São Paulo
Population: 11’300’000
Date of visit: February 2015
Attractions & sights: 2/5
Nightlife: 5/5
Safety: 3/5
Infrastructure: 3/5
Low budget factor: 2/5
Total: 👍👍/5
The city in a nutshell:
The largest city of the Southern hemisphere is the heart of Brazil’s economy but not a great tourist destination. It’s a huge concrete jungle with few sights but amazing nightlife.
Where to stay:
Near Avenida Paulista.
The Good:
The nightlife is among the best in the world. The city is full of good bars and amazing nightclubs. Basically, you can go out every night and find a good party (which is not the case in Rio for example).
People who are interested in art might like São Paulo, as the city has a lot of art galleries and museums.
Another plus is that São Paulo is not as dangerous as Rio. Of course, there are favelas too, but there are also safe neighbourhoods, where you even can walk at night.
The Bad & The Ugly:
Like many other business cities, São Paulo lacks beauty. It’s a gigantic concrete jungle without many sights and attractions. For example, TripAdvisor lists Liberdade, the Japanese quarter of the city, as the fifth best attraction in São Paulo. This neighbourhood is rather underwhelming though and not comparable to Chinatowns in other cities for example. Going there for sightseeing is not recommended therefore, but the city offers a view on urban Brazilian lifestyle.
It’s also Brazil’s most expensive city. Lonely Planet describes it as follows: Brazilian cities are expensive, but São Paulo is the beast among the bunch.
Find other City Ratings here.
