São Tomé and Príncipe

Visa requirements for São Tomé and Príncipe depend on which passport you hold. Check the Traveller visa tool to see whether your passport needs a visa and, if so, how long you can stay.

June–September is the dry, cooler season (Gravana) — best for birdwatching (dozens of endemic species found nowhere else), hiking the volcanic interior, and visiting the roças (abandoned Portuguese colonial cocoa plantations with extraordinary crumbling architecture). The islands sit on the equator — humidity is always high.

• Lightweight, breathable clothing for the equatorial heat
• Modest dress in São Tomé city

• São Tomé and Príncipe is one of Africa's least-visited countries — genuine wilderness with an extraordinary endemic bird population (the world's second-highest density of endemic birds after New Zealand)
• The roças (colonial cocoa plantations) are haunting architectural treasures — grand plantation houses being swallowed by jungle; the cocoa grown here is among the finest in the world (Claudio Corallo chocolate is made here)
• The Santomean people are a unique creole culture — descended from Portuguese colonists and enslaved West Africans
• The equator passes just south of São Tomé island — you can stand at Ilhéu das Rolas and have one foot in each hemisphere

• LGBTQ+ activity is not criminalised; social attitudes generally tolerant
• The environment is delicate — stay on marked trails in the national park