Festival do Japão: a huge food and culture fair

Cidade Matarazzo is a restored complex of the old Matarazzo hospital, about 200 metres from Avenida Paulista, with the Rosewood São Paulo hotel in the former maternity building. You do not need to sleep there, because entry to the complex is free and the restaurants are open to the public. Look for the restored Santa…

Each year from early September into early October, the streets San Gennaro and Lins in Mooca turn into an Italian street festival. The street is free, with stalls selling fogazza, fried polenta, pizza, pasta and cannoli, cooked by volunteer mammas. The saint's day, 19 September, is the heart of it. Go on Saturday…

For a first visit, base yourself around Avenida Paulista, Consolação or Jardins, where the metro runs along the avenue and most sights are a short ride away. Moema suits quieter stays near Ibirapuera, and Pinheiros is calmer than Vila Madalena. Pick a hotel within a short walk of a station, because traffic is heavy…

Sala São Paulo, the concert hall inside the old Júlio Prestes railway station, is home to the OSESP orchestra and known for its acoustics. Its Sunday morning matinee concerts are free, with tickets given out from noon three days before. The hall opens roughly an hour and a half before concerts, so arrive early to see…

Bourbon Street Music Club in Moema focuses on blues and jazz, and on Tuesdays runs Toda Terça um Jazz, curated by Jazz Mansion, with a different independent Brazilian artist each week. Doors open at 19h30 and the show starts at 20h, so arrive early to get a good table. Book through the club's phone, WhatsApp or ticket…

Galeria do Rock, near República metro, packs about 450 shops on five levels, with a large share of rock stores plus hip hop, skate and tattoo studios. It earned its name from the record shops, and Baratos Afins is the oldest, known for rare discs. Work the floors one by one, ask to hear a record before you buy, and…

Praça Coronel Custódio Fernandes Pinheiros, nicknamed Praça do Pôr do Sol, sits on a hilltop in Alto de Pinheiros with a rare open horizon in São Paulo. Go on a weekday for a calmer lawn, and bring snacks for a picnic. The metro stations are about two kilometres away, with steep hills, so locals usually take a…

Rua 25 de Março is São Paulo's giant open-air bargain district, and it is at its most crowded on Saturdays and in the last week before Christmas. Go Tuesday to Thursday from about eight in the morning, before the midday crowd from about eleven to four. Pay by Pix or card to avoid carrying cash, and keep your phone and…