also did a short tour of Recife. He picked out a local resturant for lunch - very good and affordable. Recommend the tour and Caio 100%

Response from Host, Mar 2023

Thanks for your feedback ! We wait for your return. all the best

Great tour!

karenleskun, Feb 2020

Olinda a must do! Minivan with a/c and wifi. Tour guide was a great host and quite knowledgable. Great day!

Great for a port day in Recife

Wayne_B, Feb 2020

An excellent experience, from being met at the cruise terminal to our return there or a nearby alternative for those who requested one. Our guide was excellent (friendly, knowledgeable and flexible when the group agreed to shorten our stay at the museum). The description is very accurate and helpful.

very good tour with a wonderful guide...

MiroslavL_B, Jan 2018

very good tour with a wonderful guide, enjoyable and informative. definite must do

Though we've forgotten our guide's...

Richard T, Dec 2017

Though we've forgotten our guide's name, he was helpful and very knowledgeable, making this tour of Olinda a wonderful experience.

It was a nice tour. We had the same...

ErlingKyrre_F, May 2017

It was a nice tour. We had the same guide from the day before for the Recife Boat Tour. He was nice and provided us with a lot of information about Olinda. We didn't have the opportunity to visit the Instituo Ricardo Brennand because t was closed. Our guide was very nice and made all the arrangements for us to get a refund for this part of the tour.

Punktsieg

Michael_L, Mar 2020

Engagement und Freizeit, das ist eine gelungene Kombination. Zuerst koloniales Flair mit Kopfsteinpflaster, bunten Häusern, dann überwältigt von der musealen Vielfalt. Diese Tour ist einzigartig.