Satellite: Sentinel-2 cloudless 2016 by EOX (CC BY 4.0). Outline and points © OpenStreetMap contributors / Natural Earth. North up.
In numbers
472km²
Area
100km
Coastline
2,829m
Highest point
Pico do Fogo
38,600
People
28°C
Warmest sea
October
727km
To the mainland
When to go to Fogo
Best for the beach in January and from April to July.
The sea is warmest in October (28 °C) and coolest in February (23 °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.
Only island of Cape Verde with an active volcano
Fogo is an island in Cape Verde. It covers 472 km², with 100 km of coastline. Its highest point, Pico do Fogo, rises to 2,829 m. About 38,600 people live on it. The nearest mainland is 727 km away.
Getting there
- Nelson Mandela International Airport (RAI)nearest airport with scheduled flights · 93 km in a straight line
- Ferriesfastferry 3h Fogo-Praia oneway
- 727 km from the mainlanddistance to the nearest continental coast
- January and from April to Julybest months to go (from 30 years of averages)
Plan the trip
Ferries, stays and things to do
Some links above are affiliate links: if you book through them we may earn a commission, at no extra cost to you. It never changes what the data on this page says.
On the island
What you find on Fogo.
- 7beachesfonte bila, Ponta da Salina, Praia Senhora de Encarnação and 4 more
- 21viewpointsEspigão, Monte Fontainhas, Bila Baxo Viewpoint and 18 more
- 1lighthouses
- 1ferry terminalsPorto Vale de Cavaleiros
- 3named peaksPico de Fogo, Pico de Caldeira, Monte Vermelho
- 138volcanoesMonte Beco, (Pico Pequeno), Monte Preto de Cima and 135 more
- 290waterfalls
- 2ruins and archaeological sitesNossa Senhora de Encarnação, Fortim Carlota
- 29waymarked walking routesFGP1a Fogo Trails, FGP1b Fogo Trails, FGP1c Fogo Trails and 26 more
- 1campsitesWild camping spot
- 49hotels, guesthouses and apartments
- 53restaurants, 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
Fogo in our other atlases
Everything Coastya, Peakyas, Lakeyas and Cascadyas know about what lies inside Fogo, each with its own numbers.
8beaches and covesCoastya
12mountainsPeakyas
Highest point
2,829m
prominence 2,829 m · according to Peakyas
Beach with the warmest sea
27.5°C
Praia do Topo
sea in the warmest month · according to Coastya
8 beaches
on Coastya, the beach atlas
- Praia do Topo27.5°C
- Praia de Nossa Senhroa da Encarnação27.5°C
- Praia Casa27.5°C
- Palha Carga27.2°C
- Praia Ladrão27.5°C
- Baixo do Montado27.5°C
- Praia Santa27.5°C
- Cova de Ribeira de Concelhocove27.5°C
12 mountains
on Peakyas, the mountain atlas
- Pico do Fogoprominence 2,829 m2,829m
- Bordeira (Fogo)2,692m
- Monte Velha1,482m
- Monte Bula
- Monte Cruz
- Monte Duarte
- Monte Losna
- Monte Quebra Buli
4 more on PeakyasOpen Peakyas ↗
The shape of the land.
On average the island stands 856 m above the sea. 13 % of it is below 200 m.
- 3 %0–50 m
- 10 %50–200 m
- 24 %200–500 m
- 27 %500–1,000 m
- 30 %1,000–2,000 m
- 5 %> 2,000 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
- São Filipe10,097 people
- Igreja4,084 people
- Centro Histórico1,493 people
- Santa Filomena1,423 people
- Queimada Guincho1,194 people
- Ponta Verde1,072 people
- Relva1,061 people
- Cova Figueira1,052 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 | 23 | 23 | 23 | 24 | 24 | 26 | 27 | 28 | 27 | 26 | 25 |
| Night low (°C) | 22 | 21 | 21 | 22 | 22 | 23 | 24 | 26 | 26 | 26 | 25 | 23 |
| Sea (°C) | 24 | 23 | 23 | 24 | 24 | 24 | 25 | 27 | 27 | 28 | 27 | 25 |
| Rain (mm) | 23 | 29 | 10 | 8 | 6 | 5 | 13 | 56 | 82 | 46 | 47 | 41 |
| Wet days | 4 | 4 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 2 | 12 | 15 | 8 | 7 | 6 |
| Sun h/day | 7.9 | 8.3 | 9.5 | 9.7 | 9.6 | 8.8 | 8.0 | 8.0 | 8.1 | 8.2 | 7.8 | 7.3 |
| Wind (km/h) | 24 | 24 | 22 | 22 | 21 | 18 | 14 | 13 | 15 | 17 | 19 | 21 |
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 | ±0.0 | +0.4 | +0.3 | +0.6 | +0.3 | +0.3 | +0.6 | +0.4 | +0.3 | +0.1 | +0.9 | +0.7 |
| 2021 | +1.0 | +0.4 | −0.1 | +0.8 | −0.1 | −0.1 | −0.1 | −0.3 | +0.4 | +0.5 | +0.6 | +0.4 |
| 2022 | +0.8 | +1.1 | +0.4 | −0.1 | −0.1 | +0.6 | +0.6 | +0.6 | +0.2 | +0.1 | +0.1 | +0.4 |
| 2023 | +0.9 | +0.7 | +0.9 | +1.4 | +1.2 | +1.3 | +2.0 | +1.8 | +1.3 | +1.2 | +0.9 | +1.1 |
| 2024 | +1.4 | +1.9 | +1.6 | +1.3 | +1.7 | +1.0 | +0.9 | +0.5 | +1.1 | +0.6 | +0.3 | +0.5 |
| 2025 | +0.4 | ±0.0 | −0.4 | −0.5 | −0.3 | ±0.0 | +0.5 | +0.2 | +0.3 | +0.5 | +0.4 | ±0.0 |
+1 warmer than usual −1 cooler than usual
Photos
Seen by visitors.
Nearby
More islands nearby.
Brava
Cape Verde63 km²976 m39 km away
MaioCape Verde274 km²437 m132 km away
São NicolauCape Verde346 km²1,312 m185 km away
Boa VistaCape Verde634 km²387 m210 km away
São VicenteCape Verde226 km²750 m221 km away
Santa LuziaCape Verde35 km²397 m206 km away
SalCape Verde215 km²405 m250 km away
Santo AntãoCape Verde787 km²1,979 m252 km awayAbout these numbers
| Names, area, population | Wikidata (Q426555) · 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
Do you prefer beaches, lakes, mountains, waterfalls, islands, rivers or canyons?
Same idea, other landscapes: field atlases built on open data, month by month, in seven languages.
beaches
Find your beach: sea temperature, sun and swimming month by month.Visit 
lakes
Every lake on Earth: water temperature, ice, depth and the shore.Coming soonVisit mountains
Every summit in 3D: summit weather, the 0 °C line, huts and trails.Visit 
waterfalls
Every waterfall: height, flow month by month and when it roars.Coming soonVisit 
islands
Every island from the sea up: size, sea temperature, ferries and 3D.You are here
rivers
Every river from source to sea: the journey, the flow and the basin in numbers.Visit 
canyons
Every canyon cut to scale: depth to the floor, rim and floor temperatures, trails and viewpoints.Visit