São Paulo/Guarulhos–Governor André Franco Montoro International Airport (SBGR/GRU)
São Paulo, Brazil
Sao Paulo Airline Crew Layover Guide
Reviewed by Captain AL
Crew car rental deal ↓Hotel deals ↓
The GRU crew card
| Cheapest into town | CPTM’s Expresso Aeroporto runs straight through, connecting Aeroporto-Guarulhos station with Palmeiras-Barra Funda for BRL 5,40 and calling at other central Sao Paulo stations on the way. A free bus or the aeromovel links the station to the terminals |
|---|---|
| When the line runs | The airport rail line runs Sunday to Friday from 4am to midnight, and on Saturdays from 4am to 1am. There is no overnight train |
| Payments | A single metropolitan train ticket costs BRL 5,40. Between 4am and 5:35am the Madrugador early fare drops it to BRL 4,78, and a 24 hour ticket for the rail network is BRL 20,50 |
| Tap water | Safe to drink from the mains in the city of Sao Paulo |
| Emergency | 190 (City of Sao Paulo Civil Defence list; each service has its own number, so pick the service you need.) |
| Solo & at night | Official UK government travel advice for Brazil says not to hail taxis on the street and to use the authorised taxi booths at airports. With a ride-hailing app, check the number plate and the driver match your booking before you get in |
| Crew knows | Sunday is not the clean 30 minute railway it looks like: the operator’s own timetable prints no 13h30 departure, so the 13h train is followed by 14h. At the other end of the day the line simply stops, midnight from Sunday to Friday and 1am on Saturdays, with no overnight train, so the last run back is a deadline and not a target. |
| Crew deals | Verified car rental and hotel rates for airline staff: on this page, right below this guide. |
airlinecrewdiscount.net · GRU crew card · Checked Aug 2026 · Next check Nov 2026 · Screenshot this card for offline
Every number on this page comes from an official source. Where no official source gives a number, we say so instead of guessing.
Getting from Guarulhos into central Sao Paulo: the direct airport train, the executive coach, a taxi, or an app car?
GRU is a Guarulhos airport, not a Sao Paulo city one, so nothing here is a short hop. The rail station sits outside the terminals and is reached by a free airport bus. From there one direct train runs into the centre, the other rail option runs with an interchange, and coaches and cars cover the rest.
👉 Swipe sideways to see the full table
| Mode | Time | Cost | Good to know |
|---|---|---|---|
| Train (CPTM Expresso Aeroporto, direct) | hourly from 5am to midnight on weekdays, Saturdays and holidays; every 30 minutes from 5am to midnight on Sundays, except that the operator’s sheet prints no 13h30 departure, so the 13h train is followed by 14h | BRL 5,40 | This is the one service that does not need an interchange. Leaving the airport it calls at Guarulhos-CECAP, Bras, Luz and Palmeiras-Barra Funda; inbound from Palmeiras-Barra Funda it calls at Luz, Guarulhos-CECAP and Aeroporto-Guarulhos. CPTM states the trains carry air conditioning, accessibility fittings, electronic displays and space for luggage. The operator publishes no journey time for this train, so check the CPTM departure boards on the day. |
| Train (CPTM Linha 13-Jade, with interchange) | weekdays every 10 to 15 minutes depending on the hour, Saturdays every 12 to 35 minutes, Sundays and holidays every 35 minutes | BRL 5,40 | Linha 13-Jade does not run into the centre. It runs between Aeroporto-Guarulhos and Engenheiro Goulart only, where you change to Linha 12-Safira for Tatuape, Bras and Luz. The exact programmed intervals on this line are: weekdays 15 minutes from 4am, 12 minutes from 4:30am, 10 minutes from 5:50am, 12 minutes from 8am, 10 minutes from 4:50pm, 12 minutes from 8pm to midnight; Saturdays 16 minutes from 4am, 12 minutes from 4:16am, 35 minutes from 9pm; Sundays and holidays 35 minutes all day. CPTM notes these are programmed averages, subject to operating conditions. |
| Executive coach (Airport Bus Service) | 55 minutes average to Rodoviaria da Barra Funda daily departures, boarding at Terminals 2 and 3 |
