A collection of fishing boats beached on Mabota Beach in Mindelo with more luxurious sailboats in the background

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Mindelo

Set around a moon-shaped port and ringed by barren mountains, Mindelo is Cabo Verde's answer to the Riviera, complete with cobblestone streets, candy-coloured colonial buildings and yachts bobbing in a peaceful harbour. Around a bend is the country's deepest industrial port, which in the late 19th century was a key coaling station for British ships and remains the source of the city's relative prosperity.

Attractions

Must-see attractions

  • Fish on downtown fish market, Mindelo, Sao Vicente, Cape Verde Islands

    Fish Market

    Mindelo

    The city's photogenic fish market lies just beyond Torre de Belém, with a jetty right behind it where fishermen unload their daily catch.

  • Museu do Mar

    Museu do Mar

    Mindelo

    Inside the Torre de Belém, Mindelo's most intriguing museum gives an overview of São Vicente's history, from the island's role in the triangular trade to…

  • Palácio do Povo

    Palácio do Povo

    Mindelo

    This cheery pink colonial confection and former government building today hosts changing exhibitions. Currently, its rooms are given over to a long…

  • Pont d'Agua

    Pont d'Agua

    Mindelo

    With its modern glass and concrete constructions, this swank new complex looks and feels more like the south of France than Cabo Verde. Dotted with palm…

  • Centro Cultural do Mindelo

    Centro Cultural do Mindelo

    Mindelo

    Inside the old customs house, the cultural centre houses changing exhibitions of local arts and culture and has a tiny shop selling local crafts, music…

  • Torre de Belém

    Torre de Belém

    Mindelo

    Jutting out into the harbour is the fortresslike Torre de Belém – a Disney World version of the 15th-century tower that guards Lisbon's port.

  • Mercado Municipal

    Mercado Municipal

    Mindelo

    The restored two-storey food market from 1784 is a great place to see sweet-talking vendors hawking local produce and medicinal herbs.

  • Town Hall

    Town Hall

    Mindelo

    Mindelo's photogenic câmara municipal (town hall) dates from the mid-19th century.

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