Don't the words Copacabana and Ipanema immediately make you start singing the Barry Manilow song "Copacabana" or the famous bossa nova song, "Girl from Ipanema"? These two beaches are Rio de Janeiro's most famous. In addition to the popular beach, Rio's Copacabana district has the famous Copacabana Palace Hotel, built in 1923. This hotel put Copacabana on the map for the rich and famous, and its reputation has stayed intact.

The Rio jeweler Amsterdam Sauer had a free shuttle from the Celebrity Infinity to their stores on Copacabana and Ipanema, and their Ipanema store has a small gemstone museum that is worth a visit.

Copacabana and Ipanema beaches were both packed with people during our Rio visit. These facts about Rio's beaches are interesting

• No nudity is allowed, i.e. no topless or bottomless on Rio's beaches
• Thongs are worn by everyone (almost)
• Each person gets about 10 square feet of beach space (one large beach towel)
• The water is very cold and has dangerous currents