Big events, festivals, parties and concerts in the capital where it is a year-round party
The best summer in the world is back and this year’s schedule sounds promising. To show a little of what makes the first capital of Brazil a special place, we’ve prepared a list of major events, festivals, parties and concerts, such as the Virada Salvador Festival and Carnival, which are highlights in the capital where it is a year-round party. Thus, you can plan and organize yourself to experience the best experiences in Salvador.
Come with us and find out what to do month by month:
Afropunk Bahia Festival
November 26th and 27th
Parque de Exposições (Exhibition Park)
In 2022, the festival arrives even stronger, more powerful and revolutionary.
From “quebradeira” to punk, from pop to samba, there will be more than 20 hours of event and more than 30 attractions among big national and international names, such as Ludmilla, Baco Exu do Blues, Emicida, Psirico, Liniker, Mart’nália, Masego, Dawer x Damper, Ministério Público, Black Pantera,x’ unmissable encounters like A Dama with Mc Carol and Attooxxá with Karol Conká, and much more.
Salvador Capital Afro Festival
November 30th to December 4th
Considered a major landmark of Salvador Capital Afro – movement that seeks to project the city as a national and international reference destination in Afro tourism –, the festival will be completely free and is scheduled to take place in the Historic Center. The event will bring together several activities aimed at valuing and promoting the city’s black creative economy, as well as encouraging the development of public policies necessary for the positioning of Salvador as an anti-racist city.
Salvador Jazz Festival
December 3rd to 4th
The most bohemian neighborhood in Salvador, Rio Vermelho, will be the stage for the sixth edition of the Salvador Jazz Festival, which will take place in Largo da Mariquita. A democratic event for all families, genders, ages and races.
Salvador’s Christmas
December and January
Christmas has arrived and the streets of Salvador will be taken over by a series of events, concerts and presentations. The festivities and celebrations continue until the 6th of January, when the Three Kings Day is celebrated. In Christian tradition, it is on that date that Christmas decorations are removed. Among the planned actions are the use of 7 million sustainable LED lamps, illuminated avenues and squares, the Cathedral of Light and Sound project, all done with accessible technology and social inclusion.
Service
Christmas in Salvador
Period: December and January
Free
Virada Salvador Festival
The countdown to the country’s biggest New Year’s Eve street party has begun. The Virada Salvador Festival is the only one in the world to have five days of festivities with fireworks shows every day, between December 28th and January 1st. In all, the event will feature around 100 hours of music and should be attended by two million people at the Daniela Mercury Arena, in Boca do Rio, on the capital’s edge. In addition to the music and fireworks shows, Virada Salvador will have a special leisure space with Skate Mania, Ferris Wheel, Game and even “Divertilândia”, which will combine zip lines, abseiling and carousel. Other attractions are the Gastronomic Village and the Creative Fair.
The party will be led by big names in Bahian music and also national references in different musical styles. On the 28th of December, the afro group Ilê Aiyê, the singers Bell Marques, Igor Kannário and Nattan, the É o Tchan group, the singer Ivete Sangalo and one of the exponents of the piseiro genre, Tarcísio do Acordeon, take the main stage. On the 29th, the shows will be by DJ Alok, countryman Gusttavo Lima, axé duo Rafa and Pippo, forró by Xand Avião, pagode by Parangolé and “sofrência” by Simone Mendes, in a solo career. For the 30th, the event brings all the joy of Durval Lélys and Xanddy Harmonia, the duo Jorge & Mateus, the percussive beat of Psirico, and the forró-piseiro-sertanejo by singers Mari Fernandez, Vítor Fernandes and Thiago Brava.
The turn on the 31st will be led by the singer Cláudia Leitte and the day also features Lincoln, Léo Santana, Wesley Safadão, João Gomes, Zé Vaqueiro and Thiago Aquino. To close the marathon, on the 1st, Bahia’s atmosphere dominates the stage with shows by Daniela Mercury, Saulo, Olodum, Timbalada, Danniel Vieira and La Fúria.
