My wife and I recently spent 5 nights at the Fairmont Copacabana in Rio de Janeiro, and we enjoyed our stay. We were warmly welcomed upon arrival by the bellmen Rogerio, Jose Carlos, and Mauricio.
Our check in was very smooth with Carol, who was wonderful. She was able to get us an early check in. Additionally, she arranged an early check in for my elderly brother’s early morning arrival the next day for a half day fee. His actual check-in was with a different person, and was fairly smooth, although I was a bit disappointed by the location of the room.
The hotel is super clean, and of course, has a wonderful view of Copacabana. The facilities are upscale and probably the some of the best that we have experienced in a hotel stay during our decades traveling in Brazil. The service was good, but not outstanding, with one great exception. Edna served us at breakfast one morning and she was outstanding! We were waiting on family to arrive and they were delayed, and she brought us coffee, some breads, and juices, without us even asking, and did so with a lovely smile and elegance. Edna is an example of what unpretentious 5-star service should be about. Something was missing on the service side from most of the staff, including the concierge and other servers. My wife is Brazilian and I speak Portuguese, so it was not a language issue.
We would overall recommend the hotel, and would return, albeit with lower expectations.