[4] The Copacabana Palace was built by Octavio Guinle and Francisco Castro Silva from 1919-1923, at the initiative of President Epitacio Pessoa, who wanted a large hotel in the nation's capital to host the visitors attending the Independence Centenary International Exposition.

The hotel was the first large building on Copacabana beach, facing Avenida Atlântica, which had just been extended in 1919 by engineer Paulo de Frontin.

The hotel opened on August 13, 1923, months after the exposition closed, due to numerous construction delays, caused by the difficulty of importing Carrara marble and Bohemia crystal; the complex foundation work, requiring a depth of fourteen meters; the lack of technology and experience in the country for such manufacturing; and a violent undertow that, in 1922, destroyed Avenida Atlântica, causing damage to the hotel's lower floors.

The casino was transformed into a concert hall, and the hotel underwent a major renovation, designed by architect Wladimir Alves de Sous and completed in 1949.

Overseen by engineer César Melo e Cunha, the work increased the hotel's capacity by adding a side pergola and a rear annex.

[7] Guests of the Copacabana Palace include Walt Disney, Marlene Dietrich, Ginger Rogers, Brigitte Bardot, Jayne Mansfield, Paul McCartney, Janis Joplin, Madonna, Mick Jagger, Princess Diana, Carla Bruni, Halle Berry, Lana Del Rey, Justin Bieber, and Miley Cyrus.