São Paulo City Tour: Graffiti, Liberdade & Historic Landmarks

4.53

(146 reviews)

What’s the experience like?

“You see this wall? Every week it changes,” our guide Rafael grinned as we squeezed into Batman Alley. The air smelled faintly of spray paint and something sweet — maybe a bakery nearby? I’d seen photos of São Paulo’s graffiti before but standing there, the colors almost humming off the walls, felt different. Someone’s dog trotted past us in a tiny raincoat (it was drizzling; I forgot to pack an umbrella), and Rafael pointed out one mural that he said only lasted three days before someone else painted over it. “That’s how we talk here,” he shrugged. I kind of loved that.

We hopped back in the van — air conditioning on blast — and zipped through neighborhoods I couldn’t have found alone. The House of Roses surprised me: tucked between modern glass towers on Paulista Avenue, this old mansion hosts poetry readings now. Inside, the wood floors creaked under our feet. Rafael told us about families who lived here when horses still clopped down the avenue. He had a way of mixing facts with little stories — like how his grandmother once snuck into a wedding at Nossa Senhora do Brasil just to see a famous singer (he swore it was true).

I think my favorite part was Liberdade. The lanterns were up for some festival (I didn’t catch the name), and you could smell grilled yakitori from halfway down the block. Rafael explained how Japanese immigrants shaped this whole area — even showed us where to get mochi if we had time later. There was a moment at the Pateo do Collegio where everything got quiet for a second, just church bells echoing off old stone walls while traffic rumbled somewhere out of sight.

The tour wrapped up at Estação da Luz — which looks oddly British, turns out because it basically is (the ironwork came from Glasgow). We all stood around trying to get one last group photo but kept laughing because someone blinked every time. It was only half a day but felt like seeing ten cities layered on top of each other. I still think about those murals sometimes when I see blank walls back home.