Road to Rio $4.5 million in rental income in its initial release period in the United States and was placed sixth in the top-grossing films of 1947. The critics liked it, with "The New York Times" saying in its review of February 19, 1948, inter alia: "With Bing Crosby and Bob Hope on the tramp again in “Road to Rio,” recklessly scattering jokes and rescuing perennial girl friend Dorothy Lamour from dangerous hypnotic trances, there’s fun to be had at the Paramount. Maybe this is not the funniest picture ever made; maybe it is not even quite as rewarding as some of those
Road to Bali walk away from the camera and Hope tells his story in exaggerated pantomime (out of earshot). Crosby then walks back toward the audience and shrugs at the camera, indicating Hope's description was indecipherable. Hope Enterprises owned one-third of the film and Bob Hope wrote about this in his book "This Is on Me". "There are other pleasant things about owning part of a picture. In the "Road to Bali" there was a beach scene for which tons of beautiful white sand had been trucked in from Pebble Beach. I had just put in a one-hole golf course at my house