Sal has an average year round temperature of 77º and an average annual rainfall of just 80mm, this together with the alluring miles of golden beaches and the bewitching azure blue and emerald green seas, Sal is definitely a beach lovers paradise as well as a fantastic place to satisfy any adventurer and nature lover alike. The capital city of the Island is Espargos, however, the main tourist resort is Santa Maria, and this is certainly the place where action and adventures begin. Santa Maria is cradled by a superb 8km long beach, which is punctuated with shops, restaurants, bars and local craft shops. Navigation around the island is easy, and everything is close by, either walking or by taxi’s as the island is quite small.
We are staying at the Suneo Dunas, Santa Maria, it is a Tui hotel. It’s a lovely location walkable to the town centre and the resort itself is fairly new. We are also allowed to use the amenities of the Melia Dunas, adjoining hotel. Also within walking distance is the beach (5 minutes) and the boulevard with boutique shops and restaurants, some of which are included with the all inclusive arrangement with the hotel. Also nearly is the botanical garden and animal sanctuary and just across the road is a golf course. The hotel is very clean and there are staff constantly cleaning and maintaining the garden areas. The staff are very friendly and many of them work in several areas of the hotels. For instance the night entertainers can often be found waiting tables during the day. The beach attached to our hotel is typical postcard golden sands and beautiful sea. There are people selling there wares on the beach but they are friendly enough and happy to pass the time, there is no hard sell. We are on all inclusive package and considering that absolutely nothing save a few bananas grow on the island the food is exceptional every night. The is a huge variety and choice for all dietary requirements.
Our Tui Reps were ok, not grea. They were often not available, but you could contact them via a Tui WhatsApp chat and they usually responded fairly quickly. One of the reps made it clear several times it was his first day in the location and often had to check details with his colleague – fair enough – but I didn’t like the way he constantly referred to Sal as the “poor mans Barbados”. Implying that his guests couldn’t afford to go to Barbados and that this island was not good enough. We did book several trips with the Tui reps though. We were told that the same trips were available from the paddlers on the beach at half the price, but of course without the safety and security of a reputable company – the choice is yours of course. We often saw people with unregulated companies on the same tours as us and they all seemed to make there and back in once piece.
A first for me was to see and walk in the sea with the Lemon Sharks at Baia da Parda (Shark Bay) on the north eastern coast of the island. This lagoon is a natural nursery and you are led in to the sea by a guide and once you are knee deep in the sea the sharks curiosity gets the better of them and they come to investigate the new arrivals to their lagoon. The Sharks swim so close to you that you can see their name derives from the yellow colour of their yellow skin and their fins and they often brush against you whilst they are swimming. It is advisable to wear water shoes as walking out in the sea is rocky and slippery. It is the baby sharks that swim around you, they are around a metre long, so it is perfectly safe, but still exhilarating. You can often spot the adults just a bit further out, where the sea level drops to a much deeper level. It’s a great experience for the less confident swimmers to experience sharks up very close and personal.
The cost of this trip was €25 per person and lasted around 2 hours including pick up and drop. Booked through Tui.
