San Paulo

[Guest Rickx]

HI Guys. I will be San Paulo for the first time in November for 2 nights. I would like to know if anyone has a good hotel to recomend. Is there a gay area to the city?

[trilingual]

Please look in the Escorts South FAQ section for this topic, and also use the search function within the Message Center using keywords like "Sao Paulo Hotel". Limit your search to the M4M site. There have been many postings on this subject. You'll have better luck searching using the correct spelling of the city's name: São Paulo, or Sao Paulo without the tilde. There is no such place as San Paulo! At least not in Brazil.

 

If you still haven't found what you need after doing that, please come back with more specific questions, which we'll be happy to answser!

[sf traveler]

While it's my invariable policy to agree with Tri, you'll find I think a great divergence of opinion. My view, not shared by all, is that the Centro has too much crime, especially at night, for people who aren't very familiar with Brazil. I don't stay there although several others have praised its charms. I like to stay somewhere in the Avenida Paulista area close to a Metro stop. Sauna Lagoa is very close to the Santa Cruz metro (just follow Tri's directions in Review #1 to Brazilian Saunas). I wouldn't try to find a hotel close to Lagoa since there's nothing close enough. I should be frank and tell you that I'm not on a tight budget and, if you are, you might have to look harder at some of the places in the Centro. Carlo Romano can book your hotels and has lots of good recommendations. SF Traveler

[trilingual]

Crime in downtown SP (the Centro) is overrated in my opinion. Not that it doesn't exist, but exercising normal caution will help you avoid unpleasant situations.

 

If you're only going to be in SP for a couple of days, one advantage of staying downtown is that there's plenty of nightlife right outside your hotel door if you stay on Av. Vieira de Carvalho, plus there are decent restaurant options. The hotels downtown are less expensive than in the Av. Paulista area, but there's a good range of choices in terms of prices and luxury.

 

For getting around, there's a metro station in Pça. da República, at one of the ends of Vieira de Carvalho. One of the Airport Express bus routes from Guarulhos (the int'l airport which is far from town) has its terminus on the Pça. da República. There's service every half hour.

 

For ease of access, I'd strongly suggest staying only downtown or in the Av. Paulista area, because otherwise there's no metro and you may find yourself very far away from gay life, which tends to be concentrated downtown and in the Jardins area near Av. Paulista. As long as you stay in one of those areas, you'll have a good time in SP!