Porto da Barra Beach, Beach in Salvador, Brazil

Porto da Barra Beach is a 300-metre stretch of sand at the entrance of the Baía de Todos os Santos, in Salvador's Barra neighbourhood. It runs from the São Diogo Fort in the north to the slope below the Barra Lighthouse and Santo Antônio da Barra Fort in the south, with the Santa Maria Fort jutting out near its southern end. A small cove of calm water makes it good for swimming, and a balustrade of Portuguese stones along the promenade looks out to Itaparica Island.

Porto da Barra was the site of Bahia's first European settlement, Vila Velha. The beach lies between Portuguese colonial fortifications: Santo Antônio da Barra Fort and its lighthouse at the southern end, São Diogo Fort at the northern end, and Santa Maria Fort just off the southern point. The Marco da Fundação da Cidade do Salvador, a marble column with an azulejo tile panel, was placed at the north of the beach for the 400th anniversary of the Portuguese arrival in Bahia.

The beach gave its name to Caetano Veloso's song "Qual é Baiana?", and in the 1960s it was a meeting point for the Tropicalistas, Veloso and Gilberto Gil among them. On weekends and holidays crowds fill the small strip of sand, and bathers applaud the sun as it sets over the bay.

The sandy strip is short and backed by a Portuguese-stone promenade with a balustrade overlooking the bay toward Itaparica. The calm cove is good for swimming, but rocks beyond the Santa Maria Fort make entering the water difficult. The beach is busiest at weekends and holidays, and the sunset draws crowds to the promenade.

This beach faces west, offering a rare chance to watch sunsets over the Atlantic Ocean, uncommon on Brazil's eastern shores. This westward orientation makes it a special place to witness the sun dipping below the horizon.