Getting There & Away

Lufthansa Flight

I flew from Brussels to São Paulo with Lufthansa. The ticket cost me:

Flight	540.00 EUR
Taxes	241.08 EUR
Ticket Service Charge	10.00 EUR
Total	791.08 EUR

Airport Transfers

From Guarulhos airport, I took the airport bus to República (27 BRL), followed by a taxi to my hotel. On the way back, I followed the route I should have taken on the way in as well. I walked from my hotel to the São Joaquim metro station, took the metro to the Rodoviário Tietê (2,30 BRL), where I boarded a bus to the airport (28,05 BRL). The bus journey took about 50 minutes.

The schedule for the Guarulhos airport bus service can be found on their web site:

http://www.airportbusservice.com.br

Bus from Rio

Travelling from Rio to São Paulo, I took a bus. There’s no need to make advance reservations. Buses run frequently and there are plenty of available seats. An Executive bus cost me 62 BRL. The journey was very comfortable and took about 6 hours, with one stop along the way. They played movies, but the sound wasn’t too loud to prevent me from sleeping.

To get to my hotel, I took the metro from the Tietê bus station to São Joaquim, and walked the rest of the way.

Accommodation

Mercure Apartments Central Towers

On both visits to São Paulo, I stayed at the Mercure Apartments Central Towers. I made reservations through the Accor hotels web site:

http://www.accorhotels.com/accorhotels/fichehotel/gb/mer/3626/fiche_hotel.shtml

I chose an Accor hotel because they are guest friendly. I chose Central Towers because of its proximity to a metro station (São Joaquim).

The apartment had a kitchenette with a micro wave oven, a fancy bathroom, a large safe, a relax chair and a soft bed. An oval black table was perfect to set up my laptop. The hotel provided the cable for the Internet connection.

When I made the hotel reservation for my first visit, I booked a double room. When I checked in alone, they told me I wouldn’t have to pay the double room rate unless I actually had company. When I checked out, they tried to charge me the double room rate anyway. But in the end, I paid the single room rate for the days I didn’t have company and the double room rate for the days I had a visitor. And since the hotel didn’t keep records, I was able to cheat a little.

For my second visit, I booked a single room. When I checked out, they tried to charge me a 50 BRL joiner’s fee for the night Simone visited my apartment. I reminded them of the rules that applied for my first stay, and paid the double room rate instead.

This is an overview of the room rates I paid:

	Weekdays	Weekends
Single Room	154 BRL	113 BRL
Double Room	178 BRL	130 BRL

Those rates do not include the 1,2 BRL room tax and 5% government tax. Breakfast was not included either. A sumptuous buffet breakfast was available for 10 BRL.

In the Neighborhood

Turn right as you walk out of the hotel and you’ll pass 2 luncheonettes on the other side of the street. The “Bar do Zebra” serves good food.

Continue walking to the corner with Pedroso and you’ll find a Pão de Açúcar supermarket. The supermarket also has an ATM machine, which charges a 6 BRL service fee. Between 10 PM and 6 AM, it won’t give you more than 100 BRL.

On the corner, look to your right and you’ll see a McDonald’s across the bridge. Turn left just past McDonald’s and you’ll reach the São Joaquim metro station.

Taxis

São Paulo is a huge city, traffic is hell and taxis are expensive. When I visited an escort’s apartment, I always asked her what the closest metro station was. Taking the metro to the station closest to your destination is a great way to economize on transportation costs.

Sample taxi fares from my apartment:

* Millennium: 15 BRL (Tariff B)
* Eu & Elas: 12 BRL (Tariff B)
* Rua Augusta: 16 BRL (Tariff B)
* Congonhas Airport: 24 BRL (Tariff A)
* Kilt Shows: 9 BRL (Tariff B)

Tariff A is the daytime tariff. Tariff B applies at night.

I avoided destinations that were too far away from my apartment.

Next: Overview & Conclusions