from BRL 39,90 to Rodoviaria da Barra Funda | A separate paid product, not part of the rail fare. The operator’s own route pages also publish: Praca da Republica from BRL 39,90, 40 minutes average; Rua da Consolacao from BRL 39,90, 1 hour 20 minutes average; Rodoviaria do Tiete from BRL 32,60 in executive class, 40 minutes average. The Avenida Paulista hotel circuit is sold on board only and carries no published price. The airport operator lists the lines as 258 to Congonhas, 472 to Rodoviaria da Barra Funda, 472EX1 to Rodoviaria do Tiete and 316 for the hotel circuit on Avenida Paulista, boarding at the bus terminal on the Terminal 2 east arrivals level. |
| Taxi (Guarucoop) | 24 hours | the airport states the services are priced to a fixed table but publishes no table and no fare to the city. | Guarucoop is the Guarulhos taxi cooperative holding a municipal concession to operate exclusively at the airport, with a fleet of more than 650 air-conditioned vehicles and bilingual drivers and desk staff. Desks are at Terminal 1 departures and arrivals, Terminal 2 east and west arrivals, and Terminal 3 arrivals. One number covers all three terminals, (11) 2440-7070. |
| Rideshare (Uber, 99, Rhino) | app-priced; the airport publishes no fare | Pickup is at the Praca Pick-Up, outside Terminal 2 on the arrivals level, and it is the pickup point for passengers landing at both the east and west arrivals of Terminal 2. It is reachable from inside or along the pavement outside, signed with floor stickers, totems and boards. Access is controlled and only drivers with an active ride can enter; the app tells the driver which boarding sector to use. The space is run by Amos Brazil. The airport’s own wording on the page is a warning against unlicensed transport. |
Best Areas for Crew Stays in Sao Paulo, from Avenida Paulista and the historic centre out to the hotel belt by the airport
Avenida Paulista and Jardins: The city’s signature avenue and the leafier streets behind it, a dense run of museums, offices, hotels and eating, walkable end to end.
Centro: Republica, Se and Luz: The historic core, with the older architecture, the big civic buildings and several of the main museums; busy in office hours and much quieter outside them.
Liberdade: The Japanese-Brazilian quarter just south of the centre, known for its lantern-hung streets, food stalls and Asian grocers.
Vila Madalena and Pinheiros: Low-rise neighbourhoods west of the centre, the bar, street-art and independent-shop side of the city rather than the sightseeing side.
Guarulhos and the airport belt: The hotel cluster around the airport itself, in a separate municipality from the city, built around early report times rather than sightseeing.
What to Do on a Layover in Sao Paulo, from staying airside to the centre plus one more neighbourhood
Under 5 hours: Stay airside. The published coach times alone run 40 to 80 minutes each way before you add the shuttle to the station, the wait and the walk back through screening. Four hours of the airport Wi-Fi is free.
5 to 9 hours: One clean move only: the free bus to the station, the direct Expresso Aeroporto in to Luz or Palmeiras-Barra Funda, one neighbourhood on foot, and back on the same service. Note the hour you need to be back on the platform before you leave it.
9 hours plus: Enough for the centre plus one more neighbourhood and a proper meal. Watch the clock at the far end: the airport line stops at midnight from Sunday to Friday, and after that you are paying for a car.
Crew Tips for Sao Paulo and GRU Airport: the one rail fare, the walk from terminal to train, and keeping your phone out of sight
Paying for transit: One metropolitan train ticket is BRL 5,40 and the same BRL 5,40 buys a single Metro journey, so the rail network runs on one fare. Between 4am and 5:35am on CPTM the Madrugador early fare is BRL 4,78, which is not applied to QR code tickets. A 24 hour rail ticket is BRL 20,50. If you need city buses too, a single integrated ticket is BRL 9,38 and the 24 hour integrated version is BRL 27,28, though CPTM’s own table prints BRL 27,04 for that one ticket, so carry the higher figure. Machines return a maximum of BRL 20,00 in change.
Getting from the terminals to the train: The rail station is not inside a terminal. GRU Airport runs a transfer between Terminals 1, 2 and 3 that the operator’s train page calls free with airport markings, stopping at the arrivals level of all three, with a wait of up to 15 minutes and operating from 4am to midnight. The airport’s train page shows the same transfer serving the CPTM station on two loops, station to Terminal 1 to Terminal 3 and back, and station to Terminal 2 and back, with the station access sitting next to the Terminal 1 car park.
