Sao Tome and Principe
Satellite: Sentinel-2 cloudless 2016 by EOX (CC BY 4.0). Outline and points © OpenStreetMap contributors / Natural Earth. North up.
In numbers
2.0km²
Area
9km
Coastline
110m
Highest point
76
People
29°C
Warmest sea
March
250km
To the mainland
When to go to Islet of Rolas
Best for the beach from June to September.
The sea is warmest in March (29 °C) and coolest in August (25 °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.
Island
Islet of Rolas is an island in Sao Tome and Principe. It covers 2.0 km², with 9 km of coastline. Its highest point rises to 110 m. About 76 people live on it. The nearest mainland is 250 km away.
Getting there
- São Tomé International Airport (TMS)nearest airport with scheduled flights · 47 km in a straight line
- FerriesPonta Baleia - Ilhéu das Rolas, Praia Inhame - Ilhéu das Rolas
- 250 km from the mainlanddistance to the nearest continental coast
- From June to Septemberbest 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 Islet of Rolas.
- 6beachesPraia Café, Praia Bateria and 4 more
- 2viewpoints
- 1lighthouses
- 2ferry terminalsIlhéu das Rolas
- 1named peaksMorro de São Francisco
- 1hotels, guesthouses and apartments
- 1restaurants, 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
Islet of Rolas in our other atlases
Everything Coastya, Peakyas, Lakeyas and Cascadyas know about what lies inside Islet of Rolas, each with its own numbers.
3beaches and covesCoastya
Beach with the warmest sea
29.1°C
Praia Pesqueira
sea in the warmest month · according to Coastya
3 beaches
on Coastya, the beach atlas
- Praia Pombo29.0°C
- Praia Escada29.0°C
- Praia Pesqueira29.1°C
The shape of the land.
On average the island stands 34 m above the sea. 100 % of it is below 200 m.
- 81 %0–50 m
- 19 %50–200 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.
2 km
All outlines drawn to the same scale (Natural Earth and OpenStreetMap).
Month by month
The weather on the island.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Afternoon high (°C) | 27 | 28 | 28 | 28 | 27 | 25 | 24 | 25 | 26 | 26 | 27 | 27 |
| Night low (°C) | 27 | 27 | 28 | 27 | 26 | 25 | 24 | 24 | 25 | 26 | 26 | 26 |
| Sea (°C) | 28 | 29 | 29 | 29 | 28 | 26 | 25 | 25 | 26 | 27 | 27 | 28 |
| Rain (mm) | 132 | 120 | 162 | 162 | 104 | 29 | 14 | 12 | 22 | 81 | 134 | 133 |
| Wet days | 27 | 24 | 29 | 27 | 22 | 8 | 4 | 2 | 6 | 21 | 28 | 28 |
| Sun h/day | 4.8 | 4.8 | 4.8 | 4.8 | 5.3 | 5.5 | 4.9 | 5.0 | 5.1 | 4.8 | 4.4 | 4.8 |
| Wind (km/h) | 13 | 14 | 14 | 14 | 16 | 18 | 18 | 18 | 17 | 16 | 16 | 14 |
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 | +0.8 | +0.9 | +0.7 | +0.6 | +0.9 | +0.4 | +0.8 | +1.1 | +0.4 | +0.2 | +0.7 | −0.4 |
| 2021 | −0.4 | +0.2 | −0.2 | +0.2 | +0.7 | +1.3 | +1.8 | +1.2 | +0.8 | +0.6 | +0.5 | +0.4 |
| 2022 | −0.6 | +0.1 | −0.1 | −0.3 | +0.2 | +0.2 | +0.5 | +0.5 | +0.3 | +0.7 | −0.1 | −0.1 |
| 2023 | +0.1 | ±0.0 | ±0.0 | +0.4 | +0.7 | +1.2 | +0.4 | +0.7 | +1.0 | +0.7 | +0.6 | +0.7 |
| 2024 | +0.6 | +1.2 | +0.9 | +1.1 | +1.2 | +1.1 | +0.9 | +0.1 | +1.1 | +0.6 | −0.2 | ±0.0 |
| 2025 | ±0.0 | +0.7 | ±0.0 | +0.4 | +0.1 | +0.8 | +0.3 | −0.4 | −0.1 | −0.6 | −0.2 | −0.1 |
+1 warmer than usual −1 cooler than usual
Photos
Seen by visitors.
Equatorial Guinea
About these numbers
| Names, area, population | Wikidata (Q1535148) · 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 — 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.
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