In a nutshell

A lovely sightseeing tour of Salvador de Bahia, partly by coach and partly on foot, to discover the historical and cultural heritage of this diverse city, with a final stop at the craft market to learn about and buy locally made artefacts.

Main stops

Igreja do Bonfim (internal visit)
Dique do Tororó and statues of the Orixas (panoramic by bus)
Farol da Barra
Porto da Barra
Praça da Sé
Terreiro de Jesus and Pelourinho
Mercado Modelo

The programme

We will begin our excursion with a sightseeing tour of the lower town, during which we will pass in front the fascinating church Igreja dos Mares the only Gothic one in Salvador de Bahia and the Memorial of Sister Dulce, the first Brazilian born Saint and well known throughout the country. Next we will stop for a visit to the Igreja do Bonfim, an object of deep devotion for the Bahian people.
We will then head to the upper town, passing through Dique do Tororó, a beautiful and interesting lagoon where we can admire the imposing statues of the Orixas, a syncretic Christian-African religious divinity.
We enter the Barra district, on our way to Farol da Barra, the city's lighthouse, on a fortified promontory. Here we have a short break to take some souvenir photos.
We then go through the Porto da Barra and the Vitória district, arriving at Campo Grandesquare, with its statue commemorating 2 July.
Nearby, we see the Castro Alves Theatre, after which we will go down Avenida Sete de Setembro and come to the beautiful Praça da Sé, situated beside the cathedral, in the centre of which is a monument to Zumbi, the leader of a slave revolt.
Passing through the bustling Terreiro de Jesus square we continue on foot to the old city centre with its wide range of very beautiful monuments and churches: Igreja de São Francisco, the Ordem Terceira de São Francisco church, the Cathedral and finally the Pelourinho, a lively historic district home to many bars and monuments and under the protection of UNESCO as a World Heritage site.
We then return to the lower town for a stop-off at the Mercado Modelo, the city's main craft centre, where we can devote some free time to shopping before returning to the port.

Good to know

Space is limited, so please reserve early.
There is limited availability of English-language guides; if these are not available the local guide's commentary will be translated by a local interpreter.