A Side Trip to Rio

Rio is closer than it feels

The two great cities of Brazil sit about 430 kilometres apart, and getting between them is genuinely easy. From the Suite, a side trip to Rio — even a single overnight — is well within reach.

By air: the shuttle

The classic way is the ponte aérea, the air shuttle that links São Paulo's Congonhas (CGH) with Rio's downtown Santos Dumont (SDU) airport. The flight is about an hour, and departures run frequently through the day. The magic is where you land: Santos Dumont sits right on Guanabara Bay, minutes from downtown Rio and the launch points for Sugarloaf and Christ the Redeemer. (Some flights use the larger Galeão / GIG airport farther out.)

By road: the Via Dutra

If you have time and like a view, the Via Dutra (BR-116) runs between the two cities through the Paraíba valley — about six hours by coach. Buses leave from the Terminal Rodoviário Tietê, reachable by metrô. It's the slow, scenic, budget option.

An hour in the air from Congonhas, and you step out onto the edge of Guanabara Bay.

Making it worth it

Even two days is enough for a first taste of Rio — the beaches at Copacabana and Ipanema, the cable car up Sugarloaf, the train up to Christ the Redeemer, a night in Lapa. Fly down in the morning, and you're on the sand by lunch.

When you come back, the Suite and the six-screen desk are waiting — a good arrangement if you're mixing a little work with the trip. Talk to us when you reserve if you'd like help fitting Rio into your dates.