Traveling to the paradisiacal Island of São Vicente is a great idea to enjoy beautiful beaches, fine sand where you can sunbathe and have perfect days. With an exciting night activity, just by choosing the city of Mindelo Cape Verde, as your tourist destination.
Cape Verde Mindelo: The African Crescent
Mindelo of Cape Verde is a beautiful port city that you will find in the northern part of the Island of São Vicente, in the archipelago of Cape Verde; a sovereign state of Africa, bathed by the waters of the Atlantic Ocean and located off the coast of Senegal.
It is characterized by being the second in size within Cape Verde and having a large number of inhabitants, whose life is developed around fishing and tourism associated with its cultural legacy , which you will enjoy visiting its interesting monuments and discovering all its history walking. for it’s streets.
The Cape Verdeans have the morabeza as their banner, a term that identifies them as kind people who usually offer their hospitality to all their visitors. Surely you will see it during your holidays in Mindelo Cape Verde
Where is Mindelo Cape Verde?
Mindelo is located in the Bay of Porto Grande, it has a crescent shape and is surrounded by hills such as Monte Vigía, Monte Cara or Morro Branco peak. Being also a city crossed by the Ribeira Julião river; with beaches like Langinha, within which there is a large number of restaurants. A place that you must visit yes or yes while you are sightseeing.
It is also a bay whose bottom is a large volcanic crater and at whose entrance you can see the Islote dos Pássaros, with the striking lighthouse that identifies the port.
Mindelo in Cape Verde is a city that has Portuguese as its official language, as well as the so-called Cape Verdean Creole.
BEFORE TRAVELLING! Remember to hire the Best Travel Insurance for Cape Verde. Click here to find it!
Flights to Mindelo Cape Verde
In order for you to enjoy Mindelo Cape Verde, you need to select the best route to reach your destination in a short time and at an affordable cost for your budget.
You should look for the available flights to this city in advance depending on the date you want to visit it. From anywhere in the world you can reach several airports that are part of the exotic Cape Verde, which has the Amílcar Cabral International Airport as its main terminal within the Island of Sal.
There is also the Boa Vista, the Santiago and the São Vicente; the latter being the ideal to visit Mindelo. However , it should be noted that you can also reach this city by ferry.
If you are, for example, in Londonit will take you only approximately nine and a half hours to get to Cape Verde. From other parts of UK you can also find other options, but London is usually the best option when it comes to flights to Mindelo Cape Verde
We recommend you review our recommendations , so that you know everything about the scheduled flights, their dates and special discounts.
Beaches of Mindelo Cape Verde
One of the particular traditions of the beaches of Mindelo is every December 31 to take a dip to receive the new year, but this is something that you can do on any other date of the year.
Without a doubt, Mindelo has beautiful beaches such as: Curraletes, Langinha, Bahía Das Gatas, Calheta Grande, Do Castelo, Tropo, São Pedro, among others. Within which you will enjoy the sea, sun and pure sand in a relaxing and fun way. All this while you taste delicious dishes representative of its gastronomy, such as cahupa or its typical stew of beans, corn, vegetables, eggs and fish. Nothing better to start the day full of energy!
The beaches of Mindelo Cabo Verde are characterized by being virgin, provided with white sand, with picturesque plains and fantastic cliffs where you can enjoy incredible panoramic views.
What to see in Mindelo São Vicente
Cape Verde´s Mindelo is a city that has it all. In it you will enjoy warm beaches but also pleasant walks through its streets, within which you will find shops, restaurants and bars full of music, dance and an exciting bohemian life .
It is the hometown of Cesária Évora, a singer who was known as “the diva of bare feet” or under the name of “the queen of moma” . It is also an essential place to visit if you want to cross the Atlantic by boat or enjoy the best vacations.
In Mindelo you can see beautiful beaches, the interesting Pont d’Agua park , its municipal market with completely fresh food, visit its Cultural Center, see the old governor’s mansion or discover the Museu Do Mar , among many other things.
Things to do in Mindelo Cape Verde
Enjoy your stay in Mindelo, Cape Verde, touring it from cover to cover. You will be able to walk each of its streets and appreciate the mixture of its typical houses painted in light colors and buildings that preserve the Portuguese-style colonial structure.
Do not miss any of its corners and discover the wonderful stalls of the Senegalese, in which you will find a wide variety of printed fabrics . You will be able to see sophisticated structures such as the Governor’s Palace and admire its Plaza Amílcar Cabral, while you buy fresh fruits or vegetables along its streets.
