Alto da Sé

Olinda's hilltop viewpoint with sweeping views of Recife and the Atlantic

The Alto da Sé is the highest point of Olinda's historic hill, and the view from here makes clear why the town was built where it was. To the east, the Atlantic stretches to the horizon; to the south, Recife's modern skyline rises above the flat coast, separated from Olinda by a belt of mangroves. The contrast between the two cities — one a gleaming concrete metropolis, the other a tangle of colonial rooftops and palm trees — is striking from this angle.

The hilltop is anchored by the Igreja da Sé, a working parish church that replaced the original Portuguese cathedral destroyed by the Dutch. The surrounding area is paved and open, with vendors selling coconut water and artisan crafts most days. On Sunday afternoons a proper market sets up, with jewellery, ceramics, leather goods, and food stalls filling the square. Come in the late afternoon if you can: the light turns golden over the coast, and the breeze that comes up the hill is a genuine relief after walking Olinda's steep streets.

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A story
The original Sé cathedral, built by the Portuguese in 1540, was demolished by the Dutch when they occupied Olinda in 1630 and the stones were used to build fortifications. What stands on the hilltop now is an 18th-century replacement built over the ruins. The empty sky where the earlier building's nave would have been — visible in the exposed foundation stones — is a quiet reminder that this colonial town was fought over for centuries before it was admired.