Wingman32

Has anyone ever been to Vitoria, Brazil? There's a chance I might work at an NGO there this summer, and I was wondering if anyone had any words of wisdom. I know its not an oft travelled place...unless you're visiting PetroBras or CRVD....but flyertalk will probably have at least someone who's been there.

-W

obscure2k

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Obscure2k
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MollyNYC

It's a pleasant sleepy little town. I have a friend who lives there. I'd be happy to ask her something specific. There's not a lot to do there, but it's pretty and quiet and inexpensive.

IAN-UK

It's actually a state capital, but the state is tiny - Espirito Santo. For a tourist there's stuff to see and do, but it could get seen and done quite quickly. Once you've got over the novelty of it being an island (and you will be reminded of that many,many times) it just doesn't have the iconic status of Salvador or Rio.

Wingman32

Interesting...but could you imagine being there for 6-8 weeks (working on something meaningful) and not being bored out of your minds?

MariaSF

A good thing about Vitoria is that it's located only about 400 miles from both Rio de Janeiro (to the South) and Porto Seguro, Bahia (to the North). Not so close, but great weekend (by air) or long weekend (by car) destinations.

lobster2k

6-8 weeks isn't a long time, you should be fine in Vitoria without getting bored. The only thing I've heard is that it is one of the more dangerous places to visit in Brazil. But never mind the statistics. Be carefull and use common sense and you'll be fine.

well...400 miles away on brazilian roads: I wouldn't call it a great weekend destination to reach by car, not even for a long one.

FlyingRabbit

I lived in Vitoria for a couple of years, quite a while ago (96-98). Very nice town, but as some said it can be pretty violent. Not on the island itself, but I would avoid the small cities around it (specially Serra) on the evenings.

If you can try to stay at the Praia do Canto neighbourhood. Hotel Senac is probably the best one there. This neighbourhood has several restaurants and bars, as well as at least one good shopping center (Shopping Vitoria). Cambuí is nice too.

There are great places for weekend trips without having to go all the way to Rio or BH. If you like beaches, go up north to a place called Dunas de Itaúna. Wonderful little town, a great beach, a very interesting turtle protection program (Projeto Tamar).

If you prefer the mountains, go up to a city called Domingos Martins, where German families make you feel like you´re in Europe.

Other places nearby you might want to try are Guarapari and Vila Velha. Go to the Garoto chocolate factory if you like sweets.

Just remember, all this is from the time I lived there, so some things might have changed.

FR

world_citizen

Eeek! I was actually planning a trip to Brazil, one of my friends is from there and she invited me to go. However, safety is my number one concern. After reading a couple postings, I am seriously worried about going now. Does anyone know if like crimes were geared towards tourists or specifically people that maybe don't look as ethnic as everyone else? Just wondering, regardless, its always good to be extra careful and aware.

Wingman32

Anywhere in Brazil can be violent...i mean look at what's going on in Sao Paulo and in Rio....yet having been there, I felt completely comfortable at all times. Generally most crimes against tourist are pickpockets and muggings. This happens b/c poverty is a serious problem, and there is lots of hunger in Brazil. Common sense will keep you safe. There's no "lets beat up the tourists/we hate foreigners" sentiment. I wouldn't let reports of violence, most likely occuring in the favelas and the suburbios, keep you away from visiting.

RioFF

Victoria is one of the Capital cities with the highest crime rate per capita in Brazil! Other than that it's a nice place.

IAN-UK

Violence happens. You can lengthen the odds of it happening to you by being careful. But consider just two Rio events on my last, one-week, visit:

A whole bus-load of Brits got held up and robbed at gun-point on the way from the airport to their Copacabana hotel on the first day of an inclusive-tour holiday. Not sure where the common sense failure came in

A few days later a well-known Leblon resident was shot in the face while stopped at a red light in her ultra-chic, super-secure, suburb. Her common sense failure - window open. She paid for that mistake with her life.

snorkmaster

Indeed -- in the most recent data I could find, Vitoria was #2, and Espirito Santo was #1 among the states. (That wouldn't deter me, but it's still interesting data.)

http://www.mj.gov.br/senasp/pesquisa...hd_tab2003.htmhttp://www.mj.gov.br/senasp/pesquisa...x_unidades.htm

For those who are interested, here are some recent stats for the US...

http://www.morganquitno.com/cit05r.pdf

whiterhino

Normally I don't post in any forums so please excuse my candor if I don't know the rules.
The only reason I registered here was due to the fact that I was doing searches on Vitoria for things to do as I just arrived here yesterday for work. As of right now I'll be here for the next 2 weeks and I'll be able to give a better over all impression of the place during and after that.
Currently I'm staying at the Bristol Hotel in Praia do Canto. Praia do Canto is the downtown neighborhood with lots of high rises and lots of restaurants & bars. The area is also known as The Bermuda Triangle or in Portuguese Triangulo dos Bermudas and houses alot of these bars & restaurants and is known for people "becoming lost" due to the late night bars.
I went out last night and had a few Brahma beers and some dinner by myself and received no problems from anyone what so ever. The only problem I had while sitting outside at my bar table was staring at the hundreds of beautiful girls who wander around in small packs My recommendation is to stay out of dark, deserted streets just like anywhere in the world. Below are some interesting articles & pictures that may help you picture the place (3rd one is probably the best with a few links on food/customs). Good luck.

http://www.travelotica.com/travelgui...king-52417.htm

http://www.igougo.com/travelcontent/...viewID=1244231

http://sistemas.vitoria.es.gov.br/tu...=deliciadeilha

whiterhino

There's a large Japanese presence here due to Kawasaki building several power plants over the past 35 years here. I'm currently working at one here in Vitoria. Along with that comes some excellent Japanese restaurants! I went and had phenomenal sushi & sashimi last night and it compares with some of the best I've ever had! I would highly recommend it!
To give you an idea of price, myself and one of the Kawasaki engineers went and started with a 40 piece mix platter and a 15 piece sashimi platter with 8 beers on the check and the total only came to $50 USD. This was at the best sushi bar in town so I'm sure the price was a little higher than normal for here but it was less than half of what it would've been stateside for the same quality.