Parque Lage

Parque Lage is a public park in Rio de Janeiro located in the Jardim Botânico district, at the foot of the Corcovado hill.

The mansion

It’s one of the most beautiful parks in Rio, and its main distinctive feature is the big mansion at its centre. This was once the residence of local businessman Henrique Lage and his wife Gabrielle Besanzoni, an Italian opera singer. In 1920, they had it remodelled in Roman style by an Italian architect. The result is striking - an Italian mansion surrounded by lush greenery with Cristo Redentor standing atop Corcovado hill in the background. In 1960, the grounds became a public park and are now accessible to all free of charge.

The mansion is just as impressive inside as it is from the outside, and has a beautiful courtyard with decorative pool and a café. Everyone loves taking pictures here so there tends to be a large queue, and for some reason they only allow smartphone cameras within the courtyard. The building also houses the School of Visual Arts - what a fitting location to spark creativity!

It is no surprise that this extremely photogenic spot has appeared in several music videos, such as Snoop Dog & Pharrel Williams - Beautiful and Black Eyed Peas - Don’t Lie.

Hiking to Corcovado

Parque Lage is part of the Tijuca Rainforest, and if you are feeling adventurous you can follow the trail at the back leading out of the park and deeper into the jungle, all the way up to Corcovado. It’s a challenging hike, with a steep ascent. While Parque Lage itself is perfectly safe, know that there have been quite a few robberies reported on the trail leading to Cristo Redentor - in one particular incident more than 30 people were ambushed and stripped of their possessions. Things might be a little different now, but personally I would avoid. Trem do Corcovado is a better option.