Ohhhh boy. Where to begin with this one. I'm 38 years old, I speak ZERO Portuguese and I've traveled the world pretty extensively and I'm always looking for additional ways to further push myself out of my own emotional comfort zone and always trying to do things that are truly unique and different. That said, I can say with 100% confidence that staying in Rochina for 6 days and in Moises Airbnb was the single greatest travel experience of my life. If you're going to stay here you're going to have to look past the doubters and nay sayers or anybody who tells this place being Rio's largest favela is "unsafe" or "stupid". Trust me, I heard it all prior to coming here. If you're reading this and you're considering the favela experience then that already tells me you are your own man/woman and you choose to create and live your own experiences and then formulate your own opinions based off actual experience. If my assumption is correct then all I can tell you is I'm proud of you for being your own person and living your own life and not listening to people who have no clue what they are talking about. Especially if they've never been to a favela much less Rio in general. Don't listen to the news or what the papers tell you about Rocinha. It's fake news garbage and so far from the actual truth it makes me sick. Are there dangerous favelas in Rio? Absolutely! But they are more to the north and yes stay far away from those.
That said, if you're wanting clean sanitized streets and smell of pulperie as you walk through the favela then no this experience is not for you. If the walking past armed traffickers on the daily (I called it the traffickers gauntlet) being half naked teenagers in flip flops totin around fully automatic assault rifles intimidates you then no this experience is DEFINITELY not for you! If you're looking to meet other travelers or wanting to run into ANY English speaking folks then no...don't bother staying here. If seeing dog and cat S in the streets grosses you out then nothing to see here so keep it moving. If you are not emotionally strong enough to negotiate with the rigors and challenges of an authentic slums experience then noooooooooo this experience is not for you!
Now, on the flip side. If you're anything like myself and the other reviewers on here and you're looking for ways to truly push your emotional boundaries and further increase your emotional intellect then look no further. This is it! And it's not going to get any better than a slums experience. If you like challenging yourself to be better than you were yesterday and add additional layers of experience to your repertoire then YES! This experience is perfect for YOU! If you truly want to do something different that absolutely nobody is going to understand "why" then yes!!! Do it do it do it! I challenge you right now. DO IT!!!!
Here's a few pieces of advice and then I'm done with my review. The favela is very very safe. I found it quite a bit more safe than Copacabana if I'm being 100% honest. BUT, It's incredibly important you know how to STAY IN YOUR LANE. INCREDIBLY IMPORTANT!!!!! Arms, eyes, legs, everything! Do not mingle...in fact don't even look at and make any eye contact with the traffickers whatsoever. They are not your friend. While I personally found them very interesting pretend they are not even there. They do not exist. As long as you can do that THEY WILL NOT BOTHER YOU! Do not under any circumstances take any pictures on the ground floor of the favela. It's a big no no. Just listen and don't do it. The higher you go up the hill the more acceptable it becomes and that's where the amazing views and photos are found anyways. Dona Celia will meet you at Praca Ailton Rosa when you arrive and walk you in. Be prepared to negotiate with some very intense emotions within yourself as you start the walk in. It's INCREDIBLE! Fear, doubt, excitement, joy, nervousness, whatever emotion you can think of you will feel it and it's an unbelievable emotional dump. Once you calm yourself down though and accept where you are and the experience you've decided to understake you'll start to accept and realize how amazing the favela is. The culture, the people, the food, it's all absolutely FABULOUS!!! Rochina itself is truly a sight to behold. It's jaw dropping when you see it up close and in person. I can't really explain it. You just have to see it for yourself to fully grasp my words.
End of the day the favela is all good but you MUST enter with respect and humbleness. I hope all of this helps and I hope after reading this you identify with what I'm trying to communicate to you. If you go through with this you'll will achieve some of the biggest growth in your life and when you are done and you will look back you will say....damn that was amazing, and I want to go back!
Cheers y'all! And thank you Moises and Dona Celia for the awesome hospitality. This was truly a remarkable experience and I'm just so thankful and proud of myself and my lady for doing it (yes my GF did this with me and she LOVED it as well) We’ll both be telling this story for the rest of our lives.