One week on Sal, Cabo Verde

Love the beach?

The Republic of Cabo Verde is probably not one of the most famous travel destinations, but it is definitely an amazing place worth visiting.

Each of the 10 islands has its own unique nature and climate, which makes it impossible to sum up and describe them as one - this means you cannot really tell you know Cabo Verde just by spending a week on the beach in Sal.

You will probably need to fly there, so it is useful to know that the only International airports are located on Sal, Boa Vista and São Vicente - logically, those are the most touristic islands too. For more native culture and wild nature you will need to plan a lot of time too - some islands cannot be reached every day and for some you will need a ferry to get there.
 
My trip happened to be the typical European visit of Sal for the duration of one week, which does not mean it wasn't totally worth it!

Ilha do Sal, Cabo Verde
Why visit?

• The weather: the sun shining bright almost every day of the year with a maximum of 10 sunny hours per day from March till May, the temperatures reaching 24°C in winter and 30°C in summer. It is never too hot though, because of the refreshing winds blowing continuously.
• The white sand and the light blue water, inviting for a lazy day at the beach
• The amazing activities for the not-so-lazy-ones such as kite-surfing, windsurfing, snorkeling, whale- and shark-watching, etc...
• The impressive nature: Sal is a desert in the middle of the ocean, covered mostly in rock, sand and salt. 
• The people: the motto of Cabo Verde is "no stress" - it is not a marketing strategy to attract tourists looking for a relaxing vacation, it is just the way of living of the Cabo Verdians. Don't expect everything to be punctual, but you can count on everybody to be sincerely smiling and willing to help you. 
• Depending on your taste, you might love to experience the culinary delights of Cabo Verde - you won't get the best steak you wish for, but you can definitely enjoy some fresh fish and chicken, lots of papaya, and some very hot piri-piri. Don't miss the cachupa - this somehow unusual but still very tasty national dish, consisting of beans, corn, fish, chicken and many other ingredients :)

  Places to visit?

• the beaches - there are lots of them and they are all pretty. 

Most touristic one, but still not too full is the Santa Maria city beach, very sunny and good for relaxing.If you come early in the morning and take a walk up to the far west end of the beach you may enjoy being alone with the nature and take some pretty shots ;)

Santa Maria beach 1

Santa Maria Beach 2

Santa Maria Beach 3

Santa Maria Beach 4

One of the prettiest beaches on the island is the Ponta Preta beach - smooth white sand and crystal clear water invite for romantic walks away from the touristic mass (except for the bus and quad tours that make a short stop at the place from time to time). If you don't come by one of those, you may walk west from Santa Maria till you leave the city and look for the big sand dune. There isn't much around the beach except for a small café, so bring all you need with you. If you are up for a long walk at the beach and do not fear sun and wind, you can also take a walk from the Santa Maria beach along the coastline and after 1,5-2 hours you will reach the place too.

Ponta Preta Beach

Costa da Fragata will attract mostly kite-surfers

Costa da Fragata

• The capital city of Sal, Espargos, is often just a short stop on the island tour. It is relatively calm, since most Cabo Verdians work in the tourism branch in and around Santa Maria. For a quick and pretty panorama view of the city you can follow the road to the top of the volcano Morro Curral. You can see the colorful but simple houses and the surrounding desert. Fun fact: the goverment pays the paint for every house every couple of years and the citizen are allowed to choose just any color they want 💚💛💜
 

Espargos

 
• The harbour of Sal is located in the small fisherman village Palmeira - all goods that come to the island are being delivered here. 
 

Palmeira

 
• If you are fond of some miracles of nature, you should take the road north of Palmeira and include Buracona and Olho Azul (The blue eye) in your trip. If the sea is calm, you can even take a swim in the cliff-lined bay. Best time to visit this region is around noon - follow the long queue and at the end you can bend down over the cliff and see The blue eye - a reflection of the sunrays in the water beneath. (Spoiler alarm: you can see my photo of this phenomenon at the end of the post)
 

Buracona

 
• You haven't seen Sal if you didn't ride through the deserts at Terra boa
 

Deserts of Sal

Fata Morgana

 
• Last but not least, Salinas de Pedra de Lume! Here began the story of the Salt Island. An entrepreneur from Boa Vista founded the first saline in Pedra de Lume in the end of the 18th century. The salt export to Brazil and Kongo pushed Sal's economy until 1984 when all salines on the island were finally closed. Today, salt production on Sal is not playing an important economic role any more. However, visiting Pedra de Lume and enjoying the natural spa is a highlight. You can get a sea salt massage, swim in salt pans, get a mud massage... and swim again. 
 

Salt production

Salinas de Pedra de Lume

So this was my Cabo Verde experience. If you were there too, if you want to visit it all too, or just share your thoughts, feel free to comment! :) 

No stress.

 Spoiler!

 

 

 

 

 

 

As promised, here the Blue Eye :)

Olho Azul