Bahia Othon Palace Hotel

This is one of the best hotels I have experienced. The breakfast buffet, included in the price for the room, was superb, as were the luncheon and dinner buffets. The hotel makes the best caipirinha I have ever tasted, as well a great feijoada (on Saturdays). It has a beach view and a swimming pool. It was also within walking distance to the University, where I needed to be (for a conference). This hotel is part of the Othon chain, whose hotels have never disappointed me.

The Oceanside rooms have a wonderful view and the hotel is generally clean and comfortable, but the restaurant has awful food. Also, we were told not to walk down to the oceanside path or the street in front of the hotel because robbers wait for tourists. We took taxis everywhere.

If you enjoy hearing crashing waves, this is a good place. I always enjoy hearing the sounds of the waves crashing and seeing the ocean and the white water of the waves. For me, this is a relaxing environment. The location of the Bahia Othon Palace provides this from pretty much any room, and even more so from the pool area, which is much larger than most. There is also walking access to a small public beach that has sufficient sandy area to allow for swimming access into the ocean without concern for the rocky coastline. But, this is not a placid coastline area, so it really is not an area for small children to swim. So, from my perspective, this is not the best family hotel choice, unless the children are older, enjoy the water and are good swimmers. The location is close to Shopping Barra, one of the larger shopping centers in Salvador. It is not super close to the Pelhourino district, but for me, that wasn't an issue as I found that area to be somewhat of a tourist trap like area personally. It is a bit of a ways from the airport, as is much of Salvador, but again that was not a big deal either for me. Expect to pay about 55 reais for a one way cab ride between this hotel and the airport. From this hotel to Pelhourino, as I recall, the ride was about 20 reais. Note however, there are two types of cabs from my experience, one that is metered and one that is not. The metered rides are less expensive, as I paid 50% more for a ride in the non-metered cabs, until I learned to just avoid using them. These non-metered cabs have books on the cost of fairs between various locations. So, before you get into a cab, ask about the price for the ride.