Getting Around

City Layout

Some 17 million people make their home in and around São Paulo. It's a daunting number. But for all its ridiculous sprawl there's a charm to South America's biggest city, and getting around the areas of interest is neither difficult nor especially stressful.

Centro -- The old heart of the city stands around Praça da Sé, atop what was once a small hill circled by a pair of small rivers. Little remains of that original city; Paulistas take a manic joy in knocking buildings down almost as soon as they go up. The neo-Gothic Catedral da Sé dates to only 1912. Evidence of the city's age can be seen only in downtown's narrow and irregular streets. Rua Direita, São Paulo's original main street, leads through this maze to a viaduct crossing over a busy freeway that now occupies the Anhangabaú valley and into the "newer" section of the old town. This area, centered on leafy green Praça República, contains government buildings plus office buildings from the '20s to the '40s (and later). Back at the edge of the Anhangabaú valley stands the ornate Teatro Municipal, a Parisian-style opera house still heavily used for concerts and theater. The Anhangabaú River which once separated the two halves of downtown was long ago filled and covered with a freeway, which in turn has been covered over by broad and open city plaza -- the Parque Anhangabaú -- which effectively rejoins the two halves of downtown. Together, these two halves of the old inner city are known as Centro.

Higienópolis -- Immediately west of Centro is one of São Paulo's original upscale suburbs, Higienópolis. Though long since swallowed up in the city, Higienópolis remains a green and leafy enclave with some good restaurants and the city's Museum of Brazilian Art, also known as FAAP.

Liberdade & Bixiga -- To the south of Centro are two turn-of-the-20th-century working-class neighborhoods long adopted by immigrants. Due south of Centro is Liberdade, said to have the largest Japanese population of any city outside Japan. In addition to great food and interesting shopping, Liberdade is also home to the Museum of Japanese Immigration. Southwest of Centro lies Bela Vista, more often referred to as Bixiga. This is São Paulo's Little Italy, home to the Memorial Museum of Bixiga. Bela Vista in turn butts up against São Paulo's proudest street, the Avenida Paulista.

Avenida Paulista -- Long and straight and set on a ridge above surrounding neighborhoods, the Avenida Paulista boasts rank upon rank of skyscrapers, the headquarters of the city's banking and financial interests. On the adjacent side streets are numerous hotels catering to business travelers. Halfway along the street is São Paulo's top-notch Museum of Art, known by its Portuguese acronym as MASP. Avenida Paulista marks the border between the old working-class areas and the new middle-class neighborhoods.

Jardins -- Extending southwest from Avenida Paulista are a series of upscale neighborhoods developed in the '20s according to the best Garden City principles and accordingly named gardens (jardins) to emphasize their green and leafy separation from the gritty urban core. Though each area has a particular name -- Jardim Paulista, Jardim America, Cerqueira Cesar, Jardim Europa -- Paulistas tend to refer to them as a group as Jardins.

What these areas offer is a bit of calm, some terrific restaurants, and the best shopping in São Paulo. Particularly noteworthy is the Rua Augusta, which intersects the Avenida Paulista at the Consolação Metrô stop and continues southwest through the heart of the Jardins. The few square blocks where Rua Augusta is intersected by Alameda Lorena and Rua Oscar Freire is the apex of the city's upscale shopping scene, São Paulo's Rodeo Drive.

Rua Augusta continues on straight through the Jardins, changing names as it goes to Avenida Columbia and then Avenida Europa and finally Avenida Cidade Jardim. At this point it intersects with Avenida Brigadeiro Faria Lima. Though a much less fashionable street, Av. Brig. Faria Lima is home to a number of large shopping malls; the most important is Shopping Iguatemi. Following Av. Brig. Faria Lima northwest leads to another Jardim-like area called Pinheiros; going the opposite direction leads to Itaim Bibi and then to a fun and slightly funky area of restaurants, clubs, and cafes called Vila Olímpia.

The Park -- The last key element to São Paulo is a green space -- Ibirapuera Park. Located immediately south of Jardim Paulista, Ibirapuera is to São Paulo what Central Park is to New York. It's a place for strolling, lazy sun-tanning, outdoor concerts, and the view to a couple of the city's top cultural facilities, including the Modern Art Museum and the São Paulo Bienal.

