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Traveladvisor in Cape Verde: Are you going on a vacation you can get lots of free and professional help, traveladvice and information from the National Tourism Organisation.
Discover the country and the cities getting the most out of your vacation with the professional help from the people who knows their country and their culture the best.
Cape Verde Tourism Authority
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Discover Cape Verde
Located over 300 miles east of the coast of Africa, Cape Verde is a gorgeous ten-island nation. The official language, Portuguese, speaks to the nation’s past as a colony of Portugal during the Age of Exploration. The locale of privateers like Sir Francis Drake, the islands played an important role during the colonial period. Today, tourism plays a major role in the islands’ economy, and for good reason. Stunning beaches, dramatic volcanic mountains, salt flats, and banana plantations color the landscape, and the warm ocean waters provide ample opportunity for activities of all kinds.
Cape Verde’s residents are known for their hospitality, so no matter where you stay, you’ll be able to relax in the comfort of friendly neighbors. Praia, the capital and by far the largest city in the nation, sits on a plateau right at the water’s edge. Mindelo, another port city on the northern end of Sao Vicente Island, features incredible local craftsmanship in many of its buildings. Espargos, right outside of one of the nation’s two airports, has a charming city center, complete with a market.
Cape Verde’s ten islands are host to a number of environments. Many of the islands share a similar geography with Africa, with mostly dry, desert climate supporting shrub brush and some banana plantations. However, others get a decent amount of rainfall, and you can find plenty of green space. Santo Antao is covered with forests, with trees ranging from fir to coconut growing on mountain slopes and valleys. Sao Nicolau is also popular with lovers of the outdoors, with plenty of great hiking and biking trails.
Mindelo is a bustling port and the cultural center of the Cape Verde islands. The city has a proud creative tradition that spawns the creation of music genres like morna and coladeira. Morna draws on flamenco guitar traditions and adds a powerful vocal role to enhance the emotion of the piece. Coladeira, on the other hand, is a lively dance genre that will get you moving even when you don’t understand the words. You can catch these musical traditions live in many clubs, which also play globalized pop music and Brazilian styles, which have traveled across the Atlantic to Portugal’s other former colonies.
Fogo, which means fire, is aptly named. This island contains Cape Verde’s highest point, the volcanic Pico de Fogo, which is still active today. However, the volcano is a popular hiking destination, with spectacular views of the island chain and the surrounding Atlantic. Great beaches on this island include Porto de Vale de Cavaleiros, just north of the island’s main city, Sao Felipe.
Visit Cape Verde A-Z
Praia, capital of Cape Verde
