Private Tour: São Paulo Favela Tour

Visit Paraisópolis, a central São Paulo slum (called a ‘favela’ in Brazil), on a three-hour cultural tour of one of the city’s most fascinating communities. With an expert local guide, interact with residents of the favela, located close to the wealthy neighborhood of Morumbi. Travel inside the complex by private vehicle, walk around the streets and even venture into a few homes. You’ll leave with a deeper appreciation for this often misunderstood facet of Brazilian society.

Visiting a favela is a unique opportunity to learn something deeper about Brazilian culture and its social issues. We are sensitive to the concerns surrounding favelas and we understand that this tour may not be suitable for everyone. We strongly believe that the purpose of this tour is for educational reasons alone and allows for a better understanding of Brazilian life inside a favela. Furthermore, the local tour operator is charged a rate by the Paraisópolis favela, and as a result, money is going back into the Paraisópolis community.

About two million people reside in favelas within the metropolitan region of São Paulo. These underdeveloped and overcrowded settlements – often marked by a lack of adequate electricity, running water and proper sanitation – are famously associated with poverty and social exclusion. Despite these challenges, many favelas such as Paraisópolis create their own organizations and become thriving communities within the larger urban setting.

Your private tour of Paraisópolis takes you to some of the most interesting buildings and the people who live in them. One of the residents you’ll meet is a mechanic by trade, who creates sculptures from garbage and recycled materials in his spare time. With assistance from your guide, discover why this local artist refuses to sell his sculptures and prefers to give them to his relatives and friends.

Your guide will take you to visit the Casa de Pedra (Rock House), home of the artist Estevão, who has been building his fantastical home from stone inlaid with recycled materials for more than 25 years. Learn about the numerous awards Estevão has won for his art and you’ll see why he is known as the Brazilian Gaudi.

As you stroll the streets and get an up-close look at the day-to-day living conditions inside this Brazilian favela, you’ll develop a renewed perspective about the creative people who yearn for a better life – including appropriate housing, health care and education.