Hearing the sound of the waves and seeing the white sand filled with lounge chairs would almost feel like being on the beach, were it not for the contrast with the surrounding landscape, filled with skyscrapers that form the typical backdrop of the Pinheiros seafront, in São Paulo, where two surf clubs have opened their doors.
With the cable-stayed bridge in the background, the São Paulo Surf Club swimming pool, which opened a week ago, is 220 meters long and forms waves of different heights, shapes, durations and speeds programmed by technology imported from the United States.
A similar system forms more than 20 types of waves at Beyond the Club, located about 7 kilometers away, on the land where the former Hotel Transamérica, closed during the pandemic, stood.
In both cases, these are initiatives from large developers aimed at a high-income audience. The addresses have obligations ranging from R$820,000 to R$1.25 million, monthly fees of up to R$3,300, and no “day use” options.
In the wake of the urban surfing trend in the capital of São Paulo, the capital’s Sports Secretary, Rogério Lins, announced this week on his social network page a project to create a wave pool in the park that will be created in Campo de Marte, in the northern zone.
The surf club located in front of the Estaiada Bridge is owned by the JHFS Group, which will build residential towers on the land scheduled to launch in the first half of 2026. The 154 units will have an area between 260 and 870 m² and are expected to be sold at R$45,000 per square meter (around R$4 million for the most spacious option).
At Beyond The Club, the proposition is different, according to Oscar Segall, founding partner of KSM – one of the investors in the company which is partnered by world champion surfer Gabriel Medina. Developer Realty Properties and the asset management arm of BTG Pactual bank form the club’s investor group.
According to him, the project was designed as a leisure option, without real estate interest. “I gave up incorporation, that’s exactly what I’ve done my whole life,” he says. “I liked this beach thing, it touches people’s emotions,” he continues.
The opening nevertheless had an impact on the surrounding real estate market. According to the businessman, the value of apartments in a recently launched project has increased by up to 80%. “They are sold with a sea view.”
Coming from the development sector and founder of Klabin Segall, the businessman is the creator of a similar project in a high-end condominium in Itupeva, in the interior of São Paulo. He said the idea of building a surf pool was a way to boost unit sales in the subdivision, which were slow due to competition around the Bandeirantes highway.
In addition to the São Paulo Surf Club, JHFS has another surf club in its portfolio, also built in a high-end condominium inside São Paulo.
The proximity of the two surf clubs to Avenida Faria Lima is highlighted by the two businessmen. “Location is a differentiator,” says Augusto Martins, CEO of JHSF. “That’s where the GDP of the country is,” says Segall.
A surfer since the age of 12, member Dimitrius Nassyrios, 65, is a neighbor of Beyond the Club and was one of the first to acquire the title. “The idea is to surf at least three times a week. It’s become my playground.”
Used to taking day trips to the coast early in the morning for the privilege of practicing the sport before work, he is delighted to be able to surf tubes just a few meters from his home.
Originally from Peruíbe, on the south coast of São Paulo, the pool instructor at the São Paulo Surf Club uses the word “surreal” to describe the possibility of surfing in the middle of the Pinheiros beachfront. “For those who come from surfing and know that you can’t predict the type of wave that’s coming at sea, it’s paradise.”
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