Travel

Travel Note

Passport

You will need a valid passport to travel to Brazil, usually with an expiration date of at least 6 months after you return to the US. If you do not have a passport, you will NOT be allowed to board the plane. To apply for or renew a US Passport, you can use this site: https://www.usa.gov/passport Given that passports have been taking ~3-6 months or longer to process, we recommend that you apply for your passport as soon as possible. Passports are valid for 10 years, so the sooner you get this, the better! For more information on traveling to Brazil, please read the State Department’s Info Page: https://travel.state.gov/content/travel/en/international-travel/International-Travel-Country-Information-Pages/Brazil.html

Travel Note

Visa to enter Brasil

US Passport Holders As of April 10th, 2024, the requirement for a Visa for US passport holders to enter Brazil has been postponed until April 10th, *2025*, so you will not need to apply for a visa for this trip. If you were ahead of the game and already applied for your visa, we invite you to come down again sometime in the next ten years to put your visa to use! Passport holder from country other than US Check to see if your country is visa exempt: https://www.gov.br/mre/pt-br/consulado-miami/information-about-visas-in-english/vistor-visa-vivis If you are required to have a visa, information can be found here: https://www.gov.br/mre/pt-br/consulado-miami/information-about-visas-in-english/vivis-2013-visitor-visa-tourism

Hotel

ibis Catanduva

There are a few hotels and AirBNBs/VRBOs in the Catanduva area. We suggest staying at Ibis in Catanduva as it is an international hotel network with English speaking staff. Additionally, we plan to have a shuttle (or two!) bring guests from Ibis to the wedding (in Santa Adelia ~20 minutes away), the reception, and back to Ibis, so you won’t have to worry about a ride on the day of the wedding. You can book a room via the link above or using Expedia, TripAdvisor, or Booking.com. When booking the room, there may be options to purchase breakfast, but the prices would likely be lower if you made the reservation without breakfast and paid for it when you got to the hotel instead and definitely lower if you go to a local café or padaria (Brazilian bakery).

Flight

Flying Into São Paulo (GRU)

Flights for July and August 2024 are now available! Typically, it is recommended to book flights before the end of March as prices will increase the closer the date gets, but day to day and week to week, prices may fluctuate, so we recommend setting a fare alert on google flights, Kayak, and/or Hopper. If you can find a flight (usually with a layover or two) that goes to Rio Preto (SJP), that may be a good option to cut down on the logistics of multiple airlines and tickets. However, if you cannot find a good price, you can book your flight to GRU (São Paulo) and then a separate flight from GRU to SJP, which sometimes can be a bit cheaper. There are many airlines that fly to São Paulo from the US and the most common are Latam (layover in La then directly to GRU), Delta (layover usually in New York or Atlanta), United (layover usually in Houston), American (layover usually in Dallas), AeroMexico (layover in Mexico City), and Copa (layover in Panama City). Prices are usually $600-900 round trip (economy) from California/West Coast and a bit cheaper from the East Coast. We have found that flights during the middle of the week (Tuesday or Wednesday) tend to have cheaper prices than during the weekend. You can check airline websites or use Google Flights to find the fastest and cheapest flights. You can set also set a travel alert and/or track prices which will send you an email when flights go up or down.

Travel Note

Getting from São Paulo to Catanduva

There are a few ways to get to Catanduva from São Paulo. Flying The quickest and most straightforward way will be fly from GRU to São José do Rio Preto (SJP, ~1 hour). From there, you can either rent a car (~1 hour, ~R$20 toll, cash only, no dollars accepted) or take a taxi/bus to Catanduva. There are only a few flights to Rio Preto per day, so make sure that you would have enough time to go through customs, get your baggage, check back in, and catch your flight (2-3 hours)! If you cannot find a decently priced flight to Rio Preto from your initial airport or if you would like to stay a day or two in São Paulo, you can find cheap (~$50 one way) flights through Latam (https://www.latamairlines.com/us/en). Make sure to doublecheck which airport you select as there are two in São Paulo: GRU (international airport) or Congonhas (domestic airport). Bus From São Paulo, you can also take a bus to Catanduva which is run by the company Cometa (https://www.viacaocometa.com.br). You will catch the bus at the Barra Funda Bus Station, which is a 35-45 minute Uber (~$20, depending on traffic) or a 45 minute express metro ride from GRU. The journey takes about 5.5 hours and you have the choice of a traditional seat (~$30) or one that folds down flat into a bed (~$50). Although there are overnight buses, for safety and ease, we recommend that you take a bus during the mid-morning or early afternoon Shuttle Depending on when guests are arriving into Rio Preto, we are looking into chartering a shuttle to Catanduva for ease of arrival. Currently we are planning to have a shuttle leave in the morning of July 4th. If you will arrive that day, please let Josh know to coordinate

Travel Note

Exchanging Money

While credit cards can be used at most places in Brazil, we recommend that you have some reais in cash to pay for tolls (if you drive on the highways) or other places where cards are not accepted. You can exchange dollars for Brazilian reais in a few different ways. For the past few years, the rate has hovered around 1 USD per 5 Brazilian Reais - Many US banks have exchange services where you can exchange money before you leave. Make sure to call ahead to ensure that the bank will have reais (sometimes a few days are needed for the reais to arrive at the bank) and doublecheck for any added fees. - You can also exchange money when you arrive in Brazil at a “Casa de Câmbio”, but these typically have a worse exchange rates -Generally, most restaurants and stores accept cards, so we definitely recommend using a credit card (make sure it doesn’t charge a foreign transaction fee!!!) when possible. Debit cards do tend to have a fee, so make sure to double check with your bank/ credit card company to avoid any surprises

Travel Note

Using your phone in Brazil

Each phone company has different costs, plans, and data speeds associated with traveling abroad. Make sure to check with your company for what option might be best for you. Plans can get expensive if you purchase by day so if there is a weekly or even a monthly option, that might be more cost-effective, even if you don’t stay that long. Typically texts and data are included with these plans but calls cost per minute (~25 cents or more). You can prepare for your adventures by using wifi (many hotels and restaurants have this for free) to download your maps and plan your itinerary so that you’ll be free to enjoy your time immersed in Brazil