Destination:
Cape Verde

Sal is the liveliest and most developed of the Islands. More than half of the tourists in Cape Verde make the trip to Sal to enjoy the crystal clear waters lapping long stretches of white sandy beach, including water sports enthusiasts and holidaymakers who make the most of the rapidly developing hotels and resorts.

The town of Santa Maria is home to the most popular resorts in Cape Verde. A former fishing village, the streets are lined with pastel-painted buildings that are more likely to host a souvenir shop, bar, or restaurant than anything else. Santa Maria has some of the best beaches in Cape Verde; they stretch for five miles (8km) and are popular for windsurfing, fishing, and scuba diving.

Although Santa Maria is the most popular town in Sal, there are others worth visiting. Near the international airport is Espargos, where shops, bars and restaurants do good business and the strains of live music fill the air. The island's main port, Palmeira, is a working fishing harbour and import station, but is currently improving its tourist infrastructure in line with the rest of the island. Sal's landscape is unexciting, being flat and arid, but there are some interesting features to visit including the salt lakes inside the extinct volcano crater at Pedra de Lume; Sal is also home to Cape Verde's best golf resorts. Tourists often enjoy day trips to the nearby island of Boavista, known for its sand dunes, by catamaran.

The island of Santo Antao is divided dramatically in two by a mountain range with peaks rearing up to 4,921ft (1,500m), making it attractive for trekking, particularly through the tropical vegetation of the deep green valleys which encase the 16th-century town of Povoacao. Hiking is the most popular activity for tourists on Santo Antao, and the sparse human development ensures a special experience of nature. Canyoning and biking are also fun activities on this beautiful, volcanic island.

A walk around the small town of Ponta do Sol is recommended to enjoy the old buildings and colonial heritage, and the main site of historic interest is a mysterious inscribed rock near Janela, dating from the 1400s, when the islands were believed to be uninhabited and undiscovered.

In contrast to the mountainous interior, the island's coast is rugged and bare, but sugar cane, bananas and coffee are grown by the locals. Sugar cane is the raw material for the famed Cape Verde rum, called 'grogue', which is produced here and enjoyed by visitors and locals alike.

Visitors can reach Santo Antao by ferry from the port of Mindelo on the more populated island of Sao Vicente, arriving at Santo Antao's small port of Porto Novo.

The largest island in the archipelago, and arguably boasting the best scenery, Santiago is also the most populated. Its residents are more traditionally African in culture than those on many of the other islands, which is reflected in their musical traditions, markets and the many festivals held during the year.

Santiago is the site of Cape Verde's capital city, Praia, and the picturesque fishing town of Tarrafal. Praia has an interesting marine archaeology museum dedicated to documenting the various shipwrecks that have occurred around the islands. While not a popular tourist destination in its own right, Praia is the site of Cape Verde's busiest airport, and walking around the city is a pleasant way to spend an hour or two before venturing to another part of Santiago, or taking a ferry to one of the other islands.

The interior of Santiago is characterised by two towering chains of mountains, while the coastline sports small, sandy, palm-fringed coves. Other sites of interest on the islands include the historic old port city, Cidade Velha, which was a major slave-trading post and retains cobbled lanes and stone buildings in the shadow of its old 15th-century fortress and cathedral. Cidade Velha was once the second richest city in the Portuguese empire but it was raided by pirates and declined as the slave trade did.

Voices and volcanic mountains characterise Sao Vicente, the most sophisticated island of the Cape Verde archipelago. It is the home of Cape Verde's most famous singer, Cesária Évora, renowned as the 'barefoot diva'. Sao Vicente was discovered in 1462 but remained virtually uninhabited until the middle of the 19th century due to the lack of water on the island. It is now a bustling cultural centre for Cape Verde.

The port city of Mindelo is the cultural capital of Cape Verde, and is home to over 90 percent of the population of Sao Vicente, as well as a number of interesting markets, a few beautiful colonial-style government buildings, and restaurants serving delicious local cuisine like catchupa stew. Mindelo has a lively nightlife all year long, but truly comes alive each March for Carnaval, one of the biggest parties in Cape Verde.

The island boasts beautiful beaches, too, particularly the Baia das Gatas lagoon that has been formed by volcanic activity, and the long, sandy stretch of Sao Pedro beach, sought out by windsurfers. The island is not particularly green due to being dry but it is attractive in a rugged way and there are interesting hikes to be done in the mountainous areas.