In a hot crowded so called first class lounge in lounge in Sao Paulo, with disgusting food, cheap booze thankfully waiting to board my civilized emirates flight ....after an hour and a half navigating one of the most disgusting airports in the world. Long wait for luggage, queues everywhere because someone is on strike and a bovine local traveling population. Flying in and out of brazil is, in contemporary times one of the worlds great low grade experiences....

I've never had any particular problems at GRU. Usualyl in the lounge c20-30 minutes after being dropped off. I don't know which lounge you're in, but the ones I have used have always been perfectly pleasant, though I miss the old BA lounge. Connecting can be a pain - it depends on the time of day. I think you can experience the "bovine local travelling population" at most airports in the world, because most people don't travel very much.

Just generally unhappy or do you have specific points that might help travelers? I dislike GRU but don't know what lounge you're using (only one I've used is the United Red Carpet Lounge), and have no idea what you mean by a "bovine local traveling population." Slow? Ignorant? Fat (like Americans)? Please enlighten.

Brazilian airports are for the most part woefully in need of expansion and upgrades, and official pronouncements that all will be fine for the 2014 World Cup and 2016 Olympics are a joke (the government has a big deficit and has declared it won't cut back on social programs; plus there have been instances of corruption).

Some posters here think GIG is the worst airport in the country while others vote for GRU. Brasilia is pretty nice until you get through security and then it's cramped and confusing. Recife, served by American Airlines, is relatively nice. Fortaleza, where we are, has a smaller, more antiquated facility.

One thing travelers need to be aware of if transferring from a domestic flight to an international one in Brazil is that while your bags should be transferred to your international flight, you will likely need to exit security and stand in line at the check-in desk of your international airline, with people just starting their trip, and get your boarding pass.

Bottom line for me is that you don't expect a great experience and then can be pleasantly surprised if you have one.

You might want to post a review of the lounge at http://www.airlinequality.com/Product/Lounges.htm

At least you're leaving Sao Paulo, it could be worse, much worse, a thousand times worse, a million times worse...



you could be arriving in Sao Paulo.

Or arriving at airports in any number of poorer countries. I've been in over 40 countries for work and tourism. GRU is no gem, but if OP finds it one of the most disgusting in the world, they've led a (thankfully) sheltered life in terms of travel. OP says they were in a "hot, crowded" first class club. No AC? I can just imagine if they were in some small airport in parts of Africa or Asia, or even more basic airports in Brazil, such as Teresina and Fortaleza. Even finding a first class club sounds like progress, but maybe OP should avoid flying to Brazil. There are places with, in general, more comfortable airports.

If the OP thinks GRU is bad, he should spend sometime at some of the airports (and airport lounges) in the states. I'd take GRU anytime from an airport comfort standpoint over FLL, LGA (but not counting its closeness to Manhattan), EWR Terminal A, MCO, MCI, etc.

He would have really freaked if he had experienced the International terminal at GIG.

In all your travels in Brasil you haven't noticed that when you get a Brasilian into an airport they start mooing? Can hardly hear the flight announcements for the mooing.

Especially Terminal 1, which has one of the most cramped check-in areas I've ever seen (I shudder to think what it will look like during the World Cup and Olympics). Terminal 2 is a bit better.

:^

I like your bottom line I travel mainly in the BRICS, among developing countries and as hubs go GRU takes the cake.

I speak of theTAM First class lounge


For bovine please refer to the excellent St quoted below

:-:

I was peaking of international not provincial airports EWR is fine the lounges excellent