Cape Verde Safety Guide
Health, security, and travel safety information
Emergency Numbers
Save these numbers before your trip.
Healthcare
What to know about medical care in Cape Verde.
Cape Verde runs a two-tier system: small public hospitals and larger private clinics on Sal, Santiago and São Vicente. Serious cases evacuate to Dakar or Lisbon.
On Sal, Centro de Saúde de Santa Maria can stabilise and arrange evacuation. On Boa Vista, Hospital de Sal Rei is basic. Private clinic Clinica Santa Isabel is preferred by tour operators.
Farmácia Popular (Praia, Mindelo, Santa Maria) stock common medications. But bring prescription items. Malaria prophylaxis is not needed. But antihistamines and rehydration salts are useful for sun and seafood reactions.
Not legally required. But strongly advised. Evacuation flights cost several thousand euros.
- ✓ Pack a small medical kit with plasters, antiseptic, diarrhoea tablets and any personal prescriptions.
- ✓ If you have chronic conditions, carry a letter from your GP summarising medications in Portuguese or English.
Common Risks
Be aware of these potential issues.
Opportunistic bag-snatching, pick-pocketing and room break-ins targeting phones, cash and cameras.
Poor lighting, wandering livestock and unpaved roads outside main towns increase accident risk.
Strong currents, sharp coral and jellyfish stings can catch inexperienced swimmers and divers.
Scams to Avoid
Watch out for these common tourist scams.
Individuals on beaches or at hotel gates offer cut-price island tours or turtle-watching trips, take deposits and disappear.
Street money-changers give you West African CFA instead of Cape Verdean escudos. The notes look similar and CFA is worthless locally.
Unmetered taxis quote inflated flat rates to new arrivals at airports and ferry terminals.
Safety Tips
Practical advice to stay safe.
- • Aluguer (shared minibus) drivers often overload vehicles. If it feels unsafe, wait for the next one.
- • Domestic flights between islands are reliable. But weather delays are common in winter, build buffer days into onward connections.
- • Most bars in Santa Maria and Mindelo close around 02:00; licensed taxis wait near main squares, avoid accepting rides from unmarked cars.
- • Drink prices in tourist bars are double those in local cafés. Keep receipts to check for billing errors.
- • Leave passports and excess cash in your hotel safe. Take a photocopy and a small amount of cash for beach drinks.
- • Sun is intense year-round; re-apply SPF 30 every two hours even when cloudy.
Information for Specific Travelers
Safety considerations for different traveler groups.
Solo female travellers report Cape Verde as largely hassle-free, though light verbal attention can occur in local bars.
- → Choose hotels with 24-hour reception so you are not walking alone late at night.
- → A polite but firm "não, obrigada" is normally enough to deflect unwanted conversation.
Same-sex sexual activity is legal; Cape Verde revised its penal code in 2004.
- → Santa Maria on Sal and Mindelo on São Vicente have the most relaxed atmosphere for LGBTQ+ travellers.
- → There are no dedicated LGBTQ+ venues, but several hotel bars in Santa Maria host mixed, welcoming crowds.
Travel Insurance
Protect yourself before you travel.
Medical evacuation to Europe is the single largest potential cost. Insurance ensures you are flown out without upfront payment.
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