What to Do in Rio de Janeiro This June: Festivals, Music and More
BRAZIL · RIO DE JANEIRO
Key Facts
—June festivals. Free neighborhood arraiás run all month — at the Lagoa, in Santa Teresa and in Barra — with forró, food and dancing.
—Run the city. The Rio Marathon, Brazil’s largest, takes over the seafront from June 3 to 7 with 5k, 10k, 21k and 42k races.
—Climate summit. The Rio Nature & Climate Week (June 1–6), with Global Citizen and Re:wild, brings debates and side events across the city.
—Live music. Venues like Circo Voador, Vivo Rio and the Theatro Municipal run a full June calendar, from jazz to samba to orchestral concerts.
—Heads up. Rock in Rio is not in June — it returns to the Cidade do Rock in September.
Cooler weather suits Rio de Janeiro this June: the month brings free street festivals, a city-wide marathon and a packed live-music calendar — much of it outdoors and easy on the budget.
June festivals across Rio de Janeiro
June is festa junina season (see our separate guide), and Rio fills with free neighborhood arraiás. Expect celebrations at the Lagoa Rodrigo de Freitas, in Santa Teresa — which stages its own Bumba Meu Boi — and at the Praça do Ó in Barra da Tijuca, among others, most running across the first weekends of the month with forró, quadrilha dancing, food stalls and live music. These are some of the easiest, most welcoming events for newcomers: free, family-friendly and spread across the city, so you rarely have to travel far to find one.
A marathon and a climate summit
Two big events bookend early June. The Rio Marathon, the largest in Brazil, runs from June 3 to 7 along the city’s beachfront, with 5k, 10k, half-marathon and full-marathon races plus fitness activations around town — worth knowing about even if you are not running, since it affects seafront traffic. Overlapping it, the Rio Nature & Climate Week (June 1–6), held with Global Citizen, the conservation group Re:wild and local partners, brings a main program of climate-and-biodiversity debates plus dozens of independent sessions scattered across the city.
Live music, theater and exhibitions
Rio’s indoor calendar is busy through the cooler month. Circo Voador and Vivo Rio host a steady run of concerts, the Theatro Municipal and the Brazilian Symphony Orchestra stage classical programs, and smaller venues carry jazz and samba nights — including cine-jazz sessions and roda de samba in the historic port district’s Pequena África. Museums and cultural centers such as the CCBB round out rainy-day options. Curated local newsletters are the best way to track what is on each weekend, since lineups shift.
Practical tips for newcomers
June is winter in Rio, so evenings can be cool and rain can cancel outdoor events — check official pages before heading out. For the marathon weekend, expect closures along the beachfront and plan transit accordingly. Many of the month’s best experiences, from the arraiás to free concerts in public squares, cost nothing, making June an easy time to get to know the city’s cultural life. One scheduling note worth repeating: Rock in Rio, often assumed to be a perennial fixture, takes place in September this year, not June.
More: Brazil news in English, every day from The Rio Times.
Frequently Asked Questions
Are there June festivals in Rio?
Yes. Free neighborhood arraiás run throughout June — at the Lagoa, in Santa Teresa and in Barra, among others — with forró, food and dancing.
When is the Rio Marathon?
June 3 to 7, along the city’s beachfront, with 5k, 10k, half-marathon and full-marathon races.
What is the Rio Nature & Climate Week?
An international climate-and-biodiversity gathering (June 1–6) held with Global Citizen and Re:wild, with debates and side events around the city.
Is Rock in Rio in June?
No. Rock in Rio returns to the Cidade do Rock in September, not June.
Connected Coverage
For more on what’s on, see our guides to Brazil’s June festival season and what to do in São Paulo this month, plus the new Tela Brasil film-streaming service.
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