The novelty of this year’s edition of Virada Salvador is the presence of a second stage, called Brisa, which will bring the freshness of new Bahian music to Soteropolitans and tourists. Among the names already confirmed are Afrocidade, Melly, Nêssa, Gibi, Sistema Pagotrap, O Kannalha and Oh Polêmico, in a total of 40 shows during the five days of the party.
Lavagem do Bonfim (Bonfim Wash)
Day: January 12th
Location: Walk from Comércio to Bonfim Church.
Typical popular festival: celebrated on the second Thursday of the year, the traditional washing of the Bonfim stairs is considered the second largest popular manifestation in Bahia, second only to Carnival. The festivities begin in front of the Church of Conceição da Praia, where an Ecumenical Service takes place. Afterwards, an 8 km walk begins to the Church of Our Lord of Bonfim. Learn more at this link.
Iemanjá Festival
Day: February 2nd
Location: Rio Vermelho neighborhood
Since dawn, Candomblé fans, tourists and devotees form huge queues to place offerings and requests in the baskets that are in Casa do Peso, in the Rio Vermelho neighborhood, Iemanjá’s House. The entire waterfront is taken over by people, sellers of Bahian food and lots of music. At the end of the day, a procession of boats takes the baskets full of flowers out to sea. Exciting! Learn more at this link.
Carnival
For the most awaited Momo revelry in the country, two pre-Carnival events will take place on the 11th and 12th of February. Called Fuzuê and Furdunço, the projects take place in the afternoon, respectively on the Saturday and Sunday that precede the official opening of the Carnival, taking a crowd of revelers and entire families in costumes to the Ondina-Barra circuit. In the last edition, in 2019, the events had the participation of 60 attractions.
On the Tuesday before Carnival, Pipoco takes place, when singer Léo Santana takes “pipoca” revelers back to the streets of Barra in an incredible show on the trio elétrico. The official Carnival days in Salvador are from the 15th to the 21st of February and promise to be the greatest in history.
See more events:
Travessia Itaparica-Salvador (Itaparica-Salvador Crossing)
Date: December 10th
Travessia Itaparica-Salvador is the most important open sea swimming competition in the country. With a length of 12km, the crossing is carried out in the All Saints Bay (Salvador-Bahia), where the island of Itaparica, in Gameleira, is the starting point, and Porto da Barra beach is the arrival point on the mainland. With 67 years of tradition, the main objective is to contribute to the strengthening of sports tourism, as well as to the development strategy of the All Saints Bay, in addition to promoting health and quality of life.
Lavagem de Itapuã (Itapuã Wash)
February 9th
Location: Itapuã
The secular Lavagem de Itapuã is celebrated on the Thursday before the start of Salvador’s Carnival and, in 2020, it turned 115 years old. The party starts at dawn, when residents go around the neighborhood in a “Bando Anunciador” (an announcer group), inviting the community to the party. The celebration lasts the whole day on the waterfront part that connects the neighborhoods of Piatã to Itapuã. In the program, there are several acts such as masses, processions and breakfast.
Cortejo Afro Rehearsals
Every Monday
From November 28th, 2022 to February 13th, 2023.
Location: Historic Center – Pelourinho (Salvador, Bahia)
The Cortejo Afro band brings a percussive beat that differs from the others, as it presents a mixture of African rhythms with electronic beats and pop, entitled “Afro-Bahian musical revolution”. It was created on July 2nd, 1998, in the community of Pirajá.
The Group is an integral part of the “Bloco Cortejo Afro” and presents a reinterpretation of musical experiences and Afro-descendant aesthetics, transmitting high spirits through their songs and choreographies rich in movements linked to Afro culture.
