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Practicalities
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The
Rodoviaria
is a little way out of town, but taxis are cheap and plentiful. Three
buses
a day make the eleven-hour journey from Salvador, but one of these is an extremely expensive
leito
service, and you should book well ahead. There are also direct
flights
from Rio and Salvador. There are
tourist information
offices at the Rodoviaria, the airport, and in the centre of town at the Secretaria de Turismo, Praca Visconde de Porto Seguro, in the Casa da Lenha (tel 073/288-4124). The tour agencies Pataxo Turismo, Av. dos Navegantes 333 (tel 073/288-1256), and Taipe Viagens e Turismo, Av. 22 de Abril 1077 (tel 073/288-3127), are also helpful.
Internet access
is available from an office on the second floor of the Avenida Shopping Mall in the town centre ($10 per hour).
Finding accommodation should be the least of your worries as Porto Seguro is jammed with hotels. However, prices vary astonishingly between high and low season: a budget hotel in, say, November, could triple in price by Christmas. You need to bear this in mind when considering the high-season prices we've quoted. If you want to be right in the thick of the nightlife, you could try the Pousada da Orla, at Av. Portugal 404 (tel 073/288-2434; $20-35). A couple of roads back from the riverfront, in a wooden colonial-style building is the Hotel Terra A Vista, Av. Getulio Vargas 124 (tel 073/288-2035; $35-50), which is actually a relatively peaceful place to stay. A hotel with some genuine colonial character is the Pousada Oasis do Pacata, at Rua Marechal Deodoro 286 (tel 073/288-2221; $35-50), which is run by a Frenchwoman, and has a swimming pool and a friendly atmosphere. Chalet-style accommodation is provided at the Pousada Sao Luiz, Av. 22 de Abril 329 (tel 073/288-2238; $35-50), and greater luxury can be found at the Park Palace Hotel, Av. 22 de Abril 400 (tel 073/288-3777; $70-90). The clean but rather noisy youth hostel is at Rua Cova da Moca 729 (tel 073/288-1742; $8 per person), while the best-equipped campsite is Camping da Gringa (tel 073/288-2076) at the edge of town; there's another on Mundai beach (tel 073/288-2287), which starts in front of Cidade Alta.
There are a huge number of
places to eat
in Porto Seguro, though the more sophisticated ones, like the
Cruz de Malta,
Av. Getulio Vargas 358 (11am-midnight), tend to be quite expensive. You can dine more cheaply at
Tche,
on Travessa Augusto Borges, just off the Passarela do Alcool, where a half-portion of
carne do sol
will satisfy even the most ravenous carnivore. Avenida Portugal is generally the liveliest area of town for
nightlife
. The
Sotton Bar
on Praca de Baudeira and the
Porto Prego
club on Rua Pedro Alvares Cabral are both good for live music and dancing. Other useful information
for tourists (each section contains more specific sub-sections): |
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Brazil,
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