Salvador is located on a peninsula and stands on the enormous bay of Todos os Santos, the largest bay in Brazil and second largest in the World.

 

The city has so much to offer the visitor! From the moment of arrival, there is an ‘electric’ atmosphere and a creative energy expressed in the regional music, cuisine and capoeira; a stylized art form of combat which is fast becoming popular outside Brazil.

Salvador is a stunning, vibrant city where you will find Brazil’s oldest churches and some of the most beautiful colonial architecture. There is a very obvious African influence and the resultant mix of races, colours and cultures epitomises what Brazil stands for today.

 

The largest of the north eastern states and the very heart of what was colonial Brazil, Bahia, with its 1,200 kms of coastline, including 100 islands, is the size of France. This is where the Portuguese explorer Cabral landed in 1500 and where African slaves were brought to help harvest the cotton and sugar cane which formed the basis of Brazil’s original wealth.

The very obvious African influence and the resultant mix of races, colours and cultures epitomises what Brazil stands for today. The Bahians are no strangers to creative energy. Here you will find Brazil’s oldest churches and its most important colonial architecture. It is the birthplace of Jorge Amado, one of Brazil’s most outstanding writers, and the famous composers Joao Gilberto and Gilberto Gil. The temperature is an average of 27°C throughout the year.

 

There is much to see in Bahia: the spectacular mountain scenery of the Chapada Diamantina national park, site of the 1844 diamond rush, the fine beaches around Morro de São Paulo, Porto Seguro, Ilheus, Itacare and Praia do Forte and, of course, the state capital of Salvador, a stunning, vibrant city with a population of 2.5 million that was, until 1763, Brazil’s capital.

 

The Peninsula, with its series of white sand beaches, on which the city was built, was first discovered by Americo Vespucci in 1501 and stands on the bay of Todos os Santos (it was discovered on All Saints Day) which, with an area of 1,100 sq kms and dotted with 38 islands, is the largest bay in Brazil and the second largest in the world.

 

The state of Bahia is one of the most popular destinations for visitors owing to over 1000km of coconut-fringed beaches and a weather forecast of ‘hot and sunny’ practically every day!

 

Carnival in Salvador
Many people forget that Carnival takes place in villages, towns and cities all over Brazil and not just in Rio de Janeiro.  In Salvador, the focus is on the more contemporary side of carnival culture with African and electronic music taking centre stage.

Carnival takes place throughout the streets of the city; as well as International visitors, local Brazilians flock from other areas of the country to enjoy the celebrations.