Satellite: Sentinel-2 cloudless 2016 by EOX (CC BY 4.0). Outline and points © OpenStreetMap contributors / Natural Earth. North up.
In numbers
634km²
Area
126km
Coastline
387m
Highest point
Monte Estância
12,000
People
27°C
Warmest sea
October
566km
To the mainland
When to go to Boa Vista
Best for the beach from June to July and from October to December.
The sea is warmest in October (27 °C) and coolest in February (22 °C). You can swim comfortably all year (21 °C or more).
Averages 1991–2020. Sea: NOAA OISST, the water within 35 km of the coast. Air, rain and sun: NASA POWER. Best months weigh warm afternoons (23–30 °C), sea of 24 °C or more and few wet days.
Easternmost island of Cape Verde
Boa Vista is an island in Cape Verde. It covers 634 km², with 126 km of coastline. Its highest point, Monte Estância, rises to 387 m. About 12,000 people live on it. The nearest mainland is 566 km away.
Getting there
- Aristides Pereira International Airport (BVC)airport on the island, with scheduled flights
- Ferriestrimaran
- 566 km from the mainlanddistance to the nearest continental coast
- From June to July and from October to Decemberbest months to go (from 30 years of averages)
Plan the trip
Ferries, stays and things to do
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On the island
What you find on Boa Vista.
- 35beachesPraia de Lancha, Praia de Abrohla, Praia de Carvão and 32 more
- 5viewpointsDeserto de Viana, Odjo d’Mar, Vigia and 2 more
- 2lighthousesFarol de Morro Negro, Farol Ponta do Sol
- 1ferry terminalsPorto de Sal Rei
- 1marinas
- 22named peaksMonte Estância, Caçador, Calhau and 19 more
- 4volcanoesSanto Antonio, Rocha Estância, Monte Manuel Babáha and 1 more
- 5ruins and archaeological sitesFábrica da Chave and 4 more
- 2dive centresBoa Vista Diving, Diving Center Riamar
- 1surf spots
- 29hotels, guesthouses and apartments
- 84restaurants, cafés and bars
Counted in OpenStreetMap, the map anyone can edit, inside the island's outline. A low number may only mean nobody has mapped it yet.
Cross-checked with our atlases
Boa Vista in our other atlases
Everything Coastya, Peakyas, Lakeyas and Cascadyas know about what lies inside Boa Vista, each with its own numbers.
43beaches and covesCoastya
6mountainsPeakyas
Highest point
387m
Monte Estância
prominence 387 m · according to Peakyas
Beach with the warmest sea
27.0°C
Praia de Lacacão
sea in the warmest month · according to Coastya
43 beaches
on Coastya, the beach atlas
- Praia da Chave26.9°C
- Paria de Chaves26.9°C
- Praia de Cabral26.9°C
- Praia de Boca da Salina26.9°C
- Praia de Atalanta26.9°C
- Praia de João Questão26.9°C
- Praia de Fátima26.9°C
- Praia de Carlota26.9°C
35 more on CoastyaOpen Coastya ↗
6 mountains
on Peakyas, the mountain atlas
- Monte Estânciaprominence 387 m387m
- Monte Santo António379m
- Monte Caçador and Pico Forcado Protected Countryside364m
- Rocha Estância357m
- Morre Negro156m
- Vigia146m
The shape of the land.
On average the island stands 54 m above the sea. 98 % of it is below 200 m.
- 55 %0–50 m
- 43 %50–200 m
- 2 %200–500 m
Share of the island's area in each altitude band, from the Copernicus DEM (30 m, read at 30–240 m on large islands).
Size, for real
Next to islands you may know.
20 km
All outlines drawn to the same scale (Natural Earth and OpenStreetMap).
