Tour Options in São Paulo

You can hire a bilingual guide through a travel agency or hotel concierge (about R$15 an hour with a four-hour minimum), or you can design your own walking tour with the aid of information provided at Anhembi booths around the city. Anhembi also offers Sunday tours of museums, parks, and Centro that are less expensive than those offered in hotels. The tourist board has three half-day Sunday bus tours, one covering the parks, one centered on the museums, and one focused on the historical downtown area. Officially, none of the board's guides speaks English; however, it may be able to arrange something on request.

Gol Tour Viagens e Turismo has custom tours as well as car tours for small groups. A half-day city tour costs about R$40 a person (group rate); a night tour—including a samba show, dinner, and drinks—costs around R$100; and day trips to the beach or the colonial city of Embu cost R$80-R$90. Easygoing has fly-and-dine tours that include a helicopter trip and dinner. If you prefer something down-to-earth, try the carriage tours with Carruagens São Paulo. They tour the Centro Novo (New Downtown) or Centro Velho, or (Old Downtown). Both are available in English if you reserve by phone. The price is R$40 per person, plus R$35 per group for an English-speaking guides. For general sightseeing tours, try Check Point, whose daily tours are R$400 for four people.

Contacts

Carruagens São Paulo (011/3237-4976 or 011/9770-7311. www.carruagemsaopaulo.com.br). Check Point (011/6091-1316). Easygoing (011/3801-9540. www.easygoing.com.br). Gol Tour Viagens e Turismo (011/3256-2388. www.goltour.com.br. Metrô: República). Terra Nobre (011/3662-1505. www.terranobre.com.br).

Biking Tours

Night Biker's Club has tours of the city at night. Sampa Bikers has city tours and excursions outside town. A day tour starts at R$50, including transport and lunch.

Contacts

Night Biker's Club (Rua Pacheco de Miranda 141, Moema. 011/3871-2100. www.nightbikers.com). Sampa Bikers (Rua Baluarte 672, Vila Olímpia. 011/3045-2722. www.sampabikers.com.br).