Santo Antão: An Overview
As mentioned before, Santo Antão has everything to offer that you could ask for: a stunning mountain panorama, variety of plants, interesting terrain, as well as water wildlife and, in my experience, the nicest islanders!
There is one important thing about Santo Antão that could change everything. Compared to Sal or Boa Vista for example, the sland has no international or even domestic airport as of 2023. The only way to reach Santo Antão is by ferry boat. For this reason, Santo Antão does not know mass tourism or huge hotel complexes, and in general you have to stay in charming little hostels. There are plans to build an international airport on Santo Antão, which many islanders fear; I also think this would sooner or later destroy the relaxed island life from the most north-western island of Cabo Verde.
Quick Summary:
- Getting There:
- You will need to take a ferry from São Vicente (about 15 USD round trip per person)
- Transportation on the Island:
- Rental cars offer flexibility and can be rented for about 50-75 USD per day: I highly recommend checking Google reviews to find your best option
- Alugueras are readily available across the island: they cost a few hundred escudos per ride (5-10 USD)
- Where to stay:
- Point of Interest: Estrada a Corda Road
- Point of Interest: Paul and Other Valleys
- Trip Highlight: Topo da Coroa
Getting There
To get to Santo Antão you need to go to the neighboring island São Vicente. There, the ferry boat runs from the port in Mindelo to Porto Novo on Santo Antão. Ferry boat tickets can be purchased at a tourist agency on any of the islands (Note: there is a website where you can see the routes/prices; however, for international credit/debit cards, payment often does not go through) and cost around 1,500 escudos (or about 15 USD per person, round trip). Make sure you take the boat in the morning, rather than the afternoon especially if you get easily sea sick. The wind will often rise during the day and the route guides you opposite the wave direction. Trust me, you will feel it!
Transportation on the Island
Once you reached Porto Novo, there are many taxi drivers waiting outside of the port for the few tourists that come to the island. In Cabo Verde they call them Alugueras, often times pick up trucks or vans, and you will share your ride with others on the truck bed. So take your patience with you, the driver will start the ride when most of the seats are occupied. In general a ride costs 100 to a few hundred escudos within the city and around 500 escudos in the country side, depending on how far you are going. It is recommended to ask your host mum or dad to call the Aluguer for you. The risk of getting scammed is low, also they have their “on-call driver”, oftentimes a good friend of theirs. As these drivers prefer to keep their good relationships with hostel owners, these Aluguera drivers are especially friendly and mindful of the safety of their passengers; or at least that was the feeling I got. Not only did you get a relatively cheap ride, the drivers often shared helpful information about day trips and the land itself, much like a local tour guide.
For those who do not wish to be limited physically to the official pickup spots or for those who are interested in more flexible timing, there are two possibilities. The first option would be a rental car, and the second would be to speak to your hostel owner for assistance. For those who plan to spend a longer time on the island, a rental car can be a cost-effective and, more importantly, flexible possibility as a tourist. If you plan on hiking in more remote areas of the island, a rental car is definitely recommended to guarantee a ride back at the end. Often, the island taxis won’t drive far out into the pampa or, if they do, they return to the main pickup area where they can get more rides for the day. Having the flexibility of a rental car means you can plan spontaneous, on the spot day trips, which brings us to the second option: a personal Aluguer driver. This option is especially practical if you arrange a driver through your hostel, in which case you can arrange a reasonably priced car ride for the entire day. This option allows far more flexibility than even a rental car can offer, notably if you choose a hike with different starting and ending points. But back to rental cars: just like any tourist hotspot, there is the possibility of rental car scams. It’s not possible to make a general declaration about which car rental agency is the best, on some islands the internationally known rental agencies offer great service (for example on Boa Vista) and on others, like Santo Antão, I preferred the local agency. The most important recommendation is to simply check the Google reviews for the individual agencies. It sounds banal, but it is genuinely the best way to get a sense of the real-time situation. I always chose a rental agency where there were recent, positive reviews, which I have found to be the best decision to this day. Before my trip, I saw many recommendations to book a rental car in advance. However, I chose to rent on spontaneously each time (during the high season!) and found that rental agencies were always willing to find a way to help you out, even if it meant calling another agency to arrange a car for you. On average I paid $50-$75 (US) per day for a small 4×4.
