Buses from Rio de Janeiro to Florianopolis
Taking a bus south from Rio de Janeiro some 1,200 kms passing by the cities of Sao Paulo and Curitiba, you reach Brazil’s great southern island city of Florianopolis. With only one company making the direct trip by bus from Rio de Janerio to Florianopolis, during the high season seats sell out fast. But don't dispair, you can also go to Sao Paulo first and continue your trip by bus to Florianopolis from there, where they have more departures per day..
Rio to Florianopolis bus route
The bus company servicing the route from Rio to Florianopolis is called Kaissara and their website is http://www.kaissara.com.br.
They have one bus departure from the Novo Rio bus station in Rio per day and the journey takes 17 hours to arrive to the Rita Maria bus station in Florianopolis located on Avenida Paulo Fontes 1101, in the downtown area. Because there is only one departure per day, we recommend you book as far in advance as possible to secure your seats.
You could either make the trip yourelf to the Novo Rio terminal a few days in advance to secure your ticket, or book your ticket online with a credit card.
At the terminal they have a counter on the second floor of the terminal, and if you booked your ticket online, you must go there to collect it before you depart. Your ticket will have the departure gate printed on it and once the bus arrives you will need to take your luggage to the attendant near the back of the bus who will store them and give you a receipt which you must produce at the end of the journey to collect them. Then you head to the entrance of the bus where another attendant will check your ticket and passport before you enter.
The bus is EXECUTIVE class which means the seats are the semi-bed type which does not quite recline all the way, but generally more than economy class on flights. Air conditioning can get strong so make sure you have something warm with you in case. There is an onboard lavatory, but no food or drinks are offered during the journey, so you take advantage of when the bus does stop every 3 to 4 hours where it is possible to purchase food and beverages and use the restrooms.
Connecting buses from Sao Paulo
If you are unable to get the direct bus, then we suggest you take one of the many buses from Rio to the Sao Paulo Tiete terminal where there are more departures for Florianopolis per day. The journey time from Rio to Sao Paulo is 6 hrs, then from there to Florianopolis is a further 11 -12 hrs.
Read about buses from Rio de Janeiro to Sao Paulo
Read about buses from Sao Paulo to Florianopolis
If you have more time on you hands and can travel from Rio to Florianopolis over a few days, we suggest you consider taking the coastal road from Rio to Sao Paulo which includes great locations such as Ilha Grande and Paraty, before continuing on from Sao Paulo to Florianopolis.
Also read:
Buses from Ilha Grande to Paraty
Buses from Paraty to Sao Paulo
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