Towns on the island
- Sal Rei10,936 people
- Bom Sossego1,671 people
- Rabil1,401 people
Month by month
The weather on the island.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Afternoon high (°C) | 23 | 22 | 22 | 22 | 22 | 23 | 25 | 26 | 27 | 27 | 26 | 24 |
| Night low (°C) | 22 | 21 | 21 | 21 | 22 | 22 | 24 | 26 | 26 | 26 | 25 | 24 |
| Sea (°C) | 23 | 22 | 22 | 22 | 23 | 23 | 24 | 26 | 27 | 27 | 26 | 24 |
| Rain (mm) | 24 | 21 | 10 | 6 | 4 | 3 | 9 | 39 | 64 | 36 | 32 | 25 |
| Wet days | 4 | 3 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 9 | 11 | 6 | 5 | 5 |
| Sun h/day | 7.9 | 8.2 | 9.3 | 9.3 | 9.1 | 8.3 | 7.4 | 7.7 | 7.9 | 8.0 | 7.7 | 7.3 |
| Wind (km/h) | 28 | 28 | 27 | 27 | 26 | 22 | 17 | 16 | 18 | 21 | 23 | 25 |
Averages 1991–2020 for the ~55 km NASA POWER cell over the island; the sea from NOAA OISST.
Recent years
Warmer and cooler years at sea.
Each month's sea temperature compared with its 1991–2020 average, in degrees.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | −0.4 | +0.2 | +0.7 | +0.8 | +0.2 | +0.5 | +0.8 | +0.5 | +0.5 | +0.3 | +0.7 | +0.3 |
| 2021 | +0.3 | ±0.0 | −0.4 | +0.1 | −0.1 | −0.1 | +0.4 | +0.6 | +0.7 | +0.2 | +0.5 | +0.1 |
| 2022 | +0.5 | +0.6 | +0.2 | +0.2 | ±0.0 | +0.7 | +0.7 | +0.7 | +1.0 | +0.2 | +0.1 | +0.5 |
| 2023 | +0.4 | −0.3 | +0.9 | +1.4 | +1.2 | +1.7 | +1.8 | +1.8 | +1.4 | +1.3 | +1.2 | +1.0 |
| 2024 | +1.2 | +2.3 | +1.2 | +1.3 | +1.5 | +0.2 | +0.4 | +0.7 | +0.8 | +0.5 | +0.8 | +1.0 |
| 2025 | +0.6 | −0.2 | −0.3 | −0.3 | +0.1 | +0.5 | +0.3 | +0.3 | +0.7 | +0.6 | +0.5 | +0.5 |
+1 warmer than usual −1 cooler than usual
Photos
Seen by visitors.
Nearby
More islands nearby.
Sal
Cape Verde215 km²405 m72 km away
MaioCape Verde274 km²437 m104 km away
São NicolauCape Verde346 km²1,312 m167 km away
FogoCape Verde472 km²2,829 m210 km away
Santa LuziaCape Verde35 km²397 m219 km away
São VicenteCape Verde226 km²750 m245 km away
BravaCape Verde63 km²976 m245 km away
Santo AntãoCape Verde787 km²1,979 m274 km awayAbout these numbers
| Names, area, population | Wikidata (Q110440) · CC0 |
|---|---|
| Outline | © OpenStreetMap contributors · ODbL |
| Sea temperature | NOAA OISST v2.1 · 1991–2020 |
| Climate | NASA POWER · 1991–2020 |
| Relief, 3D model | Copernicus DEM GLO-30 · © DLR e.V., © Airbus Defence and Space GmbH, Copernicus/ESA |
| Beaches, ports, lighthouses, trails | © OpenStreetMap contributors · ODbL |
| Towns | GeoNames · CC BY 4.0 |
| Images | EOX Sentinel-2 cloudless 2016 · CC BY 4.0; Wikimedia Commons |
| Beaches, mountains, lakes and waterfalls | Coastya, Peakyas — Wikidata · CC0; © OpenStreetMap contributors · ODbL; GeoNames · CC BY 4.0; NOAA OISST |
Every figure is an average, an estimate or a count from a public dataset. Licences and methods: data sources.
The family
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