Rio Finalizes Réveillon 2026 With 19-Barge Fireworks, 1,200-Drone Show and Tight Access Rules

Overview

• Copacabana’s pyrotechnics will run 12 minutes from 19 offshore barges, featuring a choreographed ‘ballet’ of fireworks developed with France’s Groupe F.
• Access to Copacabana closes completely to vehicles at 21:00 on Dec 31, with 24 special bus lines dropping passengers at Av. Princesa Isabel between 18:00 and 21:00.
• MetrôRio requires a R$15 round-trip Réveillon pass with timed entry windows for the night operation, and returns are permitted only with the event wristband from midnight to 5:00.
• Security plans include 78 monitoring towers in Copacabana, 1,370 municipal agents, 17 pedestrian screening points and bans on glass bottles and unauthorized enclosures on the sand.
• The public program spans 13 stages citywide, with Copacabana hosting three headliners: Gilberto Gil with Ney Matogrosso, Belo with Alcione, João Gomes with Iza, DJ Alok and samba schools; authorities expect about 5 million attendees, roughly half at the beach.