Location & Access
Unfortunately, São Paulo doesn’t offer a huge selection of lounges. The lounge for Star Alliance flights is called “Espaco Banco Safra” and is located right next door to the American Express Lounge. Both are situated in Terminal 3, on the second floor near the Duty Free area. After passing through security and passport control, head left, resist the temptation of the first Duty Free shops (or don’t), then take the escalator on the left up to the second floor.
Access is granted from the American Express Platinum card onwards. In addition, entry is also available with PriorityPass, DinersClub, and Lounge Club. You can find the relevant American Express lounge finder here: https://global.americanexpress.com/lounge-access/the-platinum-card
Opening hours are Monday to Friday, 12am–12am.
Amenities
It was noticeably quieter here than in the neighboring Espaco Banco Safra Lounge, which is what drew us in.
There are various seating areas spread nicely throughout the lounge. Most of them have ample power outlets. To me, the whole space feels very modern and makes for a pleasant change from the other lounges.
Wi-Fi passwords are posted throughout the lounge, so staying connected shouldn’t be an issue.
One small but lovely touch is a dedicated children’s room.
Alongside a staffed bar, there’s also a self-service fridge with drinks. The fridge somehow didn’t make it into any of my photos — something to fix next time :-) Critics might point out that the spirits aren’t exactly top-shelf, but there were some local specialties I was happy to try.
Behind the bar there’s a separate area for Centurion card members, though it was never checked or enforced in any way during our visit. That section doesn’t offer any notable extras either.
There’s also a buffet, and the selection was more than sufficient for our moderately short visit — everything was replenished regularly.
Showers and restrooms are available in the lounge as well. Cleanliness there was somewhat hit-or-miss. I only managed a quick look at the shower before it was cleaned, so my comments mainly refer to the restrooms. As for the showers, free access is limited to holders of the American Express Platinum, Titanium, and Elo Nanquim cards.
Verdict
For me, this is clearly one of the better lounges in the terminal — especially given that Terminal 3 doesn’t exactly offer a wealth of options. Would I arrive extra early just for this? Not necessarily, but if you have time on your hands, this is a perfectly decent place to settle in.
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