Travel
Airports
São Paulo and Rio de Janeiro are the international gateway cities to Brazil and are served by major international air carriers.
The São Paulo International airport, Guarulhos, is located in the outskirts of São Paulo and it takes between 40 and 60 minutes by car to reach the main areas of the city.
If you arrive between 7.00am-9.30am and 4.00pm–8.30pm in São Paulo, be aware of long traffic delays where it could take up to two hours to reach the city.
The Rio de Janeiro International airport, Galeão, is located in the outskirts of Rio de Janeiro and it takes between 40 and 60 minutes by car to reach the main areas of the city.
The national flag carriers are Gol and TAM.
The shuttle service between the domestic airports of Rio de Janeiro (Santos-Dumont) and São Paulo (Congonhas) takes around 50 minutes. In both cities, the domestic airports are close to the commercial area.
Ground transport
All taxis in Brazil are legally required to have meters. At São Paulo international airport, taxis charge set fares to the city (approximately US$50). The client pays what they see on the meter, except for some cities such as Curitiba, where a ‘table of prices’ is used based on what is shown on the meter. It is not recommended to rent cars or to take buses.
Due to the great number of vehicles on the streets, bottlenecks occur frequently in São Paulo. Allow extra time if you need to catch a plane, attend a meeting or have an appointment.
Hotels
Major domestic and international chains operating throughout Brazil include:
- Hilton
- Hyatt
- Intercontinental
- Marriot
- Mercure
- Sheraton
Tipping
Tips/gorjetas are not mandatory. At restaurants, tips are about 10 per cent and are already included in the bill. Don’t tip taxis, only round up the fare charge.
Top Business Risks
2014 Brazil FIFA World Cup & 2016 Rio Olympic Games
For details on how Australian companies can become involved in these two events, please view our '2014 Brazil FIFA World Cup & 2016 Rio Olympic Games overview.
OECD Guidelines for Multinational Enterprises
Multinational Enterprises should be aware of the OECD Guidelines for Multinational Enterprises that provide voluntary principles and standards for responsible business behaviour in a variety of areas, consistent with applicable domestic laws. These Guidelines are endorsed and promoted by the Australian Government. For more information, go to the AusNCP website.
IP Passport fact sheets
These fact sheets outline foreign Intellectual Property (IP) regimes and some of the issues and challenges which may be faced by Australian exporters.
The current fact sheets are available on the IP Australia website.