I got a Brasilia car rental through Booking.com to be able to see the highlights, because this is a city you genuinely cannot get around without one. The layout is closer to a sprawling US city like Houston than anywhere in Europe, with huge distances between the bits worth seeing and not much in between.

There are several car rental companies in Brazil. They’re not the usual international ones you see everywhere else – they have their own. They mostly all operate in a similar way. I rented mine through Localiza. Here’s exactly how it went, from pickup to drop-off, plus everything I wish I’d known beforehand.

Looking for things to do in Brasilia? Check out my full day Brasilia itinerary.

Picking up the Brasilia car rental

My booking confirmation said pickup from the Localiza desk in the terminal, so that’s where we went. This is apparently not correct. When you show the confirmation, they’ll send you upstairs. Do not waste your time hunting for a second desk upstairs, there is not one.

Where they’re actually sending you is to the Localiza shuttle bus that loops between the airport and the actual car park where the vehicles are kept. There is, of course, no sign for this. Apparently you have to be psychic to understand that ‘upstairs’ means shuttle bus with no sign. Or you can just ask the airport info desk up there too, who will direct you.

Said shuttle bus stops at door A, next to a green ‘A’ sign. But it isn’t there constantly. You have to hang around and wait for it by the A sign. You’ll know it when you see it: a big green minibus with Localiza written on the side.

The bus takes you to the Localiza branch itself, a large car park with a proper office, toilets, free water, and a coffee machine. This is where you get the car from.

The language barrier

Nobody at the Localiza branch spoke English. I tried in very slow spanish with a sprinkling of portuguese words, but we ended up communicating via Google Translate. The language thing was a bit of a shock honestly. I’m not naive enough to expect english would be spoken, but I thought given this is the capital and we’re at the international airport, maybe there would be one spanish speaker. Or a ‘portuñol’ speaker.

Anyway ChatGPT also came in useful here especially deciphering some of the issues around insurance and coverage, and the confusing messaging about deposit (see below). But the whole interaction took almost an hour because of the challenge with communicating.

Do you need an International Driving Permit for a Brasilia car rental?

Every source I checked online said I’d need an IDP alongside my UK licence to rent a car in Brazil. In practice, that wasn’t the case. They took my licence and passport and that was enough, although the agent did have to attempt to enter my UK licence number about ten times, which might just be down to how long UK licence numbers are.

I’d still get an IDP if you’re going, just in case. Technically they’re supposed to ask for one, and I got lucky that it wasn’t an issue.

Insurance

The insurance included through my Booking.com reservation was meant to cover everything, but turned out to be fairly basic. Unclear what happened here. But it was fixable – I never take chances with car rental coverage because you just never know what will happen.

We paid an extra $25 to upgrade the insurance to cover everything except theft. Given how chaotically people drive here (which I had read about online, but learned for myself the next day), and the state of some of the roads once you leave the city, it was worth every cent for the peace of mind.

The deposit for a car rental in Brasilia

The agent originally asked for a 7,000 Brazilian real deposit ($1350). Which honestly, felt wildly steep for a 22 hour rental. Once we upgraded the insurance, that dropped to 2,500 ($480). This was a bit higher than I’d expected but not as insane as the first quote, so was feasible.

They took it as a card hold rather than a charge, and released it the moment we dropped the car back the next day.

Getting the keys

We received the keys, told which spot the car was in, and that was it. Nobody walked us out to check the car over or flag any existing damage, which surprised me. I had to document several scratches and knocks myself, in the dark, before driving off. Thankfully it wasn’t an issue when we returned it, but I’m not sure if that’s standard practice or if they just weren’t up for another round of broken conversation with me.

The car itself was full of fuel and easy enough to drive.

The car itself

We booked an SUV. Mainly because I like SUVs, but given we knew we’d be driving several hours to other towns, it made most sense. This was definitely the right choice, as we ended up offroading for a while when we passed a massive stretch of roadworks an hour outside Brasilia. But for just staying in the city, you don’t really need a car this large.

