"Brazil brought the U.N.’s COP30 climate conference to the Amazon. Then the price frenzy began." 

"The idea had seemed symbolically fitting at first — a global climate summit set on the edge of the threatened Amazon rainforest.

But as the annual U.N. climate mega-conference, known this year as COP30, draws nearer, what seemed poetic is now turning into a contentious fiasco.

In the Brazilian host city of Belém, the few remaining hotel rooms are going for 10 and 20 times their usual cost. Residents in high-rises and favelas are offering up their homes at rates often exceeding $1,000 per night. An official booking portal for attendees includes a love motel that costs $6,660, for a 15-night minimum stay."

Chico Harlan, Marina Dias and Nilson Cortinhas report for the Washington Post September 10, 2025. [2]

SEE ALSO:

"Brazil Invited the World to the Amazon. It’s Become a Big Headache." (New York Times) [3]