Morro de São Paulo is a car-free village on the island of Tinharé, south of Salvador, and the most popular beach escape from the city. It is reached by catamaran from Salvador in about two and a half hours — the crossing can be rough — or by a shorter combination of ferry, road and boat via Valença.
There are no cars, so luggage goes up the hill from the jetty in wheelbarrows. The village is a steep tangle of pousadas, bars and shops, and below it the beaches are simply numbered: Primeira Praia is small and built up; Segunda Praia is the party beach, with bars and music late into the night; Terceira and Quarta Praia are quieter, with reefs that form natural pools at low tide, and Quarta runs on for kilometres of empty sand.
The ruins of a seventeenth-century fort guard the point, and a zip line runs from the lighthouse down to the sea. Boat trips go around the island, and to Boipeba, its quieter neighbour to the south.
Morro is busy in summer and at New Year, and very much a party place on Segunda Praia. Out of season, or down at Quarta Praia, it is much gentler.