By Chesney Hearst, Senior Contributing Reporter
RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL – With the 2015 Rio Carnival more than four months away (official dates are February 13 – 18th), organizers recently started the sales process for seating during the internationally renowned samba parades held annually at Rio’s Sambódromo. While demand for Carnival seating is typically high, organizers report that the interest in the 2015 Carnival thus far has increased twofold.
Designed by Oscar Niemeyer, built in 1984, and renovated in 2013, the Sambódromo also know as the Marquês da Sapucaí, seats approximately 90,000 people in its thirteen numbered sections.
Large private boxes (camarotes), are considered the best seating available, with the frisas, smaller private boxes, which seat up to six people, are also highly coveted seating areas. On Wednesday, October 1st, registration for the camarotes opened and applications quickly numbered in the hundreds. Reservations for frisas will open on October 28th at 9AM.
Between 9AM and 1PM on October 1st, the Liga das Escolas de Samba do Grupo Especial do Rio de Janeiro (LIESA) received double the amount of applications for Carnival 2015 camarotes. Over six hundred requests were faxed to the organization.
Priced between R$31,000 and R$120,000, the camarote seating tickets are valid for all of the Carnival parade days. Reservations will be confirmed in the order they were received and LIESA will notify the confirmed applicants by October 16th.
Sales of individual seats and seats in the bleachers will not begin until January of next year. Carnival in Rio, considered by many to be the world’s biggest and best celebration, is not just about the spectacular samba parade at Sambódromo though. A huge part of Carnival is the blocos (block parties), which are very popular, and free.