Salvador

Introduction

Salvador - Pelourinho Square, "Rosario dos Pretos" Church

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Salvador is a city on the northeastern coast of Brazil, in the state of Bahia and has about 3 million inhabitants. It is well known for its street parties and of course Carnival, one of the best in the country together with that of Rio de Janeiro. It's a happy mix of different cultures and people and also the Afro-Brazilian capital of the country with an estimated 80% of the city being of African origin. There is much more to offer though with dozens of Portugese colonial historical buildings dating back to the 17th to 19th centuries. It's one of the oldest cities in Brazil and even of the New World.
For more information check the official Salvador touristic website.

Neighbourhoods

• West Zone: Pelourinho, The Historic Centre, Comercio, Downtown.
• South Zone: Barra, Vitoria, Campo Grande, Graca, Ondina, Rio Vermelho.
• East Zone: Itaigara, Pituba, Horto Florestal, Caminho das Arvores, Loteamento Aquárius, Brotas, Stiep, Costa Azul, Armação, Jaguaribe and Stella Maris, Itapoa.
• North Zone: Periperi, Paripe, Lobato, Liberdade, Nova Esperança, and Calçada.

Sights and Activities

• The historical centre of Salvador is placed on the Unesco World Heritage List. Highlights include the Cathedral of Salvador and the Convent and Church of Sao Francisco. Others are the Church of Nosso Senhor do Bonfim, the Mercado Modelo and the Elevador Lacerda.
• Beaches.

Events and Festivals

• Carnival in Salvador - 2010 is the next upcoming big Carnival, the biggest street part in the world with 2 million people partying and dancing for a whole week.
• Summer Festival

Weather

Salvador has a tropical climate with little variation regarding temperatures. Daytime temperatures average around 30 degrees Celsius between December and April while July and August are the coolest months, still around 27 degrees Celsius. Nights are roughly beteween 22 and 25 degrees Celsius. There is not really a dry season, just a less wet season. April to August is the wettest time of year with almost 200mm a month. But from October to February average precipitation is still between 100 and 150 mm a month, totalling around 2000mm a year.

Getting There

By Plane

Deputado Luís Eduardo Magalhães International Airport near Salvador serves as the main gateway for planes to and from the city. International flights include those to Miami, Madrid, Milan, Frankfurt, Lisbon, London, Montevideo, Santiago, Buenos Aires, and Asuncion. TAM and GOL have many flights to other Brazilian cities, including Rio de Janeiro, Sao Paulo and Brasilia.

By Train

By Car

By Bus

Buses provide services to most major Brazilian cities, including Rio de Janeiro, Sao Paulo, and Brasilia, as well as regional destinations.

By Boat

Boats to points on Baía de Todos os Santos leave from the Terminal Marítimo Turístico and the Terminal Marítimo de São Joaquim. Boats heading for Morro de Sao Paulo also leave from the Terminal Marítimo Turístico. There are six companies offering trips taking two hours one way. The number of daily departures varies according to demand so boats might leave when they are at least half full.

Getting Around

By Car

By Public Transport

By Foot

By Bike

Eat

Drink

Sleep

Budget

Mid-Range

Upscale

Work

Learn

• Pan American School of Bahia
• Catholic University of Salvador

Keep Connected

Internet

Phone

See also International Telephone Calls

Post

Correios is the national postal service of Brazil. It is a government run postal service and overseen by the Brazilian Ministry of Communications. Post offices are generally open from Monday to Friday from 09:00am to 5:00pm, although post offices located in shopping malls have their own opening hours, usually from 10:00am to 10:00pm. There are no set opening hours at weekends and as post office owners can choose when to open and close. More and more post offices are open until 1:00pm on Saturdays though. You can check things at the nearest post office. Sending postcards, letters and parcels is a rather straightforward process and services are reliable, though not overly fast when sending post internationally, mostly taking about a week to the USA and Europe, and there is a track-and-trace service for this as well. Domestically, there are both next day as well as more expensive same day delivery options. Stamps are available at post offices, as well as some kiosks or other places where they sell postcards.