Ibirapuera Park São Paulo: Museums, Running & the Green Heart of the City

Ibirapuera Park is São Paulo's Central Park — a 158-hectare green space in the south of the city designed by Oscar Niemeyer and landscape architect Roberto Burle Marx, opened in 1954 to mark the city's 400th anniversary. It's the lungs of Brazil's largest city: on any given Sunday, a quarter-million Paulistanos descend on the park to run, cycle, rollerblade, play football, sleep in hammocks, take their dogs, and conduct the outdoor social life that the rest of the week in São Paulo's traffic and density makes difficult.

The park contains three major museums within its borders. The Museu de Arte Moderna (MAM) is the leading modern art museum in Brazil after MASP — strong on Brazilian modernism and contemporary work, with rotating shows. The Museu Afro Brasil focuses on African-Brazilian culture and history and is one of the most thoughtfully presented museums in the country. The Oca, Niemeyer's flying-saucer-shaped exhibition pavilion, hosts major temporary exhibitions. The Pavilhão Japonês (Japanese Pavilion) near the south entrance is a traditional Japanese garden and tea house maintained by the Japanese-Brazilian community.

The park's running circuit is one of South America's most popular: a 3.8km circuit around the park perimeter, well-lit and busy from 6am to 10pm. Cycling paths and rental stations are inside the park. The lake at the centre hosts model boats and pedal boats on weekends. The park is busiest on Sunday mornings; weekday evenings are quieter and equally pleasant.

Getting there: Metro Ibirapuera station opens in stages; until it's fully operational, the 5087 bus from Consolação or Uber are the standard options. Entry to the park is free; museum admissions vary.