Things to do in Sal Island
And where to stay, the best time to visit, what a day costs, and the traps to skip.
Best time to visit Sal Island
• a note or something on ✦ an occasion worth the trip
Dry season and main visitor season, with little or no rain and cooler evenings that can need a light jacket.
Wind season core, roughly November to May, strongest around January to March, with rough seas and red flag days.
Hot, humid and calmer seas, with the only real rain risk mainly from August to October in short heavy showers.
Loggerhead turtle nesting season, with hatching mainly from mid August into autumn.
What's on
- Carnival February or March, dates vary
Parades and street parties in Santa Maria, smaller than the famous Mindelo carnival on Sao Vicente.
- Loggerhead turtle nesting walks June to October
Organised night walks only, with a conservation guide, dark clothes, no flash and no touching.
- Festival de Santa Maria Usually mid September
The island's biggest music festival, on the beach in Santa Maria, filling the town for two days.
Best things to do in Sal Island
Praia de Santa Maria
The long town beach and the calmest swimming on Sal in most conditions, with the pier and beach bars on your doorstep.
Pontao de Santa Maria
The working fishing pier where boats land and the catch is sorted mid morning, a workplace first and a photo stop second.
Mercado Municipal de Santa Maria
A small working market for produce and fish a few streets inland, sized for residents and done in 20 minutes.
Bikini Beach Santa Maria
A beach club with pool, loungers, food and DJs, the organised spend-money version of a Santa Maria beach day.
Where to stay in Sal Island
Santa Maria town centre
walkability, food choice and sense of place
Small hotels, hostels and restaurants on foot, with the pier, market and main beach in town.
Avenida dos Hoteis, west end of Santa Maria beach
luxury with town still walkable
The Hilton sits here, at the edge of town rather than out on the isolated resort strip.
Resort strip west of Santa Maria, Cabocan and Ponta Sino
all-inclusive beach weeks
Big resorts with everything on site, but town is a taxi ride and the west coast sea is rougher.
Think twice about
- Espargos as a visitor base
The island capital is a working town near the airport with no beach. Visit on an island day, sleep in Santa Maria.
- Unlit and isolated beaches after dark
Avoid unlit and isolated areas and beaches with limited visibility after dark, on Sal as elsewhere in Cape Verde.
Best restaurants in Sal Island
Chez Pastis
A tiny vine covered dinner-only restaurant of about 16 seats, the special occasion splurge in Santa Maria.
Restaurante Barracuda
A classic beachfront seafood restaurant on the town beach, built for grilled fish, lobster and sunset.
Ocean Cafe
A lively main square bar restaurant with burgers, tuna and live music, as much a meeting point as a meal.
Esplanada Bom Gosto
A casual local place for cachupa and grilled fish at local prices, the best value cooked meal on the island.
Outdoor things to do in Sal Island
Ponta Preta
The west coast point for watching expert windsurfers in big waves, a spectator spot where swimming is a mistake.
Palmeira
The island working port village, with colourful boats and painted houses and a pace not built for tourists.
Shark Bay
Wade in water shoes into knee deep water with a local guide while young lemon sharks cruise around you.
Buracona
A lava coast site where late morning sun turns a cave pool bright blue, with a natural pool swim only in calm seas.
Salinas de Pedra de Lume
Salt pans in an extinct crater where the water is so salty you float without trying, Sal's most distinctive sight.
Kite Beach
The trade wind beach lined with kite schools in season, where a multi day beginner course is Sal's real activity splurge.
Best hotels in Sal Island
Hotel Riu Palace Santa Maria
A very large all-inclusive on the west resort strip, gaining scale and pools and giving up walkable Santa Maria.
Hilton Cabo Verde Sal Resort
The brand luxury resort at the edge of Santa Maria, with spa and casino but still walkable into town for dinner.
Hotel Morabeza
The long running beach hotel in Santa Maria itself, minutes from the pier, for a proper hotel plus the town.
Hotel Odjo d'Agua
A smaller hotel on a rocky point at the east end of town, known for its restaurant terrace over the water.
AH Xamedu Sal Hostel
The central hostel that recurs in cheapest stay listings, with dorms, a kitchen and a wind sport traveller crowd.
Is Sal Island expensive? What a day costs
| Budget | CVE 6,500 a person |
|---|---|
| Classic | CVE 16,500 a person |
| Splurge | CVE 38,000 a person |
A day of food, drink, sights and getting around, before the room
What to book ahead
- Bikini Beach Santa Maria: a few days ahead
- Kite Beach: weeks ahead
- Hotel Riu Palace Santa Maria: weeks ahead
- Hilton Cabo Verde Sal Resort: weeks ahead
- Chez Pastis: a few days ahead
- Restaurante Barracuda: a few days ahead
- Book Chez Pastis and Bikini Beach in season, kite courses in wind season, and turtle walks in season.
- Book any bed early for the Festival de Santa Maria weekend in mid September.
Is Sal Island safe?
- Obey beach flags: red means do not enter the water, yellow means wading only, green means safe to swim.
- Keep valuables in the hotel safe, lock doors and windows, and avoid unlit isolated areas after dark.
- Water is desalinated and scarce, so keep showers short and expect bottled water to be a real daily cost.
- Drug penalties are severe, including long prison sentences. Emergency numbers: ambulance 130, fire 131, police 132.
Sal Island travel tips: tourist traps to skip
- Paying hotel desk prices for the standard island loop without comparing prices in town first.
- Assuming an all-inclusive stay includes Santa Maria town, when resort guests rarely plan a town night.
- Ordering lobster or fish by weight without confirming the total price first.
Getting around Sal Island: public transport and more
- Walk Santa Maria end to end, and use taxis, aluguer minibuses or a guided day tour for the island loop.
- Agree taxi fares before you get in, and negotiate a day rate for Buracona, Pedra de Lume and Shark Bay.
- The airport is just south of Espargos, roughly 15 to 20 minutes by taxi from Santa Maria.
Who Sal Island suits
| Solo travellers | Good |
|---|---|
| Groups of friends | Good |
| Couples | Great |
| Bachelor parties | OK |
| Families | Good |
| Bachelorette parties | OK |
Make Sal Island your trip
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