Timbalada Rehearsals
December and January
Timbalada brings axé to you, and it will be like this, revitalizing everything, that the traditional percussion band – led by Denny Denan and Buja Ferreira, will open its summer rehearsal season. The first edition will take place on December 4th and will mark the beginning of the hottest season of the year for the group. The rehearsal returns to its origins and will take place where it all began, at Candyall Guetho Square – the birthplace of Timbalada and the entire timbaleira nation.
Mistura Salvador
December 8th
The December 8th holiday will host the lively Mistura Salvador event at Arena Fonte Nova. To welcome the Bahian summer, Salvador will feature concerts by bands from Bahia and the national scene, promoting a mixture of rhythms. Joelma, Calcinha Preta, Simone Mendes, Bell Marques, Thiago Aquino and Escandurras make up the group of bands and singers at Mistura Salvador and guarantee the excitement of the Soteropolitan public.
Anitta’s Rehearsal
January 7th
Salvador Convention Center will be the stage for Anitta’s biggest pre-carnival of all time. On January 7th, the artist lands in Salvador to perform the first edition of “Ensaios da Anitta” in 2023. Anitta will perform a very lively show with a repertoire full of hits by the singer, who has a national and international career. Furthermore, she will also host guests on the show. For anyone who is a fan of the artist, the event is a must, with a different vibe, lively and perfect for dancing a lot. Link.
Melhor Segunda-Feira do Mundo (World’s Best Monday)
January 9th
Celebrating its 20 years of history, the “Melhor Segunda” Project – Xanddy Harmonia’s summer rehearsal season – returns in 2023. The event, which will take place in an itinerant format, confirms its first edition on January 9th, at Fonte Nova Arena. Link.
Êta Festival – 30 years of É o Tchan
Date: January 11th, 18th and 25th
Venue: Fonte Nova Arena
The Êta Festival will celebrate the 30 years of career of the “É o Tchan” group, and will take place on the 11th, 18th and 25th of January, at the Fonte Nova Arena, with special guests. Already confirmed are: João Gomes, Thiago Aquino, Jorge and Mateus, Simone Mendes and Mari Fernandez. The Êta Festival was supposed to take place last year, but due to the pandemic, it was postponed to 2023. With special guests and in a new location, the veteran band “É o Tchan” will make Wednesdays in January more fun, with all its irreverence and the repertoire full of classics like “Pau que Nasce Torto”, “A Dança do Bumbum” and “Bota a Cara no Sol”, attracting the liveliest crowd in town. The start of sales will still be in the first half of November, and information such as prices and other guests will be released soon. Organized by On Line Entretenimento and Fonte Nova Arena.
Festival de Verão Salvador (Salvador Summer Festival)
January 28th and 29th
One of the main features of #FV23 will be the originality of the presentations. On stage, the musical intersections are of multiple natures, such as Criolo with Ney Matogrosso, Ludmilla with Glória Groove, Saulo with Marina Sena and Jão with Pitty. The percussive beat of Salvador will have its space demarcated in the encounters between Baiana System and Olodum, and Carlinhos Brown with Duda Beat and the Àttooxxá band. Bahianity and female power will be represented in the show in which Ivete Sangalo invites Luedji Luna and in the meeting of black women in the show that will have Margareth Menezes, Majur and Larissa Luz. And the tradition of local music also gains the spotlight with the meeting between Gilberto Gil and Caetano Veloso, in addition to a show by Bell Marques. Lovers of national rap will be graced with concerts by Orochi with Djonga, Felipe Ret with Caio Lucas, and Xamã, whose company on stage has yet to be announced. The festival’s program also includes pop by Luísa Sonza and the different styles of pagode by Leo Santana and Ferrugem, who invites Xande de Pilares.
Carnavalito
Date: February 17th, 18th and 20th, 2023 (Friday, Saturday and Monday of Carnival)
The third edition of Carnavalito will maintain its trademark with a schedule filled with a mix of rhythms and presentations on “trios- elétricos pranchões”, for old times’ sake, enjoying the shows close to your idols. In addition to all the excitement, the public will be able to make many clicks on the scenography in honor of Salvador’s tourist attractions.