Getting Around

São Paulo has a convenient public transportation system, and many of its tourist-oriented neighborhoods are compact enough for a stroll. However, at night it's safest to take a taxi to and from your destination.

On Foot -- Though São Paulo itself is huge, many of the neighborhoods that make up the city are compact enough to be easily explored on foot. This is especially true of the more pleasant neighborhoods such as Centro, Higienópolis, Jardins, Vila Madalena, and Ibirapuera. During the day the city is quite safe; in the evening the safest neighborhoods are Jardins, Higienópolis, and the residential areas of the city. Best avoided are the quiet side streets of Centro, particularly the empty shopping streets around Praça Sé, Bexiga, and around Luz station.

By Subway -- The Metrô is the easiest way to get around São Paulo. There are three lines: the North-South line, East-West line, and the line that travels underneath the Avenida Paulista. The two main lines converge at Sé station, the busiest station of all. These two lines run daily from 5am until midnight. The line under Avenida Paulista meets the North-South line at Paraiso and Ana Rosa stations and runs daily from 6am to 10pm. It is usually a lot quicker to take the Metrô as close as possible to your destination -- even if it means a bit more of a walk or a short taxi ride -- than taking the bus all the way. Metrô tickets cost R$2.10 (US90¢) for a single ride; a 10-ride ticket is available for R$20 (US$8.40). For more information contact tel. 011/3286-0111.

By Bus -- Good as Sao Paulo's Metrô is, there are some places you can only get to by bus. São Paulo buses are plentiful and frequent, but the city's sprawling layout and lack of landmarks can make the system hard to navigate. The routing information on the front and sides of the buses works the same as in Rio. A few useful routes are listed below (more are given with particular attractions and restaurants), but there will be many others running along similar routes. Buses cost R$2 (US85¢), and you pay as you board through the front of the bus. Bus drivers generally won't stop unless you wave your hand to flag them down. Some useful routes are:

No. 702P, Belém-Pinheiros: From Praça da República along Rua Augusta, then north on Av. Brigadeiro Faria Lima into Pinheiros.

No. 701U, Jaçanã-Butantã-USP: From Praça República along Av. Ipiranga, Rua da Consolação, and Av. Rebouças to Buntantã and the University of São Paulo.

No. 5100, 5131: From Brigadeiro Metrô station, along Av. Brig. Luis Antonio to Ibirapuera Park.

No. 5175, 5178: From Ibirapuera Park (opposite main gate) along Av. Pedro Alvares Cabral to Brigadeiro Metrô station.

The bottom line? If possible we recommend going by Metrô. Whenever possible we have chosen the closest Metrô stop instead of the bus stop.

By Taxi -- Taxis are a great way to get around São Paulo, and an absolute must late at night. You can hail one anywhere on the street, and taxi stands are usually found on main intersections, next to malls, squares, and parks. To order a taxi at a specific time, call a radio taxi. Rádio Táxi Vermelho e Branco (the name means "red-and-white") can be reached at tel. 011/3146-4000. Cost depends on traffic, so the following prices are only guidelines: From Centro to Avenida Paulista, R$15 (US$6.25); from Avenida Paulista to Vila Olímpia, R$20 to R$28 (US$8.40-US$12); from Avenida Paulista to Higienópolis, R$16 (US$6.65).

By Car -- Driving in São Paulo is for the daring, the foolish, or the infinitely patient; traffic is always chaotic and frequently snarled and slow, particularly during rainstorms when water floods the streets. Oh, and when you want to stop, parking is expensive and difficult to find. São Paulo's appalling traffic has given rise to the world's largest fleet of civilian helicopters that ferry commuting executives in from their suburban homes.

Note that in an attempt to declog the streets the city has brought in a traffic rotation system. Cars with a license plate that ends in 1 or 2 are not allowed to drive in the city on Monday; plates ending in 3 or 4 are banned on Tuesday, no plates ending in 5 or 6 on Thursday, and on Friday 9s and 0s are off the streets. These restrictions are in effect between 7 and 10am and 5 and 8pm. Service vehicles are excluded from this regulation. Fines are steep, and photo radar and police keep track of cars as they enter the city.

Watch Out for Rogue Motorcyclists--São Paulo has the highest number of motorcycles in the country, most of them used by couriers. Be careful; even when traffic is backed up motorcycles will ride at high speeds weaving in between stopped cars.