From Rua Princesa Isabel and posto dois (tower two) down to the fort at its southern tip, the four kilometres of black and white paved boulevard and golden sands that constitute Copacabana beach has long been the famous trademark of Rio de Janeiro around the world. Besdies the thousands of sun-worshippers and wave-riders that flock there by day, by night it has hosted record breaking live concerts for millions of music fans (The Rolling Stones and Rod Stewart to name but two) as well as the enormous new year's eve celebrations, complete with one of the world's most spectacular firework displays and a party to rival carnival itself.

The sands are at their widest to the north, where football pitches abound without fear of interrupting the bathers. Volleyball, futvolei and frescoball take up most of the space and the middle of the bay is where the best surf can usually be found. Here between postos 2 and 3 is the glorious Copacabana Palace hotel, the first landmark from the roaring '20s and the epicentre of much of the hedonism associated with the neighbourhood in the '70s and '80s.

The strip of sand between the Copacabana Palace and Rua Fernandes Mendes is the neighbourhood's answer to posto 8 in Ipanema, frequented by the local and tourist gay fraternity, and to the north by the Sofitel Hotel lies Fishermen's corner and the Copacabana Fort, both offering excellent reminders of the true history of the city before the hotels and tourists rolled into town.