Meet some of its restaurants, cafes and bars so you can enjoy typical dishes of this region at a very good price, while listening to live music and ending the day with magical sunsets on its beaches and port .
At night we recommend you to discover its spectacular dances, such as the morna, funaná, polka, contradança, mazurka and especially the coladeira; which is one of the most sensual in the world.
If you want to take home a typical memory of this city, learn what the Cape Verdean greeting is like and practice it with family or friends. It is a manifestation of affection by which they collide their fists and then gently hit their chest at the level of the heart.
When visiting a city, it is not only important to appreciate all the interesting places it has, but also to get to know the culture through its people. The people of Mindelo from Cape Verde are known in Africa for being extremely friendly and hospitable to tourists.
They love to teach the customs and some of the most typical words of their native language, so that they can learn more about them and that the tourist enjoys their stay in this city. Therefore, it is a city that gets very involved with tourists to make them feel like a local .
You can also take a boat from its port and visit the surroundings, such as the neighboring island of Santo Antão and many other points of interest. In Mindelo you can go hiking or simply sunbathe on its beaches with turquoise blue waters.
Mindelo Island Airport
On the island of São Vicente, five kilometers from the city of Mindelo, you will find the Cesária Évora International Airport that offers its services to this island and also to Santo Antão.
It is located in the valley region of this island, 20 meters above sea level and identified as class 4D, which implies that it has a navigation system within which operations such as latitude, longitude, time are synchronized. and height. Allowing the operation of several aircraft within its airspace safely.
This airport was opened in 1960 and has been expanded in 2005 to become international. You can enjoy the services of operators such as Binter Cabo Verde, which has regular flights at seven of the city’s airports, using three aircraft.
In a similar way, Cabo Verde Airlines offers you its services, one of the most popular that offers you flights through which you can travel and carry cargo from anywhere in the world, especially from Europe, America and the African continent.
How to get to Mindelo Cape Verde?
In Mindelo Cabo Verde you can enjoy a wide variety of means of transport that fit your needs. With lines that offer you tours of the city or other types of travel. Within which to know all its cultural and historical legacy, as well as enjoy warm coasts and panoramic landscapes.
You can select full day excursions or simply enjoy their plans in which your transfer to the hotel is planned. But if you prefer, you will have the opportunity to take a taxi to go directly to the hotel.
If what you want is to move freely around this city, we recommend renting a car, since its public transport is quite limited.
Weather in Mindelo Cape Verde
Like most Cape Verdean cities, Mindelo is a place with a fantastic climate . During the summer you will take advantage of its warmth and sun, but in winter you will not suffer from the cold either. Something rainy and windy, yes.
Most of the year it has temperatures that range between 20° C and 30° C, which makes this city an ideal place to spend a pleasant vacation and enjoy sightseeing to the fullest.
The rains are usually frequent from August to February, while in the other months it practically does not rain. Or if it does it is sporadically.
On the other hand , its presence of humidity is also very variable, so you will find its highest levels from May to December, while the other months are relatively dry.
Best time to travel?
Taking into consideration the climate of Mindelo in Sao Vicente, we believe that the best time of year to visit is when there are many clear days, without rain, and within which the temperature is between 18° C and 27° C.
In this case, the best time is from the end of December to practically the first days of July.
Most tourists love to visit Mindelo during the final week of February. But you can do it on any other date that is convenient for you, depending on your time availability. In truth, any month you choose will be a wise choice. It is a country with a very pleasant climate throughout the year.
Is it a safe city for tourism?
There are those who say that Cape Verde is the smile of Africa, which is undoubtedly represented by the warmth of the inhabitants of the city of Mindelo. They are welcoming people who will offer you their hospitality, despite being part of a humble and simple country.
It is a natural paradise within which you may not find great luxuries. But yes, friendly people and places in which to spend a fun and relaxing vacation. A human warmth that you will not find anywhere else in Africa and that will make you want to visit it on more than one occasion.
The warmth of its inhabitants transmits security, peace and joy for life. When you arrive in this incredible city you will learn the word morabeza , which we talked about at the beginning of this post. And you will know why they use it as an emblem when serving visitors and tourists.
Frequently asked questions and answers
It is the capital of São Vicente Island and it is a port city that you will find in the Bay of Porto Grande
It is estimated that it currently has approximately 70,000 inhabitants. 95% local people
It has fewer visitors than Boa Vista or Sal, but as the cultural cradle of the country, it is increasing its tourist attraction in recent years.
There are areas that it is recommended to avoid at night, because they are isolated or little frequented. But overall it’s a safe place to go