Things to do in Rio Branco
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Museu da Borracha
Housed in a beautifully restored mansion, the Museu da Borracha has three small rooms with exhibits on the history of rubber-tapping. One room explains the extraction and processing of rubber, including the transition from using small axes (which killed the tree) to a tool called a cabrita (little goat), which only scrapes the surface. Other displays cover migration into Acre, the life and work of Chico Mendes and the Rural Workers Union, and relations with indigenous communities.
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Churrascaria Triângulo
True, the ambience here is quite lacking – it’s a hotel restaurant – but if you’re famished and in the mood for meat, you are sure to get your fill here. The rodízio is sort of an all-you-can-eat meat buffet: waiters pass by your table with long skewers of fresh-grilled meats that you can sample as long as your stomach and chair hold up. It also includes all the self-serve side dishes you like, as if you’ll have room.
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Palacio Rio Branco
Acre’s first capital building, the imposing Palacio Rio Branco is now mostly a tourist attraction. A maze of interconnected rooms contain interesting and well-done displays on prehistoric artifacts, indigenous communities, Chico Mendes and the Acrean Revolution. Docents are available for free guided tours, though you’ll have to understand Portuguese. (Same goes for the all displays.)
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SESC
An example of Rio Branco’s unexpected hipness is the city’s SESC complex, which operates as much as a cultural center as a social-services office. It sponsors lectures, screens creative film cycles and festivals, even stages live performances, all open to the public, and most free or under R$10. Stop by for a schedule, or keep an eye out for fliers at the other sights around town.
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AFA Bistrô D’amazônia
The name has changed but this unassuming bistro remains one of the best per-kilo lunch spots you’ll find in the Amazonia. The city’s professional classes pack in for fresh and original salad combinations, tender meat and fish dishes, and irresistible desserts. Sundays feature frutas do mar (seafood) and the price jumps to a hefty R$40 per kilo.
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Mercado Velho
Not only a great place for a meal or that late-afternoon beer, Rio Branco’s refurbished riverside Mercado Velho is a favorite spot for city-sponsored cultural events, including live music, dance performances, poetry readings and comedy troupes, usually held evenings and weekends.
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Café do Theatro
Part of the Memorial dos Autonomistas, this low-key café serves great coffee and light meals, including sandwiches and quiche. Daily specials (R$10 to R$18) are more substantial, and there’s an extensive wine and cocktail menu. Under renovation at the time of research.
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Memorial dos Autonomistas
In its spiffy home just uphill from the Palacio Rio Branco, the Memorial dos Autonomistas has a permanent display on the history of Acre’s battle for statehood plus space for rotating art exhibits, typically paintings and sculptures by local artists.
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Restaurant-Bars
Praça Bandeira has a handful of outdoor Restaurant-Bars overlooking the river. It's a popular place to nurse a few tall beers and contemplate the new pedestrian bridge, which at night is bathed in a hypnotic blue light.
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Cine João Paulo
Cine João Paulo has two screens showing relatively recent Hollywood movies. Next to, and operated by, the João Paulo Hotel whose guests get free passes.
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Maanaim Amazônia
Local tour operator offering everything from historical tours about Chico Mendes and the Acrean Revolution, to hiking and riverboat excursions.
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