There is an excellent main road network between the bigger villages on Santo Antão. Many of the streets are new and in great condition, including a large portion of fully paved main road; only those who leave the main throughway of the island will encounter cobblestone and eventually sand and gravel. My recommendation, especially for those inexperienced in driving on unpaved roads, is to rent an all wheel drive car on all island of Cabo Verde. I saw firsthand how quickly a seemingly good road turned into a muddy mess or sand trap, where a non-reactive driver could quickly become hopelessly stranded. On that note, even with a 4×4 car one should think twice before parking on a dune instead of driving onwards. But in general, the driving situation on Santo Antão calm and comfortable, well…as long as you don’t mind yielding to a donkey or a cow or a few goats every now and then.
Where to Stay
In my short time on Santo Antão I was fortunate enough to have stayed at a few different hostels, mostly on account of my last minute planning–a blessing in disguise! On the northeast side of the island, I stayed at Black Mamba on the outskirts of Paul. Close to both the ocean and the main road, this homey inn was conveniently located to all the most impressive sights of Santo Antão. More importantly, though, was the welcoming host, Leona, who offered home-cooked Italian/Cab Verdean fusion meals and fostered a great sense of community with the guests. I had the great luck that some sailors who have been visiting Leona for decades were there at the same time, and Leona offered to take all of the guests on a day-long hike, like a big family. In the middle of my stay at Black Mamba, all of the rooms were booked (as I had booked last minute) and Leona recommended that I check at Casa Espongeiro for a room, which is my second recommendation. Despite my last minute inquiry, I was warmly welcomed by the owner Alain, who is originally from France. My room with a sunset view was simple and comfortable. The most notable part of my stay was the dinner, which was shared with all guests and included many delicious courses of fresh French cuisine and a sampling of different homemade grogues (Cabo Verdean sugar cane rum).
Point of Interest: Estrada a Corda Road
The absolute must-see driving route on Santo Antão is the mountain road from Porto Novo to Ribeira Grande. From the harbor in Porto Novo, the island seems quite desolate, but as soon as one reaches the mountain pass, the landscape changes dramatically. Lush evergreen forests expand across steep mountains and ancient volcano craters. Even more astounding is the fact that each individual tree was planted by hand and attended to for centuries. If you look closely, you might notice the small indentations around the smallest of these pine trees, where precious water can collect. I would even go so far as to guess that this is the only place in the world where meter high aloe vera plants emerge from the depths of spruce forests. The street leads you past inactive volcanoes where farmers grow a wide range of crops on the steep slopes. For those who drive towards Lagoa instead of following the road back down to Ribeira Grande, you will find yourself on a plateau. From here out, there are countless small hills to explore by foot, with cooler temperatures and a breathtaking view as a reward. The paved mountain road makes its way back to the sea on the Ribeira Grande side along precipices hundreds of meters high. Driving along the crest of the mountains offers a veritable spectacle, especially when the fog lifts in the afternoon, revealing the countless ridges of the island. On this road you can expect breathtaking panoramas with countless small mountain villages, some with hostels (often run by Europeans), tucked away amongst unique views.
More than just spectacular views, I found a few culinary highlights on this road. The first, a small kiosk with a breathtaking panorama, sells small, traditional, homemade snacks. The owner hadn’t yet opened for the day when I passed by, but was in the middle of preparing a fried fish snack, and offered to let me try some. Later on, I stumbled across a beautiful, whitewashed house with a nice terrace, and decided to stop in. Cozinha de Bento is a lovely cafe run by a couple and their son, originally from the Netherlands. Without exaggeration, I ate the best apple cake in my life there. A word of warning: if you happen to order a tea, be careful when pouring the sugar, if you are too enthusiastic with your shaking like I was, you might end up pouring the whole can into your glass…it was the sweetest tea I ever had!
