For the final stretch of my two times to Latin America review trip, I had a layover at Sao Paulo Guarulhos Airport (GRU) prior to my Copa Boeing 737 MAX business class flight to Panama City.
During my layover, I had the chance to check out the Espaco Banco Safra Lounge, which is the contract lounge used by many airlines, and it’s also accessible with Priority Pass over select hours. Interestingly this is the former Star Alliance Lounge, which was rebranded in 2021.
I’ve gotta say, for a contract lounge, I thought this was excellent. It was spacious, had plenty of seating options, and had an extensive selection of food and drinks. This lounge is worth a visit, if you have the time. Separately, I reviewed the Amex Centurion Lounge.
Espaco Banco Safra Lounge Sao Paulo location
The Espaco Banco Safra Lounge is located in Terminal 3 at Sao Paulo Airport, which is the airport’s primary international terminal. After you clear passport control and prior to getting to the main area with the gates, you should see an escalator and elevator on the left leading to many lounges. This is right near the duty free shopping area.
Once on the mezzanine level, just turn right, and walk along the exterior of the Amex Centurion Lounge.
A short distance later, you’ll see the entrance to the Espaco Banco Safra Lounge on the right.
Espaco Banco Safra Lounge Sao Paulo hours
The Espaco Banco Safra Lounge Sao Paulo is open 24/7. The airport has flights all hours of the day and night, so that’s why the lounge never closes. I was lucky that my Copa flight was at 3AM, which is probably the quietest time in the lounge. You can expect that during peak periods this lounge will be packed.
Espaco Banco Safra Lounge Sao Paulo entry requirements
The Espaco Banco Safra Lounge Sao Paulo can be accessed via a variety of methods.
For one, this is a contract lounge for premium passengers on many airlines, including Air Canada, Air China, Copa, Emirates, ITA Airways, Lufthansa, South African Airways, SWISS, and TAP Air Portugal. As you can see, even though this lounge is no longer run by Star Alliance, it’s still the primary contract lounge for the alliance.
On top of that, this is a Priority Pass lounge, though only over select hours. Currently the lounge is accessible with Priority Pass anytime between 11PM and 2PM (since the afternoon and evening are the busier time at the airport). For those visiting with Priority Pass, access is only allowed two hours prior to departure. Some lounges sure are getting aggressive with time limitations, since that basically means you have an hour to use the lounge.
Espaco Banco Safra Lounge Sao Paulo seating & layout
The Espaco Banco Safra Lounge Sao Paulo is around 1,350 square meters (~14,500 square feet), with seating for nearly 300 guests. I’ve gotta say, I’m a fan of this lounge in terms of the variety of seating options, and how it opens up into the terminal, which gives it a spacious feel. The lounge isn’t anything overly luxurious, but the furniture still feels fresh, and I found the lounge to be very clean.
As you enter the lounge, there are chairs arranged in a variety of clusters, intended primarily for relaxing.
As you get a little deeper into the lounge, there’s an area with some dining tables, adjacent to the main buffet.
There’s also a bar area near the dining area, which has some counter seating as well.
The perimeter of the lounge has a row of seats facing out toward the terminal (this is the extent of the views
Then when you go deeper into the lounge, there’s another large seating area with couches, TVs, etc. This area has netted ropes that create a “ceiling” of sorts. I’m not sure if this is some sort of a nautical theme, or what they’re going for?
There’s a smaller room like this back near the entrance to the lounge, which primarily has chairs with ottomans.
There’s also a spa area in this part of the lounge, though it wasn’t open during my visit. I’d assume that it offers paid services, when open.
Let me emphasize that while the lounge was basically empty at 1-2AM, there wasn’t an empty seat in the lounge around 6-8PM, given how busy the airport gets then. So expect the level of crowding to also impact your experience a bit.
Espaco Banco Safra Lounge Sao Paulo food & drinks
The Espaco Banco Safra Lounge Sao Paulo has one of the more extensive food selections that I’ve seen in a contract lounge, and best of all, the quality actually seemed to be quite good.
For one, there was a massive selection of sandwiches, salads, cold cuts, and fresh fruit.
Then there were several hot dishes, ranging from cheese ravioli, to peas with baked potatoes, to flank steak in beer sauce, to Asian style chicken.
There were also the typical, traditional Brazilian cheese bread options, beef sliders, lentil soup, and pumpkin soup with shredded chicken.
Then there were dessert options, ranging from coffee cake to brigadeiro.
Soft drinks and beer were available directly at the buffet, with refrigerators having water, soda, and beer.
Then there were several coffee machines, including a Nespresso machine.
Separately, the bar had a variety of wine, as well as a basic selection of liquor.
There was even a menu, as a bartender was happy to prepare the (limited number of) cocktails on the menu.
For a contract lounge, I don’t think spreads get much better than this.
Espaco Banco Safra Lounge Sao Paulo bathrooms & showers
The Espaco Banco Safra Lounge Sao Paulo has both bathrooms and shower suites, located inside the entrance and to the left.
The men’s room was clean, and had several sinks, stalls, and urinals.
The lounge also has four shower suites, which are pretty spacious. I was assigned the accessible one, which is of course a bit different than the standard ones. While the shower suites are spacious, I found the ventilation in them to be very poor.
Bottom line
The Espaco Banco Safra Lounge Sao Paulo is an impressive contract lounge. It has a spacious, open layout, plenty of seating options, a good selection of food and drinks, and it’s also clean. Expect the lounge to be really busy over peak hours, but then again, which lounge isn’t nowadays?
For a contract lounge that’s not directly affiliated with any airline, I’d say this is about as good as it gets.
What’s your take on the Espaco Banco Safra Lounge Sao Paulo?
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