In short
Salvador was the capital of Brazil for two centuries and the continent's main port for the Atlantic slave trade. Three quarters of its people are of African descent, the highest proportion in the country.
The Pelourinho, a World Heritage colonial quarter, concentrates the baroque churches, capoeira and the percussion groups. Candomblé is practised openly there.
What it really costs
Salvador costs less than Rio and São Paulo, for a steadier climate and warm sea all year.
The seafront districts — Barra, Rio Vermelho, Ondina — hold the life and cost more than the historic centre, where few people sleep.
What nobody tells you
Safety needs genuine attention, more than in southern Brazil. The Pelourinho is patrolled by day; in the evening you move by car and stay off the adjoining streets.
Salvador's carnival is the largest in the world by number of participants and looks nothing like Rio's: it happens in the street, behind sound trucks, over a week. Prices triple.
The Lacerda lift has linked the upper and lower town since 1873, for a few cents. It is public transport, and the view matches the paid viewpoints.