Olympic tourists: favelas are safe place to stay

(8 Aug 2016) Despite several embassies in Brazil advising their citizens not to visit Rio de Janeiro favelas, many foreigners in town for the Olympics are choosing to stay in hostels inside these areas. There are more than 100 favelas in Rio de Janeiro and many are just a short walk away from Olympic venues such as the beach volleyball arena in Copacabana. Despite the city's pacification programme aimed at removing dangerous drug dealers from these areas, shootouts and robberies have increased in recent months. Still, hostel owners in the Chapeu Mangueira and Babilonia favelas in Copacabana say their rooms are fully booked for the Olympic Games. French tourist Pierre Legat said on Monday the favela where he is staying has "a great atmosphere." Andrew Johnson, a tourist visiting from Canada, said he feels safer in some favelas "than I do walking around the beach and some of the tourist areas". Usually in their mid 20s with a smaller budget, guests originating from all five continents say they choose to stay in hostels because they want a unique experience, meeting locals and demystifying the stereotype of favelas they get abroad. You can license this story through AP Archive: http://www.aparchive.com/metadata/youtube/8fa5c8dc22c63e6b404115f38276110f Find out more about AP Archive: http://www.aparchive.com/HowWeWork