Salvador, Brazil - getting to the Pelourinho

In Salvador, Brazil, the docks are in the lower city and most of the interesting sites are in the upper city in the Pelourinho area. Much of the tourist info about Salvador includes information on the Lacerda elevator to get to/from the upper city, but there's a more direct way to get there if the ship does not dock at the southern end of the docks.

See the map here for reference: http://www.lonelyplanet.com/maps/south-america/brazil/salvador-da-bahia/

Our ship docked roughly at the foot of Rua da Argentina. Elevator Lacerda is opposite Rua da Belgica at the south end of the docks (shown as a cableway on the map). There's another set of cableway symbols to the north at the eastern end of Rua da Argentina - that's an inclined plane railway, the Plano Inclinado Goncalves (page is in Portugese, but includes picture): http://pt.wikipedia.org/wiki/Plano_inclinado_Gon%C3%A7alves

The upper station on this inclined plane is directly behind the Cathedral in the heart of the Pelourinho, whereas the top of the elevator is at a plaza somewhat further south. As of April, 2010, the one-way fare for both the Plano Inclinado Goncalves and Elevator Lacerda is a bargain-basement R$0.15 (less than 10 cents US). This map shows both the elevator (10) and the inclined plane (1), but is clipped in the dock area: http://www.planetware.com/map/salvador-map-bra-bra315.htm

Salvador, Brazil was definitely an interesting place to visit, but bring good walking shoes, as the only reasonable way to get around the Pelourinho is on foot, and the streets are paved with somewhat uneven cobblestones.

@dlb237-- There is a very good reason that the Elevador Lacerda, from whose top station the historic district is only two short blocks, is the method recommended to tourists for getting up the cliff side to Pelourinho, and that is safety. Conditions on and getting to/from the Plano Inclinado you describe can become dodgy, and it is difficult for a tourist new to the city to judge. Take the Elevador, NO question.

Directions to the upper town from the cruise port is simple, via the elevator.

Leave the port, turn right and walk about 5 blocks-the 2 story bazaar is on your left. Walk through or around the shops. Go straight and there is the lift.

After you exit turn left. Follow the 1st street. The plaza is 3 blocks.

Have coins for the lift.

Directions to the upper town from the cruise port is simple, via the elevator.

But here is a bit more detail...

Leave the port, turn right and walk about 5 blocks

Or less, depending where the ship ties up. When you walk....You will see in front of you a bunch of schooners/sail boats tied up at docks in the water. On your right will be the small blue ferry terminal. Turn to the left, before you fall in he water.

the 2 story bazaar is on your left. Walk through or around the shops.

You are looking at the back side of that yellow building, 2 stories, called the Mercado Modelo, filled with souvenir shops, crafts, T-shirts, etc.

If you look past the far side, the front with more outdoor shops, you should see the tower of the Elevador Lacerda going up the cliff.

As mentioned, go through or around the Mercado Modelo and the stalls out front, cross the street and pass through the crowds at the major bus stop on a traffic island, and on the other side is the entrance to the Elevador.

Go straight and there is the lift.

After you exit turn left.

But first pause to get some amazing ice cream at one of the best stands in Salvador, and for that matter, all Brazil.

Follow the 1st street.

You will be on the Praca Thome de Souza (named after the first governor), with the white municipal building on the right.

Just walk out to the street, the street you will be on when you turn left on exiting the Elevador.

You can take time to look back out over the Bay of All Saints, at the round Forte São Marcelo, the top of the Mercado Modelo and the so-called "bunda" sculpture.

The plaza is 3 blocks.

After a block, you come into the Praca do Se, with a fountain and smooth stone flooring.

Walk to the opposite diagonal corner to find the entrance to Pelourinho, into the Terreiro de Jesus, with the Catedral Basilica on your left, and at the far end, the São Francisco church and convent.

Have coins for the lift.

Up now from the 5 cents it used to be for decades.

I'll buy you one of those cones.

Expect to be there 3:30 on Sunday 16th of November. I'll wear an Oceania baseball cap.

Lou

I'll buy you one of those cones.

Thanks, Lou.

Maracuja is my favorite flavor.

Not to sound cheap......lol.....but isn't the elevator free for senior citizens in case we don't have change?

Ellen:)

And how would you intend to explain and prove that you are a senior and you think you should ride free? Do you speak Portuguese? Do you have some Brazilian senior ID in Portuguese?

They'll give you change for a one real coin or even a small real banknote/bill at the elevator entry point, but the rest of the long line always appreciates it if you don't hold it up getting them to make lots of change (or trying to explain that you need special treatment). Buy a bottle of water on the bus-stop island in front of the entrance if you need to break a small banknote/bill. Or buy some souvenirs at the Mercado Modelo on your way, one of the best places you'll find in a Brazil to get stuff for folks back home, anyway. There is an ATM inside the Mercado iirc if you have no cash in reais yet. Or borrow some change from a better prepared fellow cruiser.

(And yeah, to be blunt as is my style, it does sound to me cheap and kind of sleazy and somewhat insulting for someone who can afford a cruise, and is in a city where many/most people are lucky to make in a month what a day of cruising costs, to spend even a second trying to think about how to get out of paying a fare of pennies, because they're too lazy to be prepared with correct change.)

Glad to see your still around this thread.

When we were in the upper city 2 years ago we found refuge in a tent which had about 6 vendors of local crafts. My wife fell in love with some headbands.

Last year, with the construction, the tent was gone.

Are they back?

You refer to "the upper city" as if it included just the few most touristed blocks in/near Pelourinho. But when locals hear the term, referring to a large part of the city, it's more like asking about Manhattan in NYC, about one pushcart "there", without being specific.

Yes, I have seen a tent with craftspeople on the plaza at the top of the elevator. Is that the one? But truthfully, most locals don't have reason to get into that part of Pelourinho very often, including myself who is kind of a homebody these days and hasn't had occasion lately, so whether your wife can find headbands on this trip I couldn't say.