During the Olympic Games, from Friday 5 August until Sunday 21 August 2016, a Luxembourg Hospitality House will be in operation for the Luxembourg team and friends.
At the Luxembourg Hospitality House, Team Lëtzebuerg and friends of the team will all be welcome, as well as Luxembourg residents in Rio. There will be regular events held in the Luxembourg Hospitaliy House throughout the duration of the Olympic Games - the programme of the various events to be held in "Luxembourg Hospitality House" will be published at a later date. For further information, see http://teamletzebuerg.lu/2016/07/luxembourg-hospitality-house/
In addition to this, Luxembourg’s Ministry of Foreign and European Affairs in Luxembourg has published information including advice for people travelling to Rio de Janeiro for the occasion of the Olympic Games, including advice on health and hygiene (see www.gouvernement.lu/6151574/07-recommandations-rio) as well as personal safety (dress “low profile”, do not use/show credit cards outdoors, use only official modes of transport (subway, bus, taxi), avoid empty streets and walking on the beach after dark, carry your passport on you at all times. Rio de Janeiro faces a serious traffic problem especially in the morning between 07:00 and 10:00 and in the afternoon between 16:00 and 20:00, when traffic is slow. There are police stations in Rio that are specially designed to help tourists (Leblon, Copacabana). The officers often speak a little Spanish, and sometimes a little English or French.
The Ministry has also advised that staying in Rio de Janeiro is not cheap and Vpay cards are not valid in Brazil but credit cards are widely accepted. However, frauds involving credit cards are common. As Honorary Consulates are not able to mediate in case of difficulties in financial transactions, the Ministry recommends Luxembourg nationals to contact SIX-Cetrel customer service (former CETREL) to signal their trip to Rio to avoid the automatic blocking of the card after repeated use (email: info.lux@six-payment-services.com).
BASIC INFORMATION
- Portuguese is the official language of Brazil. Other languages are generally little understood;
- The time difference with Luxembourg is 5 hours. When it is 10:00 in Rio, it is 15:00 in Luxembourg. The Olympics will take place during the winter season in Rio. The daytime temperature may vary between 15 and 30 degrees, and during the night between 10-15 degrees;
- Regarding information about the Olympic and Paralympic Games, the official website of Rio2016 is https://www.rio2016.com/fr ;
- to take advantage of the city’s excellent gastrony, the site "Visitrio" includes everything you need to know about the wonderful city: http://visit.rio/en/home-2/
- Persons holding a smartphone or tablet can download a Rio Guia Oficial app (both iPhone and Android) which contains travel information provided by the city of Rio in three languages (English / Portuguese / Spanish):
The Honorary Consulate of Luxembourg in Rio Janeiro can be contacted at:
Tel .: (+55) 21 25 21 78 35 / E-mail: consulux@hotmail.com
Address: Rua Francisco Otaviano, 87 apt. 203, Copacabana, 22080-040 Rio de Janeiro, RJ, Brazil
Outside of office hours or in the case of an emergency, please contact the following number: Terry Niesen, Tel .: (+55) 21 966 711 311, Email: terry.niesen@mae.etat.lu
Address: Rua Joaquim Pinheiro, 377, Bloco 1, 503 22743-660, Freguesia (Jacarepagua) Rio de Janeiro, RJ, Brazil
Honorary consulates in Brazil can be contacted for the following services:
-to issue a temporary travel document in case of theft;
- to provide details of a lawyer or a local doctor in case of accident;
- to ensure that family and relatives in Luxembourg are informed promptly in case of serious accident, hospitalisation or death;
- contact the local authorities in case of a disappearance;
- to ensure proper respect for the rights of the detained citizen of Luxembourg in case of an arrest.