Point of Interest: Paul and other Valleys
For those who stick to the coastal road from Porto Novo to Ribeira Grande, you will be rewarded with an equally magical, but completely different landscape view. The Atlantic pummels the coast along large swaths of the main road. On a few occasions, a turn onto a side street leads to narrow valleys of the inner island. In every valley, you’ll find lush vegetation reminiscent of a tropical rainforest. Mangos, bananas, passion fruit, and papayas grow between bush beans, corn, and sugar cane. The most impressive valley of the island, Paul, is accessible by car from the village, also called Paul, on the coast or from a steep foot path over a volcano crater–a popular hike for many visitors. Countless chic restaurants dot the sides of the steep valley walls that welcome you to stop and linger a moment. Those who pay close attention may also find the few eucalyptus trees of the island and an oasis that is officially open to swimmers.
Trip Highlight: Topo da Coroa
As most tourists stay mainly on the north side of the island and move between the lush, green valleys, the inactive volcanoes of the southwest side seldom visited by tourists. Exactly on this side of the island was the highlight of my entire Cabo Verde journey, specifically, a hike to the highest volcano crater of the island: Topo da Coroa. From the main road away from Porto Novo, a cobblestone road leads westwards towards Ponta Sul; follow this until you reach a gas station, where you turn left towards Tarrafal. Follow this seemingly never ending cobblestone road for a few kilometers until you reach a road crossing with parking spots and a picnic table with an umbrella. Here, the road leads to the right on a sandy scree slope, so a 4×4 car is definitely advantageous, but it is possible without an off-road vehicle for those with experience driving in difficult terrains. The natural road snakes around a few ridges for about 2.5 km, until you reach a small, grassy plateau. The dirt road leads left here towards Topo da Cora, past a large enclosure for goats and sheep. From a distance you can already see the only tree of the entire plateau at the foot of a larger hill; the path leads around the hill about 200 m left of this tree. I parked on a kind of rock plateau, but off-road vehicles can likely ride over this and follow the dried out riverbed farther before beginning the hike. My rental car with front wheel drive could most likely not have made the short but steep way back, so I opted to to follow the riverbed by foot. Follow the riverbed for about one kilometer until you run into a mountainside, about 40 minutes. From there out, the way leads quite clearly (and marked with some stones) up towards Topo da Coroa. In about 50 minutes, you will have reached the top of the 1,979 m high volcano crater. You can expect a total walking time of about 2 hours as an experienced hiker. In general, the path is quite easy and lacks much danger, besides the view being obscured by clouds or fog. I recommend using a map such as open street map so you can get a better sense of where the path leads before you set out on your hike.
During my entire hike, I found myself in a thick, soupy cloud. Despite the tropical feeling of the northside of the island, one should not be deceived. Although the highest point barely reaches 2,000 m above sea level, the temperature at this elevation is noticeably cooler as on the coast. Here in the middle of the ocean, the wind brings moist air to the peaks of mountains, which can quickly chill you out. I was grateful to have brought a windbreaker along. My efforts for walking through the clouds were rewarded by the astounding cloud show just before sunset when I broke through the cloud layer around 1,700 m. I had the feeling that I was standing at over 5,000m above sea level! Here and there, I could see neighboring volcanoes peeking through the thick cloudscape, which eventually blended into the sea in the distance. On the descent, the clouds slowly turned purple before clearing completely to make space for bright stars to emerge. For those with a little courage and some preparation, I would definitely recommend the sunset atop Topo da Coroa. I have never found a similar view paired with such a simple hike in Switzerland and, above all else, that top-of-the-world feeling without having to climb a huge mountain.