Connectivity: GRU Airport gives four hours of free Wi-Fi, split as two sessions of two hours, at 20 Mbps across all areas of the airport. Pick the network.GRU WIFI, then choose the free GRU Wi-Fi option on the Boingo page; no registration is needed. After the four hours run out the only options are paid packages, so do not plan a long upload or a crew call around it. Boingo runs a 24 hour, seven day support line on 0800-095-9026.
Luggage storage: Left luggage is run by Malex in two terminals. The Terminal 2 counter, on the west arrivals pavement, is open 24 hours on +55 (11) 4236-8888 extension 1101 or +55 (11) 2445-2501. The Terminal 3 counter, on the arrivals pavement, opens 7:00 to 19:00 on the same main number, extension 1103. Terminal 1 has none, so if you land there, factor the free inter-terminal transfer into your plan. No price is published.
Street crime and your phone: Official UK government travel advice for Brazil states that robberies are common in many cities, particularly on buses, that thieves target mobile phones particularly between 4pm and 9pm, and that attackers may be armed. It advises not to resist and to hand over valuables if threatened. It also records theft and robbery on urban metro rail networks and advises against wearing expensive jewellery or watches, and against using a phone in the street or during train travel. It further advises avoiding all favelas and checking that GPS navigation is not routing you through one. Report a crime on 190.
Buying a coach ticket after the desk shuts: The Airport Bus Service ticket desk at Terminal 2 east arrivals is open 06:00 to 22:00 only. Outside those hours you are not stuck: self-service totems run 24 hours at Terminal 2 west arrivals, facing the arrivals hall, and at Terminal 3 arrivals, and the operator also sells online and directly with the driver. Their information line, 11 2445-2430, is Monday to Friday 9:00 to 18:00 and closed on public holidays, so it is no use on a night arrival.
Emergency Numbers for Sao Paulo and Brazil
How do I get from Sao Paulo Guarulhos airport to the city centre?
Take the free airport transfer from your terminal to the Aeroporto-Guarulhos rail station, then CPTM’s Expresso Aeroporto, which runs direct for BRL 5,40 and calls at Luz, Bras and Palmeiras-Barra Funda. It leaves hourly from 5am to midnight on weekdays, Saturdays and holidays, and every 30 minutes on Sundays. The other rail option, Linha 13-Jade, only reaches Engenheiro Goulart, where you change to Linha 12-Safira for Tatuape, Bras and Luz.
How much is the train from Guarulhos airport to Sao Paulo?
BRL 5,40 for a single metropolitan train ticket, and the Expresso Aeroporto runs on that same BRL 5,40. Between 4am and 5:35am the Madrugador early fare brings it down to BRL 4,78, though that discount does not apply to QR code tickets. A 24 hour rail ticket is BRL 20,50.
Does the train to Guarulhos airport run all night?
No. The airport rail line runs from 4am to midnight Sunday to Friday, and from 4am to 1am on Saturdays. The free transfer between the terminals and the station runs 4am to midnight as well. Outside those hours you are on the Guarucoop taxi rank, which is staffed 24 hours in all three terminals, or an app car from the Praca Pick-Up outside Terminal 2.
Is tap water safe to drink in Sao Paulo?
Yes, in the city. The Sao Paulo city health authority lists the public supply, Sabesp, among the approved sources of treated water for human consumption, meaning water fit for drinking, preparing food and personal hygiene, and its warnings target shallow wells, springs and standpipes rather than the mains. The city samples the supply monthly against the federal potability standard.
Where can I store luggage at GRU airport on a layover?
Malex runs left luggage in two terminals. The Terminal 2 counter on the west arrivals pavement is open 24 hours, and the Terminal 3 counter on the arrivals pavement opens 7:00 to 19:00. Terminal 1 has no counter, so use the free inter-terminal transfer, which runs 4am to midnight with a wait of up to 15 minutes.
Spotted a change? Tell us and we fix it for the next crew.
Crew Discounts in Sao Paulo: verified car rental and hotel rates for airline staff sit right below this guide. Bookmark this page before you head for the free transfer to the station. Next Sao Paulo rotation you start on the rates instead of from scratch.
