Santos Nero Moura Air Base / Guarujá Airport

Santos Nero Moura Air Base, which handles the limited civilian traffic at Guarujá Airport, is a small military-operated facility with a passenger experience that reflects its modest scale. Don't expect a sprawling food court or a row of sit-down restaurants — the terminal is compact, and dining options are correspondingly intimate. That said, what you'll find is genuinely local in character, with a handful of snack counters and café-style kiosks serving up Brazilian staples with a distinctly coastal São Paulo flavor.

The real standout is the opportunity to grab a classic pão de queijo alongside a strong cafezinho before your flight — simple pleasures executed well, and a quintessentially Brazilian airport ritual. Salgadinhos like coxinha and esfiha tend to appear in glass display cases near the departure area, freshly made and reasonably priced. If you time your visit right, you might also find pastéis with seafood fillings — a nod to Guarujá's identity as a beloved beach destination on the Baixada Santista coast.

Because the airport sits close to town, savvy travelers often eat before arriving rather than relying solely on what's available airside. The surrounding Guarujá beachfront area offers excellent fish restaurants and casual barraquinhas serving grilled shrimp and caldeirada, the hearty Brazilian fisherman's stew. If you have time before heading to the airport, a meal overlooking Pitangueiras or Enseada beaches is an experience that no terminal kiosk, however charming, can quite replicate.