How many days in SAO vs RIO
 

I'll be in Brazil for 10 days and am arriving on a Friday morning in Sao Paulo.
How many days would be recommended to get a good feel for Sao Paulo before heading to Rio? I see many people it is boring compared to Rio.

I was thinking of heading to Rio on Sunday morning after 2 days.

I'm mostly interested in night life, food, culture, parties, etc.

Thanks

Brazilians come to São Paulo because there is work. It's full of skyscrapers and pollution, and not easy for a casual visitor to access, whereas Rio will grab you from the first moment with its culture and music and beautiful views. With just 10 days to get the unique flavor of Brazil, I would arrange to fly directly into Rio, and if not possible, leave for Rio immediately. You could get the bus up the coast to Paraty and spend a day or so of beach time at Trindade. Beach towns are usually pretty lively (depending on time of year of course). Go on to Angra dos Reis and get a ferry to Ilha Grande for a few days. Then ferry back and continue on to Rio on Costa Verde busline. (www.ipanema.com gives a good overview of Rio--neighborhoods, clubs, etc.)

Thank you, unfortunately I must arrive/depart from Sao Paulo as I got a very good rate on the flight ($780 RT from SF) but perhaps I will just spend 1 night in Sao Paulo since I am already there and move forward to Rio.

Do a search on "36 hours São Paulo" for several NYTimes and other articles on things to do in the city.

Don't even leave the airport and waste your time in SP, take the first flight to Rio! You can find a cheap rt at http://www.mundi.com.br ^

I think some of the posters here didn't read your interests. Rio is a better city than Sao Paulo but unfortunately Rio's night life can be severely lacking, especially on weeknights. I think Sunday morning is a great time to head to Rio, especially since Av Atlantica is closed on Sundays and you can stroll through and get a feel.

Last time I was in Brazil I flew into Sao Paulo for 1 night, headed to Foz for 2, then to Rio for the rest of my trip. I had a girl I know from Rio fly up to Sao Paulo, got a club level room at the Renaissance (not a cheap hotel, but worth it for a short stay) and we went out and had a good time. Some notable night spots:

Sky Bar at the top of Hotel Unique: http://www.hotelunique.com.br/skyerest_ing.html

D-Edge (ranked as #42 night club in the world) http://www.d-edge.com.br/

Provocateur (I didn't go here but have heard its on par with D-Edge) - http://provocateurclubsp.com.br/

Love Story. A super late night club where Mike Tyson infamously punched a photographer at a few years ago: http://www.danceterialovestory.com/

I went to the 1st 2, wished I could have went to the others I mentioned. Definitely stay 2 nights if that is what you are interested in because Rio by far is a daytime city. An honest assessment I have found can be found here: http://www.rooshv.com/is-sao-paulo-b...orth-the-visit


By the way, when is your trip? I'll be in Rio for 2 weeks in April

Also, get a hard copy of this book: http://www.rioforpartiers.com/ Worth 5x its value when you consider the information on where to go and what to do. It tells you what spots are happening on which nights and comes out annually. I see the ebook is free now but definitely support the author if you can

The so-called Sao Paulo International Airport is in the nearby city of Guarulhos (even announcements in the airport now just say "GRU"), so you wouldn't exactly be "in" Sao Paulo when you land. Lots of flights to Rio, both the larger Tom Jobim Airport (GIG) and the smaller downtown airport Santos Dumont (SDU). Of you could go to downtown Sao Paulo and take a bus from there to Rio. Certainly a lot more to see than Rio and SP. Paraty, Tiradentes, Ouro Preto, etc., etc., etc. Friends love SP for its museums and shopping. Rio is certainly more picturesque, and worth a visit, but I think there's also some hyperbole regarding its charms (I worked there for 2 years and have visited since). Get a guide book and plan ahead. Number of days one "should" spend in each place depends on their interests. Do some research first, then ask questions.

Friends, at a guess, would be Brazilians from the hinterlands (Fortaleza perhaps) where certain goods might not be so available, with a bit of money, but not enough (or not the inclination) to go abroad to Miami, where certainly prices for goods are much lower and many Brazilians shop in preference to any domestic city.

For a city of its size, Sao Paulo has museums that are sadly lacking in quality. Anyone who has had the opportunity to visit a city of that size (or some even smaller) in the US or Europe has had the opportunity to see great museums and their major works of art. MASP, Pinacoteca, smaller museums such as the Lasar Segall (artist's house), are however a good way to learn something about Brazilian art history and Brazilian artists such as Portinari, a seldom covered area in even university level art history courses.

