Santos is 70 km southeast of São Paulo on the BR-101 (Anchieta) and BR-160 (Imigrantes) motorways. The drive takes about an hour outside rush hour but can stretch to three hours on summer Fridays and holiday weekends, when half of São Paulo heads down to the coast.
There is no useful passenger rail service to São Paulo. Frequent buses run from São Paulo's Tietê and Jabaquara terminals to the Santos rodoviária downtown — about 90 minutes, and a cheap and reliable option. The nearest international airport is Guarulhos (GRU) in São Paulo, about 90 minutes by road. Within Brazil, the small Congonhas airport is a little closer if you are flying domestically.