My friend and I stayed at Ester's Homestay during the Olympics and Paralympics in Rio and we could not have been happier. Ester and her husband went out of their way to make us feel at home. They showed us around the local area and even took us to their favourite pizza shop. The location in Vila Da Penha makes it easy if you want to travel around Rio but don't want to stay in a tourist area. It has a bus at the end of the street which takes you (in 5 mins) to a Metro Station or a BRT which will take you around the city. If you are on a budget but want to see some of the real Brazil then make sure you book with Ester. The room was fairly basic but had hot water, was clean and had a comfortable bed. Breakfast was also provided every morning even when we were leaving very early. Ester even looked after some of our bags for us while we went traveling for a week. I can honestly not speak highly enough of this homestay.