Mighty Amazon rivers, the pulsating rhythms of Carnaval, white-sand beaches and soccer flair – almost everyone on the planet knows something about Brazil. However, South America's largest country still holds many surprises. Although Rio de Janeiro attracts the most tourists – the best places to visit in Brazil extend to its strikingly diverse and staggeringly beautiful landscapes, with a corresponding cultural kaleidoscope. In one, vast nation this up-and-coming superpower encompasses the arid, mythical landscapes of the northeastern Sertão, the wildlife-rich plains of the Pantanal, the magnificent colonial hill towns of Minas Gerais, the urban chic of São Paulo, the aquatic maze of the Amazon, and the seemingly endless, mesmerizing tropical beaches along the entire southern Atlantic coast.