YYZ to IAH to GIG
We flew to Rio de Janeiro to meet our cruise ship at the end of March. We booked our flights through Expedia and collected Aeroplan points with the two affiliated airlines. Unfortunately, our flights were not direct, so we had a long 10h stop over in Houston, Texas before taking the overnight flight to Rio. We considered booking a hotel but had trouble finding one that would provide day use. In the end, we stayed in the airport, ate our lunch and a dinner and read a lot!
When possible, we use public transit to deliver us from the airport to our accommodations. This time we tried a car service. We used Kiwitaxi for our transfer from the Rio àirport to our hotel with success. We were met by a young woman with our names written on a sign as we exited from the baggage claim. Then, we were escorted to our driver. It was a very easy process. We had a number to call in case of a delay in flights, etc. Rio traffic is similar to Toronto’s rush hour. We were relieved to have a safe driver and an air-conditioned car! It was worth the $25USD for the door to door service. Kiwitaxi is not always cheaper than other taxis, but it was a great option for us in Rio. 
Kiwitaxi was a safer car service option because we knew we’d be too tired- post flights- to navigate a new and different transit/taxi system. With luggage and no ability to speak Portuguese, we made the right choice.

Copacabana Beach
Our hotel was directly on Copacabana Beach. There were a lot of local restaurants and places to eat. We enjoyed our room at the Windsor California Copacabana (booked via Expedia) and there was a great view from the rooftop.
We were up for 36h so a comfy bed was essential. We were able to check in early, at arrival, which was even better. The breakfast buffet was delicious with lots of variety and excellent service. This was included in our booking. 
We walked along the beach side and enjoyed the views and the warmth despite a tiny bit of drizzle.
We enjoyed a local Galeta platter -a barbecue place- for our first meal. It had sausage, chicken and beef with fries and shredded cassava & egg. We enjoyed it with a locally brewed beer. 
We decided to eat dinner in our hotel restaurant in the 15th floor which had the beach view from the front and a view of Christ the Redeemer from the back windows! The staff were attentive and helpful. We found this hotel was the perfect place to rest and recover from our flights before embarking on our cruise the next day.