Making the most of Palmeira Sal Island
Use these notes to shape a realistic day ashore, then confirm any time-sensitive information for the date of your call.
Arriving at the port
Palmeira is a tender port.
The port is set apart from the village, on a concrete structure among warehouses. Palmeira is about 4km northwest of Espargos, Sal's capital.
A taxi from the airport or Espargos to the port costs about CVE500.
Palmeira, the island's main port, is a working fishing harbour and import station. It is currently developing tourist facilities along with the rest of Sal.
Sal is flat, dry, barren, brown and bare, but Santa Maria's superb beach at the road's southern end makes up for visitors' first impression when travelling from the Airport.
Nearby places
Santa Maria is the centre of activity, where clear water meets long white-sand beaches and draws water-sports enthusiasts and holiday-makers to the rapidly developing hotels and resorts.
Closer to the international airport is Espargos, where shops, bars and restaurants thrive and live music often fills the air.
Food and shopping
Cape Verde is a delight for fish lovers: grilled lobster is excellent, as are fresh tuna, octopus and many other delicacies.
Money
The Cape Verde Escudo is used: 1 Euro= 113 Escudos, though hotels and banks may charge slightly more.
Credit cards are accepted by a growing number of up-market hotels, though not all. MasterCard and Visa are currently the most widely accepted.
Staying connected
Portuguese is spoken.
Opening Hours and
All public holidays and Sundays see closures, with many shops also shutting early on Fridays. Typical Mediterranean hours are Monday-Friday 08:00/08:30 - 12:00/12:30 and 14:00/14:30 - 18:00/18:30, then Saturday 08:30 - 12:00. Banks often shut in the afternoon, restaurants trade around 19:00 - 23:00, and nightclubs commonly begin at midnight. The public holidays are 1 January New Year, 20 January National Heroes Day, 1 May Labour Day, 5 July Independence Day, 15 August Nossa Senhora da Graça [Our Lady of Grace], 12 September Nationality Day, 1 November All Saints Day, 25 December Christmas Day, with Mardi Gras and Good Friday also…