The car was automatic. I read online that automatics are hard to come by in Brazil, but this was not my experience. Yes, they cost a bit more to rent. But when you’re taking a rental for a day, it’s less than $10 more. Worth it to not faff around with gear changes. I can drive manual, but why would I when I don’t have to?!

The car’s onboard system was the one genuine annoyance. You couldn’t use the built-in navigation without creating an account, and pairing the Bluetooth failed several times before it finally worked. We got there eventually, but it was far more complicated than it needed to be. That’s on the manufacturer rather than Localiza, but it’s still a baffling design choice for a rental car.

Fuel: ethanol or petrol

Our car was a hybrid, and they told us at pickup that it ran on either ethanol or petrol. I’d never driven anything that takes ethanol before, but at the pump it’s a total non-event. There’s just a separate ethanol nozzle sitting right next to the petrol one, and you use it exactly the same way.

Ethanol is cheaper, but it doesn’t get you as many miles per tank as petrol. If you’re filling up right before you return the car, that doesn’t really matter, you’re not going to be driving far enough afterwards for it to make a difference. The agent told us at pickup that the car had ethanol in it, so I wasn’t going to fill it with pricier petrol at my own expense on the way back.

Finding a station in Brasilia isn’t an issue. On the drive back to Brasilia airport we passed one roughly every three minutes.

One tip worth knowing: at the station, an attendant offered to wash the whole car down for about $10, using a trusty bucket and a big tank of water he had nearby. We took him up on it. After a day of driving on dusty roads, it meant we weren’t handing the car back covered in dirt that could get mistaken for damage at the drop-off inspection.

Returning the car

This part was refreshingly simple. Localiza runs a drive-through return: you pull up to the return sign. A member of staff with an iPad is waiting. They check the car inside and out, tap a button, and you’re done. The deposit releases immediately and the car gets driven off for you.

From there we walked round the corner to the waiting shuttle and were back at the airport in under five minutes.

Practical Brasilia car rental takeaways

• Booking a rental through Booking.com was relatively low-cost and gave a variety of options for providers, car types, etc. It was the easiest option given my usual go-to (Sixt) and other international car rental branches were not available.
• Rental car pickup is not actually in the terminal, irrespective of which company you use. There are minibuses that take you to the branches where the cars are stored. Ask the airport info to help you find these.
• The Localiza shuttle loops from door A to the actual car park. Wait for the big green minibus.
• Bring a UK or other foreign licence and passport. An IDP wasn’t required in practice, but bring one anyway if you can.
• Consider upgrading the insurance. It’s cheap relative to the peace of mind.
• Photograph the car yourself before you drive off, even if nobody offers to walk you round it.
• If your car’s a flex-fuel hybrid, check whether it’s running on ethanol or petrol before you refill, ethanol is cheaper but gives fewer miles per tank.
• Petrol stations are frequent on the main routes in Brasilia, expect one every few minutes on the drive to the airport.
• Returns are quick and painless, expect five to ten minutes door to door, and a quick shuttle back to the airport.

Once the car was sorted, we had a full day to explore. See my one-day itinerary for Brasilia here for exactly where we went.

FAQ on Brasilia car rental

Do I need an International Driving Permit for a car rental in Brasilia? 

Officially it’s recommended, but in practice a UK driving licence and passport were accepted without one. Bring an IDP if you can, just in case.

Is it car rental easy at Brasilia airport? 

Yes, though expect the process to take up to an hour, and don’t expect much English at the desk.

Do I need a car to see Brasilia? 

Effectively yes. It’s a spread-out, car-centric city with very little within walking distance. You could do it with ubers, but the price you’d pay to/from the airport and for various journeys around the city would work out pretty similar.

Is it safe to drive in Brasilia? 

The city itself is fine, with wide, well-marked roads. Once you head into surrounding rural areas, expect rougher unpaved roads and less predictable driving.

Also worth reading

How to spend a layover in Brasilia – an itinerary guide for where to take your car rental in Brasilia

Rio de Janeiro in a Day: The Ultimate One-Day Itinerary – plan a multi-city trip in Brazil, go here after Brasilia!

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