Salvador da Bahia Travel Forum

We will be in Salvador da Bahia at the beginning of March. What will be the best place to stay in or around Salvador? We want a nice but not too expensive place (no dorms..), close to the beaches. I heard about Barra district and also about the island of Itaparica, but not much else.

The beach neighborhood of Barra and the Colonial historic district of Pelourinho have the majority of tourist infrastructure.
Barra has the small cove at Porto da Barra, with calm water for swimming, a great sunset, a lively atmosphere, and good access to nightlife and music. The Farol da Barra beach is a longer strip with reefs and waves, with many restaurants across the street,facing it.
There are accomodations, neighborhoods and beaches right up the coast to the sirport and then beyond.
Rio Vermelho, for example, is a Bohemian neighborhood, not too far out from the historic sights, with a lively scene on the praca.
Itaparica is an island in the bay, predominantly rural and quiet, with long sandflats at low tide. The majority accomodations are in the village where the Club Med is located. The regular ferry to Salvador city takes about 45 minutes.

You can look at the accomodations page on www.bahia-online.net, but unless you specifically define what "not too expensive" means to you, it is hard to give suggestions. There are hundreds of options in Barra and beyond.

bahianna77,

I am not sure but 50-75 USD for a room with bathroom ensuit is what I have sought.

By the way speaking about itaparica, would you rather stay there and visit Barra or vice-versa?

I am sending a Salvador Map in order to allow you find some nice accommodation in or around this city.
I suggest Praia do Forte.
I am pasteing some links in order to choose the spots:

http://ach.travel.yahoo.net/hotel/HotelMultipleLocationMap.do;jsessionid=903B125BB4DEC7131AF63AF7A2307F52.p0730?navigationDirection=S&clickAction=0&zoom=0&zoomLevel=5&mapCenterPointLat=-12.620337&mapCenterPointLong=-38.41209&showReset=1&showMap=1&hotelQKey=-6438207195564924056&mapType=multiple

http://www.aluguetemporada.com.br/bahia/salvador/rentals.cfm

The upper link shows at the left side some spots near Salvador. Just click at the keys in order to list the available place accommodations.

Enjoy Brazil!
Cassiovieggore

Some friends liked Pousada Estrela do Mar in Barra a lot.
http://www.estreladomarsalvador.com/
Pousada Papaya Verde in Barra has a lovely airy upstairs front room.
www.pousadapapayaverde.com
Right opposite the Porto da Barra beach is Village Novo which some people rave about.
Just down the block is the basic, clean, comfortable, convenient Hotel Barra Turismo, with the breakfast room overlooking the beach.
There are a couple more hotels nearby in its general price range.

Itaparica is an easy day trip by ferry, but is not a commute to Salvador for anyone wanting to see the city sights.
Praia do Forte is most easily reached as part of a day tour in a VW combi going up the coast to stop at various locations, but is too far (and with irregular transportation) to use as a base to experience the city.

i agree with bahiana77 that itaparica is not really the place to stay as you will end up with a lot of transport back and forth.
i personally really like both barra and the rio vermelho.
pelourinho is getting a bit too touristy in the bad way for me these days.
especially at night.

Hi Bahianna77,

We are trying the Village Novo as they have great deals for the period we need (less than $50 per room per night for the smaller rooms). Thanks for the assistance.

Enjoy!
Let us know how it goes. And post if you have any more questions while you're there.

hello with the budget over 50 usd you can stay in almost any place in barra i lived there and i am going back there in march i would recomend barra or rio vermelho just contact me if you need any info bjarkim@hotmail.com