Beaches in São Tomé and Príncipe

Two volcanic islands on the equator in the Gulf of Guinea, forested, wet and among the least visited countries in Africa. The beaches are black or gold volcanic sand in small bays under rainforest, with cocoa plantations — roças — inland and a colonial architecture rotting picturesquely into them. Four species of marine turtle nest here and the conservation programmes are the main organised visitor activity. There is no mass tourism, no resort strip and very little road; the dry season, June to September, is the one to travel in. Practically: there is one international airport, flights are few, and the road network on São Tomé is limited and poor in the south. Malaria is present. What the islands offer instead of infrastructure is emptiness — a few thousand visitors a year across two islands — and a density of endemic birds and plants that has drawn biologists far longer than it has drawn travellers. Príncipe is a UNESCO biosphere reserve in its entirety.