Rio de Janeiro, seen from Sugarloaf Mountain, Brazil

Rio de Janeiro, seen from Sugarloaf Mountain, Brazil

The bubble-like cable cars that take visitors from the streets of Rio to the top of Sugarloaf Mountain offer 360-degree views of the city and Guanabara Bay as they make the three-minute climb. The first cableway opened in 1912 with wooden trams that traveled up from Rio’s Praia Vermelha (Red Beach) to Morro da Urca, the smaller peak seen in this image. The current system opened in 1972 with updated cars and a new, second leg that takes visitors all the way to the top of Sugarloaf.