São Carlos

Brazil · Americas

About São Carlos

São Carlos is a Brazilian city and municipality in the interior of the state of São Paulo, 254 kilometers from the city of São Paulo. With a population of 266,427 inhabitants, it is the 13th largest city by population, and is almost in the center of the state of São Paulo. The municipality is formed by the headquarters and the districts of Água Vermelha, Bela Vista São-Carlense, Santa Eudóxia and Vila Nery.

The city is an important regional industrial center, with the economy based on industrial activities and farming, such as the production of sugar cane, oranges, milk, and chicken. Served by road and rail systems, São Carlos has a commercial unit of the Swiss multinational Leica Geosystems and production units of several multinational companies, including Volkswagen, Faber-Castell (the São Carlos subsidiary is the largest of the group in the world, producing 1.5 billion pencils per year), Electrolux, Tecumseh, Husqvarna, LATAM, Serasa Experian and Grupo Segurador BB-MAPFRE. Given local and, in some ways, regional needs, there is a network of commerce and services distributed in street stores, convenience stores and a mall of the Iguatemi network. In the field of research, besides the universities, two centers of technical development of Embrapa are present in the municipality. São Carlos is the first city in South America in numbers of doctors per inhabitant, according to a survey done since 2006 by UFSCar. In all, there are 1,700 PhDs, which represents one for every 135 inhabitants. In Brazil, the ratio is one PhD per 5423 inhabitants.

The city is home to several public higher education institutions, such as the Federal University of São Carlos (UFSCar), two campi of the University of São Paulo (USP), the Federal Institute of São Paulo (IFSP) and FATEC, as well as a private higher education institution. This makes intense the university activity in the city, which affects the population count. For this reason, São Carlos has a floating population of more than twenty-nine thousand graduates and graduate students, mostly from other cities and states.

The city has several streets and avenues that pay homage to historical figures and important names for the city and Brazil. Some of the main streets with significant names include Avenida Doutor Carlos Botelho – named after Carlos Botelho, an important Brazilian physician and politician who was a relevant figure in the development of the city, and Rua Conde do Pinhal – named after the Count of Pinhal, Antônio Carlos de Arruda Botelho, one of the largest coffee producers in the region and a central figure in the history of São Carlos.

São Carlos travel guide

Getting there

By car From São Paulo or Campinas, take Rodovia Anhanguera (SP-330) or Rodovia dos Bandeirantes (SP-348) until Limeira. From there, Rodovia Washington Luís (SP-310), heading to Araraquara and São José do Rio Preto; From Araraquara (33 km) or São José do Rio Preto (226 km), take the Rodovia Washington Luís (SP-310) heading to Limeira. Rodovia Eng° Thales de Lorena Peixoto Júnior (SP-318) connects São Carlos to the northern districts of Água Vermelha (12 km) and Santa Eudóxia (32 km), to the São Carlos Airport (14 km), to the Asas de um Sonho museum (16 km), and to Ribeirão Preto (97 km); Rodovia Luís Augusto de Oliveira (SP-215) connects São Carlos to the west, for cities like Ribeirão Bonito and Dourado; SP-255 connects São Carlos to the west, for cities like Jaú (83 km) and Bauru (153 km); Rodovia Dr. Paulo Lauro (SP-215) connects São Carlos to the east, for cities like Descalvado (35 km) and Porto Ferreira (48 km).

By bus São Carlos is well served by intermunicipal bus lines, travelling up to 153 destinies, like Araraquara, Rio Claro, Ribeirão Preto, Campinas, Piracicaba, São Paulo, among other important cities within the state and across the country. In Socicam website, it is possible to obtain information regarding Terminal Rodoviário Paulo Egídio Martins, São Carlos bus station, as well as the list of the companies which offer passenger transport services.

