Using an eSIM in São Paulo

What São Paulo is like on a phone

São Paulo is an enormous business city where as many people arrive to work as to sightsee. Towers stand shoulder to shoulder in ranks that run past the horizon, and crossing town always takes longer than the map says at peak hours — so a lot of people treat the car as working time, taking voice calls, answering email and reading documents. That makes steadiness of the line matter more than peak speed. In the main business districts coverage is continuous, though older buildings and the basement levels of shopping centres weaken it plainly.

À l'atterrissage

Most international flights land at Guarulhos (GRU), a fair distance from the centre, while Congonhas (CGH) handles mainly domestic traffic and sits close to the business districts. Turn the eSIM on inside the terminal so you can call a car or confirm a driver immediately. At peak hours the run in can take far longer than estimated, so give whoever is expecting you a generous time, and save the destination address on the device in case the map loads slowly on the way.

Où la couverture change

The business avenues and the main residential districts are continuous and steady. Many metro platforms have a signal but the tunnel runs generally drop it, line by line. Shopping-centre basements and under-building car parks weaken badly, so arrange your car before going down. On the very top floors of tall offices the line sometimes wavers because it is reaching several masts at once. The road out to the coast goes through the mountains with long tunnels and stretches that genuinely have nothing — download maps in advance.

What a day here costs in data

People here for work use noticeably more than sightseers, because calls happen in the car and shared documents stay open all day; a full working day can run about 2–3GB, more with long video calls. What genuinely helps is turning the camera off when it is not needed while travelling — it cuts the volume sharply and copes far better with a wavering line. Visitors walking and photographing tend to sit around 1–2GB a day and should set photo backup to run only on the hotel's Wi-Fi.

Districts travellers ask about

• Avenida Paulista — The main business avenue lined with museums and offices — among the steadiest coverage in the city, the basements of some buildings aside.
• Vila Madalena and Pinheiros — Hilly streets of restaurants and bars that stay busy late; the line is good, though on a packed Friday evening the wait for a car runs longer than usual.
• Centro and the old market quarter — Thick-walled old buildings soften the line in some halls, as does the big covered market — save your meeting point before walking in on a busy day.
• Itaim Bibi and Faria Lima — Newer office country where calls run all day; the main avenues are good but under-building car parks lose it almost entirely.

Day trips out of the city

• Down to Santos and Guarujá — The descent to the coast runs through several long tunnels where the signal goes completely, and on a long weekend the traffic is heavy — download the route and your music or podcasts before you leave.
• Campos do Jordão in the hills — The climb goes through forest with genuinely unserved stretches while the town itself is fine; in the cool season it fills up fast, so book ahead and download the whole route.
• Coffee farms and small country towns — The inter-city highways are mostly connected, but the dirt tracks turning off into the estates generally are not — agree a meeting point with your host in advance and save the coordinates while still on the main road.