I wouldn't call it a "Fan Zone" at all. There is an outer security perimeter you pass thru before entering the main stadium thru the tighter inner security (the actual stadium gates). "Security" to get into the outer area is a joke, you just flash your ticket...or any ticket, they don't look at it (at least for they didn't). From what I saw, people aren't really hanging out in this outer area unless maybe you've arranged to meet someone. There are FIFA sanctioned vendors in this outer area, but my thinking is to just get inside the stadium and through the longer line to pass the metal detectors and xray machines and get my ticket scanned. Prices are the same inside and out. There is nothing to do or see in this outer area.
England v Uruguay game today in Sao Paolo. Many people looking for tickets (including me ). I heard the prices quoted an hour before game time were $800 to $1,000. Not wiling to pay over $300 so I took the metro back and watched the game at Bar Brahma. Also, easy to see buyers holding signs, but hard to see the sellers/touts.
Walking down Paulista Ave. this morning, every single person passing by me were discreetly saying "do you have any extra tickets?".
Hello, thanks to this forum for all the help but I have one more question - is there a way of getting to VCP airport that won't cost as much as a taxi? I was quoted 450 reis to get from the airport to the city so got the free bus from Azul instead. Now, is there anyway of getting back to the airport reasonably?
Is there working wifi at GRU? Also, is there a TIM Celular (or any cellular provider for that matter) at the airport?
What's wrong with getting the bus? It's by far the best option, specially if it's Azul's free bus, which is exactly the same bus as the regular line. There's a Vivo store there.
@Rb80 Yes, there is a Lirabus/VB coach from Tietê bus station to Viracopos. http://www.lirabus.com.br/lira/ Select SAO PAULO and VIRACOPOSCPS to see the schedule. That assuming you aren't flying Azul, in which case they have a free bus leaving from several points in the city.
As @lucasc mentioned, if you are flying on Azul, they have free buses leaving from three locations in São Paulo: Congonhas Airport, Shopping Eldorado, and Barra Funda. If you are near Metrô, Barra Funda is the best.
This is our 3rd and final night in SP. Got here Wednesday and went to Eng/URU yesterday. Headed to rio tomorrow. Thought I'd leave a few random thoughts and observations from our time here, hope it will help someone: We got a prepaid taxi from GRU to our hotel in paulista area...r$120. Took almost an hour to get in. Even though we checked in early (8am) at the hotel, I was surprised they give you the room that early. That hardly ever happens in the states! O'Malley's Pub is a great place to watch...great atmosphere. We watched 3 games there and sang with the English fans. We used taxis most of the time. Yes it cost more than taking metro but was so much easier and we felt a little safer since it was door-to-door most of the time. Just always made sure we had addresses written down for where we wanted to go. I used a combination of tips from the great BS community members in this thread and the reviews of restaurants and hotels in tripadvisor..TA reviews are almost always reliable IMO. My son and I both think we had the best pizza either of us have had here at Pizza Na Mao. It's on Itu just down the street from o'malleys pub in SP. Great laid back atmosphere with awesome pizza. It was a good 'unplug' from the craziness of regular pubs. If you can't think of anywhere else to eat one night... Go there, you won't be disappointed. We felt safe most of the time here. A couple of times we ended up down a street that seemed a little sketchy but never to the point we felt endangered. Just be smart. Going to the stadium...we took a taxi from our hotel down to the Luz station area where we ate at Bar Leo. The neighborhood wasn't the best, the food was just ok, but it felt like a different experience than the paulista areawe stayed in. From there we took a short walk to Luz, where we took the 'express a da copra' to the stadium. Allow yourself more time than you think...it seems like they send you around and around before you get to the stadium. It's a long walk from the station. Be ready to be patient after game. The crowd is packed right outside the stadium but it filters out after a couple hundred yards.... Ok..sorry for the long post..just trying to put some info out there in case anyone can use it. GW
OK, my 2-cents....just another point of view. The SP Metro felt 100% safe to me, I felt as safe as I ever felt on any system anywhere. I suppose if you are not experienced in taking public transportation, maybe you'd prefer a taxi. But I truly would never want anyone to think the SP Metro is unsafe. With SP traffic, I would not say it's always faster either. My best night in the week and a half in Brazil have been at local places, my two worst were at Irish/English pubs. Not saying you can't have a good time there...but I can go to those at home with visiting Brits, etc. To each his own, if that's your thing to come to Brazil to go to an English Pub, go for it. It sure as shit ain't mine. I know there's a difference between finding a place to watch a match and going somewhere to enjoy the local atmosphere...but I have had AMAZING times in bars with locals so far. just my preference/2-cents. sort of concur with this one. The quality of pizza has been a weird thing here, I've had it 3 times now in Brazil, once in SP and twice in Salvador and it's pretty good. And I'm an East Coast (US) pizza snob! Not going to say it's the best I've ever had so far, but it's been good. Maybe I'll try Pizza Na Mao when I get back to SP. I have felt really safe in all my time in SP...and even in Natal and now in Salvador. But SP especially in the Paulista area seems ultra safe to anyone who's traveled and is taking reasonable precautions. certainly there are unsafe areas, so as @GWGunner says just be smart. concur with this one too...it's a hike from Metro to the stadium. I'll be back for Match 55 and will plan accordingly. same for leaving the stadium going back to Metro, long walk but the station didn't back up for Match 1.
I didn't mean the metro wasn't safe...we took it our first day we just felt it was easier to navigate directly to our destination door to door, especially traveling with my teenager! Regarding pubs, we spent our first afternoon watching games at Praihna Paulista pub with some locals over lunch and did enjoy the atmosphere like you. We also looked for another local pub but the address we found online took us to residences! I kind of let my son tell me where he wanted to go and went from there. Part of it for me too is being with him in a pub is different wherever we are because we obviously can't do that in the states at his age... Could use your advice on a good local pub in copacabana then since you've been there ahead of us Pablo...and I'll keep an eye out for that XL jersey for you brother! GW
Hi everybody, Im 23 year old and I am Peruvian and i will travel to WC next week, If anyone is selling tickets for the following games 49 - Round 16 in Belo Horizonte, 55 - Round 16 in Sao Paulo and 58 - Round 8 in Rio de Janeiro contact me please. javi.luna12@gmail.com I'll be grateful
Anyone know about this? Hooded Brazilians Attack England Soccer Fans With Bombs At World Cup Fan Fest http://www.forbes.com/sites/jefffic...soccer-fans-with-bombs-at-world-cup-fan-fest/