By plane Guarulhos International Airport (GRU IATA), in São Paulo (231 km (144 mi)), and Viracopos International (VCP IATA) in Campinas (150 km (93 mi)) are the main international airports around São Carlos, operating regular flights to several destinies, including major cities in North America, Europa, Africa and Asia. Other nearby airports are:

Ribeirão Preto (RAO IATA) (100 km), connecting São Carlos to a number of regional cities in São Paulo, Rio de Janeiro, Goiás, Mato Grosso, Minas Gerais, Tocantins, and Bahia; Araraquara (AQA IATA) (33 km), with 9 weekly flights to Campinas, operated by Azul. Inside São Carlos city, there is the Mário Pereira Lopes airport, which operates only charter flights.

Getting around

By taxi Coopertaxi, ☏ +55 16 3415 6005. Usetaxi, ☏ +55 16 3307 7000.

By car There are several car rental companies in São Carlos.

By bus There are dozens of urban bus lines (managed by SiTrans), running through the city, and its two connecting terminals (North and South).

SITrans website

See

Museums Cerqueira César Historical and Pedagogical Museum (Museu Histórico e Pedagógico Cerqueira César). M-F 08:00-12:00 and 14:00-18:00, Sa 08:00-12:00. Historical museum, exhibiting colonial and imperial era items, including a D.Pedro II carriage and objects that belonged to local family farmers. Free. 1 Computing Museum (Museu de Computação), Avenida Trabalhador São-carlense, 400 - Centro (in USP-São Carlos Campus I, block 4 of the Science, Mathematics, and Computing Institute - ICMC), ☏ +55 16 3373 9700, fax: +55 16 3371 2238. M-F 08:00-18:00, Sa 09:00-12:00. Free. Museum of Energy (Museu de Energia), Fazenda Cascatinha, km 7.0 - (at SP-310 km 228) (inside Monjolinho power station). Wings of a Dream Museum (Museu Asas de um Sonho), Rodovia SP 318, km 249.5 – Água Vermelha, ☏ +55 16 3306 2020. W-Su 10:00-16:00. TAM Airline museum, an aviation museum, 15 km from São Carlos, exhibiting 35 aircraft in a historical building measuring 450 meters long by 130 meters wide and 11 meters high. Free on W, R$ 25 (general public), R$ 12.50 (students and half-price beneficiaries).

Churches and temples São Carlos Cathedral (Catedral de São Carlos Borromeu), Praça D. José Marcondes Homem de Mello, no number - Centro (Avenida São Carlos), ☏ +55 16 3371 2277, [email protected]. Our Lady of Fátima Church (Igreja Nossa Senhora de Fátima), Rua: Dona Maria Jacinta, 39, ☏ +55 16 3371 5390. Presbyterian Church (Igreja Presbiteriana), Rua Dona Alexandrina, 1468 - São Carlos/SP CEP: 13560-290, ☏ +55 16 3371 8217. Th 19:30-20:30, Su 09:00-11:00 19:00-20:30. Saint Antônio of Pádua Church. Saint Benedito Church. Saint Sebastião Church. Our Lady Aparecida of Babylon Sanctuary.

Theaters Municipal Theater (Teatro Municipal), Rua Sete de Setembro, 1735, ☏ +55 16 3371 4339, [email protected]. Tu-F 11:00-20:00, Sa Su 14:00-20:00. Theatre of the Social Service of Commerce. Theatre of Sāo Carlos Federal University.

Parks and forests Public Garden (Opposite to the Cathedral). Square of the XV. Colonel Salles Square. Kart Circuit Park. Line Park of the Wide Street. Line Park of the Towers. Line Park of the Chimney.

Do

Cinematographs Sāo Carlos Cinematograph. Cinematograph of the Iguatemi Sāo Carlos Shopping Centre. Cinematograph of the Social Service of Commerce. Cinematograph and Club of the Scientific and Cultural Dissemination Centre of Sāo Paulo University.

Overview adapted from Wikipedia, travel guide fromWikivoyage (CC BY-SA)。Photography via Wikimedia Commons.