VISA
Nationals from some countries, such as the USA and Canada, need to obtain an Entry Visa prior to traveling to Brazil. It is important to note that, in general, nationals from countries that are members of the European Union do not need a visa to enter Brazil for less than 90 days. U.S. passport holders need a tourist visa for attending this conference. Check if you need a visa to travel to Brazil here. Depending on where you live you need to request your visa in a specific Brazilian consulate.
For a list of Brazilian consulates throughout the world, including additional visa information, please take a look at the webpage of the Brazilian Ministry of Foreign Relations here.
An important thing to bear in mind is that, if you're traveling from a country for which Entry Visas are required, a visa application might take a long time to be processed. In general, it does not take longer than 10 business days. Nevertheless, we recommend that you contact the consulate nearest to you in order to get precise information about the processing time.
Salvador - Bahia
Salvador da Bahia (lit. "Savior," historic name: São Salvador da Bahia de Todos os Santos, in English: "Holy Savior of All Saints' Bay") is a city on the northeast coast of Brazil and the capital of the Northeastern Brazilian state of Bahia. Salvador is also known as Brazil's capital of happiness due to its easygoing population and countless popular outdoor parties, including its street carnival.
Bahia State Tourist Information
Tourist Information of Salvador
http://www.turismo.salvador.ba.gov.br/
- Touristic Map
SalvadorBus
SalvadorBus is a touristic bus.
How to Get in
By plane
The Salvador's Deputado Luis Eduardo Magalhães International Airport (IATA: SSA, ICAO: SBSV) is one of Brazil's main airports. All of the biggest Brazilian airlines have flights to the Bahian capital city.
The airport is 28km from the city center (via the Paralela expressway) or 32km (via the seaside). Two kinds of taxis are available in the airport, the executive taxis (Coometas and Comtas), and the normal taxis. Executive taxis are pre-paid, they have a table of prices rather than a meters. The other taxi option would be the normal taxis which are metered. A third option would be the executive air-conditioned minibuses which depart every 20 minutes to the Praça da Sé, in downtown near Pelourinho via the seaside, stopping at famous beaches like Ondina, Pituba, Amaralina and Itapuã, and Barra as well as stopping by Shopping Barra -- an American-style shopping mall located not too far from the Farol da Barra. Another option are the urban buses that go to many parts of the city, for the tourist the options are Lapa, Campo Grande and São Joaquim buses, the best thing is ask the driver before taking an urban bus. Linha Verde executive buses go to Praia do Forte and depart often from the airport.
By bus
Salvador's long-distance Bus Station is in the middle of the new city, 14km from downtown. Salvador is accessible via scheduled buses from all around the country and from Paraguay. Inside the bus stations there are taxis (local taxis and executive taxis) and local buses which can all take you to many places in Salvador and the metropolitan area. Executive buses in the Iguatemi Station can be accessed from the Iguatemi Mall by way of a busy walkway. Bus travel in and out of Salvador can take a lot more time than expected. Count on an average speed of 50-60 km/h when planning your itinerary.
Services
Stay Safe
Avoid bringing anything valuable, just enough to enjoy your day. The Flamengo and Stella Maris beaches are among the safest places to go during the day, and they are the best option if you just want to enjoy a good beach without much local culture. In other places, when walking on the streets and on the beach, try to stay at areas guarded by police. Salvador recognizes the importance of tourism to the city economy, so most important tourist sites such as Pelourinho and Mercado Modelo, as well as main popular festivals like the Carnival, are usually heavily guarded. Walking in groups is usually preferable; if you are alone, consider booking a guided tour with your hotel.
As a general rule, be careful with your belongings, as in any other big city. At night, it's better to move by cab. Stay at reasonably crowded places. If you don't see other tourists where you are, then it's probably not a place you should be unless you are feeling particularly adventurous. Some areas, which are strongly frequented by foreigners, can become dangerous, especially at night, i.e. the Barra harbour area. NEVER go to the beach at night!
Beware of vehicular traffic. Crossing the streets is always dangerous even when using a pedestrian crosswalk with the traffic light red for cars. As one member of Supergrass band once said: "In Brazil green means go, and red means go faster!" Start the crossing ONLY when vehicles have already stopped.
Hospitals
- Hospital Espanhol, Av. Sete de Setembro, 4.161 - Barra. Tel. (71) 3264-1500 (5 minutes from the Bahia Othon Palace Hotel)
- Hospital Português, Av. Princesa Isabel, Barra Avenida
- Hospital Aliança, Av. Juracy Magalhães Jr., 2.096, Rio Vermelho. Tel. (71) 2108-5600.
- Hospital Santa Isabel, Praça da Sé, 500 - Nazaré. Tel. (71) 2203-8351.
- Hospital São Rafael, Av. São Rafael, 2.152 - São Marcos. Tel. (71) 3281-6897 / 3281-6882.
- Hospital Salvador, Rua Caetano Moura, 59 - Federação. Tel. (71) 3339-3000.