Gustavo is an excellent host and overall, we enjoyed our stay in his Leblon apartment.
The apartment is in a great location just a block to the beach (between lifeguard posts 11 & 12, which is the calmest part of the beach) and near great restaurants and grocery stores. The apartment is in a secure building with a doorman, on the second floor (one floor above the entry level). This area of Leblon safe and secure. We loved being steps away from everything the neighborhood has to offer.
Gustavo was a responsive, welcoming, and accommodating host. He took time to provide us with an extensive list of local restaurants to try and even invited us out to enjoy a captivating, modern dance performance. We appreciated the local fruit and drinks Gustavo stocked for us upon our arrival.
The apartment is a good value for the location and space. The recently added dedicated workspace and reliable, fast internet made this a solid option for working remotely.
Some aspects when considering this space are that this is an older building and the interior has a tropical, musty smell. The showers and bathrooms are small for a large-frame person. The kitchen does not have a hot water tap and the water filter tap is across the patio from the kitchen, which was annoying. The washing machine has not been maintained for a long time; your clothes may smell musty after a wash.
Winter months in Rio (June - August) are perfect weather-wise and do not require the use of A/C; there’s a nice breeze through the apartment. However, as there are no screens on windows and patio doors, the mosquito situation was a nuisance beginning at sunset and lasting through the night. We had to shutter one of the bedrooms and run the A/C to minimize being bitten.

You may hear noises coming from the terrace/patio echoing neighbors’ activities throughout the day. We often heard our neighbor’s baby and dogs as early as 7am. The building is on a lovely tree-lined street, but the beautiful trees block the sun, and the apartment is dim after 2pm.
All in all, this is a good apartment for a short stay. With some improvements, we would stay here again. Gustavo’s approach to hosting and all the advice and attention he gave us, really made a difference, and made our stay memorable.