Cape Verde itineraries: 1 week, 2 weeks and 3 weeks

Pick islands in pairs that share a flight or ferry link. Every extra island costs you most of a day in transfers, so a 7-day trip fits two islands and a 14-day trip fits four.

The 7-day version works because Sal and São Vicente are linked by a short flight, and Santo Antão is a ferry ride from Mindelo. Spend 3 nights in Santa Maria on Sal for the beach and kitesurfing, fly to São Vicente, then take the ferry to Porto Novo and go up to Santo Antão for 3 nights of valley and cliff walking. Keep the last night in Mindelo so a delayed ferry cannot cost you your flight home.

If you would rather skip resorts, swap Sal for Boa Vista: dunes, long empty beaches and turtle nesting from July to October, but fewer flights, so book early. Either way, do not try to add Fogo or Santiago to a 7-day trip; the connections eat two days.

With 14 days you can run the classic four-island route and still have rest days. Start in Praia for the Plateau old town and Sucupira market, with Cidade Velha as a half day 15 km away. Fly to Fogo for 3 nights in Chã das Caldeiras and climb Pico do Fogo before dawn. Then fly north to Mindelo for music and Carnival season, ferry to Santo Antão for 4 nights of the best hiking, and finish with 2 nights on Sal, which has the most international flights.

The order matters: end on the island you fly home from, and keep the hiking in the middle so tired legs do not clash with a long travel day. Tarrafal on Santiago fits as a day trip or one overnight from Praia if you want the calm bay and the camp museum.

A third week buys you Boa Vista and São Nicolau without rushing. Boa Vista adds 3 nights of dunes, whales offshore and turtle beaches; São Nicolau adds 2–3 nights of quiet walking around Monte Gordo. Both cost a transfer day each, so a 21-day trip is really the 14-day route plus two islands and two slower days.

Brava is the other option if you want the smallest inhabited island, reached by ferry from Fogo. Treat any extra island as optional: if a flight or ferry is cancelled, drop it rather than cutting your buffer night.

Book inter-island flights and the São Vicente–Santo Antão ferry before you book hotels, because seats and sailings are the constraint. Ferries are cheaper than flights but slower and more exposed to weather; confirm the day before you travel and keep a plan B flight in mind. Inter-island flights are usually the fastest link between island groups.

Build the trip so that your last full day is on the island you depart from, and never schedule a same-day ferry-to-flight connection. Register on EASE and pay the airport security fee at least 5 days before you fly, and check whether your nationality needs a visa before booking anything non-refundable.

Prices, ferry times and flight frequencies change with season, so treat every schedule here as a starting shape, not a timetable. November to June is the safer window for hiking islands; Sal and Boa Vista stay beach-friendly into July. Carry cash in escudos for small islands, and check the money and tipping page before you go.