‘Fusion’ is the perfect word to describe the Cape Verde islands in general, but nowhere is it more appropriate than when talking about food. With a Portuguese flair for fresh fish and seafood mixed with African flavours and Brazilian spice, you should take every opportunity to experience Cape Verde culture through the stomach! Santa Maria has the best offering on Sal: look out for Chez Pastis tucked away on Rue Amílcar Cabral for the delicious lobster and steak –but book ahead, as it’s fairly small and very popular. Make sure you try national dish cachupa, a colourful stew with maize, yams, tomatoes and cabbage that you’ll find at generous buffet restaurants like Lanchonete D'Angela on Santa Maria Beach.
Considering that the interior of Sal is mostly desert, it’s quite a surprise to run across the oasis of green that is the Viveiro Botanical Garden. A pleasant stroll among the palms, surrounded by bright yellow hibiscus and fragrant oleander flowers, makes for a very different experience from careening across the desert on a quad bike – and they’ve even got a tiny zoo complete with donkeys, goats, rabbits, ducks and peacocks.
Always Sailing offers the chance to cap off your Cape Verde holiday with a trip across the Atlantic, in a beautiful white racing yacht no less. A full 8-hour day costs €99 and includes lunch and snorkelling stops. Pick up is from Palmeira, and full-day excursions are available on Sundays, Tuesdays and Thursdays. If your idea of heaven is more like floating along on a catamaran, flanked by wild whales and dolphins, then Sal has that option tooenquire down at the pier in Santa Maria.
Sal Island has some fantastic underwater caves to explore, as well as unbelievably clear reefs. About five kilometres to the north of Palmeira port is Olho Azul, a water inlet that you can peer into and witness an iridescent ‘Blue Eye’ of seawater gazing back at you.
At 35 kilometres long by 12 kilometres wide, it’s easy to explore Sal by bike or car, and the dusty interior is out of this world. The parched desert that covers much of the island has been compared to the planet Mars, and there are plenty of options for bumping across it in a 4×4. Try No Limits for guided hummer tours with a spot of local history thrown in (from €50 pp). Up for a solo adventure? You could always hire a quad bike and go it alone – Cabo Quad (Tel: 242 1590) in Santa Maria is just one of several rental places.
The best views in Cape Verde are from below and while you won’t find the kind of coral damage that plagues more famous diving destinations, you’ll still have the chance to come eyeball-to-eyeball with mantas, turtles and even sharks! Scuba Team Cabo Verde offers diving trips into the cave that forms the Blue Eye (Buracona), as well as excursions to 19 different dive sites along the coast and even into an old shipwreck. For more on the best dive sites check this guide for more inspiration.
The town of Pedra Lume’s main claim to fame is a volcanic crater filled with what’s known as the ‘salt sea’. Sal means ‘salt’ in Portuguese, and the island was an important source of this precious mineral during colonial times. Nowadays, the salt sea is the perfect spot for a relaxing float, the warm pools are saltier than the Dead Sea, so it’s practically impossible to sink.
This protected islet is located 300 metres from the west coast of Sal Island and is only 253 metres in length. This is an underwater volcano, which means it’s a great dive site too. If you’re climbing up Monte Leão, you’ll get a great view of Rabo de Junco. Catch a glimpse on your sailing trip, or ask to bypass it if you’re taking a quad bike tour of the island.
Cape Verde is made up of ten islands of varying size, and they differ remarkably in terms of size and geography, so it’s worth saving a day for island-hopping. Whereas Sal is largely flat, Fogo has a volcanic peak rising to more than 2,800 metres, and the spectacular island of Santo Antão is strewn with beautiful canyons and tropical plants. Meanwhile, the beautiful Bay of Fajã de Água on nearby Brava Island provides a green contrast to the red sands of Sal. São Vicente is the place to experience the national music, morna, the Cape Verdean version of the blues, which owes much to the islands’ sad history as part of the slave trade. The distinctive sounds of strings and famous voices like Cesária Évora spill out of coffee-shops and bars across the city of Mindelo – sit and listen over a drink at Café Lisboa, on Rua de Lisboa.
The trade winds blow steadily from November to June, making Sal an ideal destination for surfing of all kinds. In particular, you’ll find the place crawling with windsurfers and kiteboarders in January and February, all keen to make the most of the winter breeze. Ponta Preta is one of the main breaks, perfect for riding if you’re experienced, and gazing out onto if you’re more confident on the sand. On Kite Beach, east of Santa Maria, is where to head to see expert kitesurfers cartwheeling over the waves
Sal is home to some of the best beaches in Cape Verde, and Santa Maria is where you’ll find clean white sands stretching off to the horizon in either direction. There are good snorkelling opportunities offshore and a turtle hatchery near the Riu Funana hotel, where you can see the impossibly cute hatchlings make for the waves in the evenings during November-December. Despite its increasing popularity with holidaymakers, the 8km beach itself remains relatively unspoiled.