It really depends. If you come to Brazil to hear the same old music you can hear in London or NYC, then perhaps clubs in Sao Paulo might be preferable. But if you travel all the way to Brazil and want to hear the unique rhythms of the country you are in, Rio is not lacking in any way on any night. There are plenty of venues to go dancing and listen to music styles from samba gafiera to forro to bossa nova to Brazilian funk and lots more--every night of the week. However, if you take advice from a guidebook aimed at party-hearty foreign tourists, you may never discover many of them.
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And since the OP describes himself as a "music maker", one more reason to suggest the unique musical culture of Rio.

I don't mean to offend, but your comments on Brazilian music shows some ignorance in regards to the electronic music scene in Brazil. There is more to Brazilian music than just listening to traditional stuff. These clubs I mentioned aren't playing top 40 garbage that can be heard anywhere in the world. They are playing the top Brazilian producers like DJ Marky, Fabrício Peçanha, Gui Boratto, etc. I don't know if OP was talking about night clubs or not, but that's the impression I got. If that is the case Rio doesn't hold a candle to Sao Paulo or Santa Catarina for that matter.

The guidebook I reference isn't exactly aimed at party hardy tourists and in fact is probably the best Rio guidebook available. I never claimed that the city of Rio shuts down at 11 pm; There is still plenty to do at night. But when it comes to parties, food, clubs, nice hotels, and fashion, Sao Paulo will beat Rio any day of the week. Where Rio lacks, it makes up for it with beaches, thong bikinis, better traffic, and a more casual lifestyle. Would I want to spend a week in SP? No. A weekend though? Yes. It's one of the world's largest cities and still has a lot to offer.

Wow, what and elegant way of referring to the "paraibas" :D:D:D:D

Well, I must admit that Fabrício Pecanha puts me to sleep, I don’t consider a laptop an instrument, you couldn’t pay me (or any self-respecting Brazilian I know) enough to set foot in the Warung Club with the patricinhas and mauricinhos, nor anywhere similar in the UK where DJMarky came to fame, and I have (not chromo, but) Borattophobia, but gee, I wouldn’t mind if someone bought me a pair of bright yellow saltos altos and I do like Só Tinha Que Ser Com Você the way Elis Regina sang it…….. And there’s no turning back.

What I do consider unique to Brazil is a national music that everyone from 5 to 85 knows every word of the lyrics to. This musical heritage is what most visitors think of as Brazilian, and rightfully come thousands of miles to hear live, particularly in Rio and Salvador.

But horses for courses......

Haven't seen a thong bikini on the beach in awhile though. The brasilieras tell me they're a bit outdated, and they're wearing modest 3" wide ones these days.

Nope, American ex-pats who regularly visit the U.S.

Fortaleza is not, I agree, a particularly cosmopolitan city, but hardly the "hinterlands" (I'm picturing the Beverly Hillbillies). Now, if one goes to the interior of Ceara . . .

Which all goes to prove my point about SP as a tourist destination on a short visit to Brazil.
OK, American expats, who feel at home shopping in the only city in Brazil that has some of the things they are accustomed to at home (forced to shop there at highly inflated prices or wait until the next trip home). This does not make S.P. a cosmopolitan and interesting shopping city. It just makes it the only one in Brazil. If you live abroad, not so interesting. "Hinterlands", jokingly, being anywhere there may not be stores for the brand names rich Brazilians look for in Miami, and expats can buy what they are used to at home, albeit at 4X the price. (and yes, I have been to the 'real' hinterlands of Brazil)

Thought I'd chip in as a carioca: Sao Paulo definitely worth a couple of days, you can visit the Central Market, Football Museum, but most of all the food and nightlife scene which put Rio to shame.

Nightlife in Rio is dreadful. And by this I mean nightlife in the sense where you would refer to in the great nightlife cities of the world like New York, London, Miami, Berlin, Milan etc. sure, you can put on some flip flops, go to a run down bar in Lapa, drink appalling Brazilian beer and listen to some samba, but if you are after unique venues, sophistication and world class electronic music, Sao Paulo is a great place to be.

My only caveat would be: SP is much better during the week, as locals leave town during weekends. However, weekends are when you'll find the cheapest hotel rates (Jardins is a good place to be based). Conversely, Rio nightlife only exists between Thu-Sat nights.