Arena Fonte Nova - World Cup Stadium

We help you bed in amongst Salvador's countless 17th to 19th Century monuments, and take in the World Cup in style (for less).

Fact File

City – Salvador
Stadium name – Arena Fonte Nova 
Stadium capacity – 53,000 
World Cup games – 6 
Time zone – 3 hours behind GMT

Matches

Group B – Spain v Netherlands 
Group G – Germany v Portugal 
Group E – Switzerland v France 
Group F – Bosnia-Herzegovina v Iran 
Round of 16 – Winner Group H v Runner-Up Group G 
Quarter-Final – TBC

The city

Salvador in Bahia state is known as the country’s capital of happiness and its third largest city; notable for its cuisine, music, traditional architecture and a distinct African influence.

Salvador itself is split in twain by an escarpment nearly 100m high, which required Brazil's first ever lift to connect the upper and lower towns.

In fact the city’s historical centre – commonly referred to as the Pelourinho – is full to bursting with Portuguese colonial buildings and monuments: and is a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

The (international) airport is some 20 miles north of Salvador with connections throughout Brazil and direct flights to Frankfurt, Lisbon, Madrid and Miami. Check if flying via these cities will save you money overall.

Taxis into the city take about 30mins (and cost around £15).

Salvador World Cup stadium

The Itaipava Arena Fonte Nova is an ambitious space-age design somewhat out of context with Salvador’s traditional heritage; especially because the historic centre is just minutes away.

You can walk to the Fonte Nova from pretty much anywhere in downtown Salvador / Pelourinho where you’ll find more bars, restaurants and markets than you can shake a stick at.

Salvador hotels

For upscale, look to Salvador’s eastern suburbs where you’ll also find the city’s best beaches. Otherwise the historic centre and downtown (Centro) is teeming with hotels. The city’s clubbing scene is around 3 miles south of the Fonte Nova and city centre in the Rio Vermelho district; plenty of hotels here too.

TripAdvisor reckons the best are Aram Yami Hotel, Hotel Casa do Amarelindo, Sotero Hotel by Nobile and Pousada Casa Vila Bela.

World Cup tickets

To purchase tickets for any matches at the Arena Fonte Nova or any other World Cup venues, CLICK here to be taken to the eSeats.com World Cup Tickets page.  eSeats.com is a licensed ticket agency based in Scottsdale, Arizona.  eSeats.com is a member of the NATB and has an A+ Rating with the BBB. 

Six games are scheduled for Salvador; England won’t play in Salvador unless they make the Quarter-Finals (they'd need to finish top of Group D and get through the second round). Check out the World Cup Group Stage fixtures here, World Cup Groups

Plan your travel to Salvador

Just think of it as another form of packing. Get your travel insurance, bookings and travel documents sorted early and plan where you can save money; e.g. booking hotels a bit further out provided the area is safe and you know how to get back into town.

You can also boost your spending power while in Brazil by getting the best rates on Brazilian RL currency – DON'T leave it to the airport. You might want a different mobile phone and/or payment plan too, to limit your spend while abroad.

Local knowledge

Salvador is one of the oldest cities in the Americas, the first colonial capital of Brazil, and known for its countless street parties (most organised, some spontaneous). What people in Salvador and Bahia really like is funk: so get out your glad-rags learn to break-dance! Or not.

TripAdvisor rates Soho Restaurante, Fogo de Chao, Soho, Bar Zulu and Ki-Mukeka highly.

Salvador average temperature (June): 24°C 
Salvador average rainfall (June): 10 inches

Football hipsters

Bebeto, now a politician, led the line for Brazil alongside Romario as they won their record fourth World Cup in the USA, in 1994. He's their fifth highest goalscorer ever and, importantly, Bebeto invented the "baby rocking" celebration in those finals. His career began at hometown club, Vitoria; fierce rivals with Salvador’s other club, Bahia.

Stadium: Arena Fonte Nova
Country: Brazil
City: Salvador
Capacity: 52048