The Cape Verde Islands: an up-and-coming destination

They are scattered in the Atlantic Ocean, around 500 kilometres off the coast of west Africa and 1,500 kilometres south of the Canary Islands – and are becoming increasingly popular among holidaymakers: the Cape Verde Islands. The number of holidaymakers travelling to Cape Verde with TUI already amounts to around 350,000 a year, although the 15 islands in the Atlantic Ocean are still considered an insider tip by many people. Cape Verde is also an example demonstrating the development opportunities tourism offers for many countries, in particular in Africa. According to the Neue Zürcher Zeitung (NZZ) newspaper, the island state has become one of the most prosperous countries in Africa in spite of its lack of natural resources: “With only 550,000 inhabitants, Cape Verde generates most of its revenues from tourism,” explains the NZZ article.

According to numbers published by the World Travel & Tourism Council“ (WTTC) industry association, the travel and tourism sector now contributes around 45 per cent to the Cape Verde’s gross domestic product. The WTTC presumes that direct and indirect employment generated by the tourism sector will grow from currently around 95,000 to 129,000 jobs by 2028. TUI Group is a key partner in this success story – around one third of all guests visiting Cape Verde travel with TUI. 

In cooperation with its hotel partner RIU, TUI opened the first hotel of the chain in the island of Sal as early as 2005. Meanwhile, the number of branded hotels operated by TUI in the Cape Verde Islands has grown to seven. In Sal, guests can choose between the TUI Blue Cabo Verde adults-only hotel, the Riu Palace Cabo Verde hotel and the Riu Funana hotel. In Boa Vista, TUI offers the Riu Touareg, Riu Karamboa and Riu Palace Boa Vista hotels. Moreover, the first Robinson Club opened in Sal in December 2019. 

Years ago TUI delivered pioneering work in the Cape Verde Islands by establishing an incoming agency for destination services, support for the expansion of the airport in Boa Vista, and the launch of a flight programme with its own airline. 

Today TUI offers direct flights to Cape Verde from London Gatwick, Birmingham, Manchester and Bristol. TUI has added more seats for winter 2020 and Summer 2021 to the increasingly in demand African islands of Cape Verde which is favoured by customers wanting to take advantage of the year round sun and unique desert environment. And that is not the end of the story: In Boa Vista, the first TUI Magic Life Club in the western African island state off the coast of west Africa is under construction.

Through TUI Care Foundation, TUI is also committed to safeguarding the islands’ natural beauty and environment and ensuring that the local communities can benefit from the growing tourism industry. Three major programmes are currently run in Cape Verde: TUI Clean and Green Cape Verde project and TUI Turtle Aid. The former programme focuses on conserving resources: the target is to cut waste from tourism on the two islands by a fifth, and reduce tourists’ water and energy use on Sal by 10 per cent. The second element is making sure that tourism doesn’t harm the islands’ wildlife and environment. Through the TUI Turtle Aid project, TUI Care Foundation protects sea turtle nesting sites on the beaches and engages local inhabitants in protecting the marine turtle population through outreach and engagement programmes. TUI Junior Academy focuses on providing childcare and fostering education to support disadvantaged children.

More information about TUI Turtle Aid: https://www.tuicarefoundation.com/en/media/news/tui-care-foundation-tui-turtle-aid-launch0

More information about TUI Clean and Green Cape Verde project: https://www.tuicarefoundation.com/en/projects/Preserving-the-unspoiled-beauty-of-Cape-Verde

More information about TUI Junior Academy: https://app.smarticle.com/html5/f4365de8e9/8CBo9hcTJ5hlv/page/4