Arpoador has long been the spiritual home of the city's surf scene, influencing the beach culture and fashions since the '70s with the growth of shops dedicated to the sport. Nowhere is this more evident than the Galeria River, a cluster of shops on the road that joins Copacabana and Ipanema with more surfboards per square inch than anywhere else in the city.

The corridors of this mini-mall are packed with everything for the outdoorsy type - decks, boards, inline skates, climbing gear and racks and racks of trainers and board shorts. Boards Co (21 2287 8189) is one of the better known, stuffed with labels like Billabong and Quiksilver. Rolling Time (21 2522 1967) is, as the name suggests, dedicated to everything skate-related, and Best 4 Fight (21 2143 7257) sell all the gear you could possibly need for boxing, Muay Thai and Jiu Jitsu. There are also music spaces such as Joey Ramone Place Rio (21 2523 4604) that sells everything Ramone-related, and hip hop specialists Dogs (21 2267 9768). For the girls the customized bikini styles of Yoho (21 3826 3810), and Squeeze Me (21 2541 8656) will also scratch that shopping itch.