Afrinkong
Ten Islands, Ten Climates
Desert dunes on Boa Vista and cloud forest on Santo Antao, in the same archipelago.
Photo Duc Nguyen / Pexels
CABO VERDE · Tourism
Fogo
Ten Atlantic islands six hundred kilometres off Senegal: Fogo is an active volcano with vineyards inside the caldera, Santo Antao is cut into ribeiras you walk down, and the morna that Cesaria Evora sang is on the UNESCO list.
IslandsRegion
27Tourism experiences
Ten islands, and the mornaKnown for
01
Featured destinations
Where the country actually takes you.
MountainsPico do Fogo and Santo Antao
Fogo's cone, and Santo Antao's ridges where the paths run along the crest.
Photo Annelies Brouw / Pexels
Seasonal Only
The rain comes in August and September, and the ribeiras run for a few weeks.
Photo Cafer SEVİNÇ / Pexels
Lakes & RiversRibeiras
Steep valleys terraced for sugarcane and coffee, and irrigated by hand-cut channels.
Photo Karl Ahnee / Pexels
Sal, Boa Vista and Tarrafal
White sand and constant wind on Sal and Boa Vista, and quiet bays on Santiago.
Photo Petr Ganaj / Pexels
The Cloud Forest of Santo Antao
The north of Santo Antao catches enough cloud to grow coffee and dragon trees.
Photo Magda Ehlers / Pexels
02
Wildlife & safari
What lives here, and how you see it without disturbing it.
Wildlife
Turtles and Humpbacks
Boa Vista is one of the largest loggerhead nesting sites in the world.
Sea, Not Savanna
No large land animals. What there is instead is turtles, whales and seabirds.
Photo Jules Clark / Pexels
Turtle Patrols on Boa Vista
Community and NGO patrols on the nesting beaches, and the numbers have recovered.
Photo PEDRO FERNANDES / Pexels
03
Culture & heritage
The part of a country you cannot photograph from a vehicle.
Culture
Creole, and the Morna
A Portuguese-African creole culture, and a music that put these islands on the map.
Photo damien Saillet / Pexels
The Badiu and the Sampadjudu
The Santiago interior and the northern islands, with different histories and different music.
Photo KAMAL IG / Pexels
Cachupa and Grogue
Cachupa — the slow-cooked maize and bean stew — and grogue distilled from cane.
Photo Victor Vi / Pexels
Festivals & CelebrationsMindelo Carnival and Baia das Gatas
Carnival in February and a music festival on the beach in August.
Photo Zülfü Demir📸 / Pexels
Traditional Arts & CraftsPottery, Panu and Grogue
The panu woven cloth of Santiago, Fogo's pottery, and cane spirit stills.
Photo Engin Akyurt / Pexels
Historic SitesCidade Velha
The first European colonial town in the tropics, founded in 1462, with the fort above it.
HeritageCidade Velha, Listed
Inscribed in 2009 — the pillory, the cathedral ruins and the street plan of the first town.
Photo khaled damlakhi / Pexels
04
Cities & everyday life
Where people actually live between the landmarks.
CitiesPraia and Mindelo
A clifftop capital on Santiago, and the port city on Sao Vicente where the music lives.
ArchitecturePortuguese Colonial and Volcanic Stone
Pastel colonial in Mindelo, and black volcanic stone houses on Fogo.
Photo Mathias Reding / Pexels
The Bar at Midnight
Mindelo's bars start late and the morna does not begin until they are full.
Photo Lucas Allmann / Pexels
Beaches and Short Flights
Calm water on Sal and Boa Vista, short hops between islands, and a very easy pace.
Photo ibrahim sakhawi / Pexels
05
Adventure & outdoors
For travellers who would rather walk it than watch it.
Adventure
Kitesurfing and Ridge Walking
Sal and Boa Vista for wind, and Santo Antao for some of the best walking in the Atlantic.
Photo Rob Mowe / Pexels
Outdoor ExperiencesWalking Santo Antao
Cobbled paths from the ridge down to the sea, a day at a time, between villages.
Photo Ryan Klaus / Pexels
Luxury TravelWell Established
Resorts on Sal and Boa Vista, and small good hotels on Santo Antao and Fogo.
Photo Serg Alesenko / Pexels
06
Travel inspiration
The frames people come home with.
Volcano and Vine
Cha das Caldeiras at first light, with vines growing in black ash under the cone.
Hidden GemsBrava
The smallest inhabited island, reached only by boat, with flowers and no airport worth the name.
Why Visit This Country
Why Cabo Verde
An active volcano with vineyards in it, ridge walking above the Atlantic, and the morna.
Why Cabo Verde
An active volcano with vineyards in it, ridge walking above the Atlantic, and the morna.
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