The 15 Best Turtle Watching Tours in Cape Verde

1.Sea Turtle Watching Experience on Sal Island

★★★★★★★★★★4.6 · 446 reviews · from $41Our pick

Watch nesting sea turtles on Sal Island under moonlight, with expert guides, hotel transport, and low-impact infrared lighting for $41.

“A genuine natural marvel - spectacular to witness. I didn’t expect to get so close - I could have reached out and touched the turtle’s shell. The guides were very knowledgable, answering all questions in detail, and importantly they are very keen to minimise disturbance to the turtles. Would definitely recommend this experience.”

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2.Shark, Turtles, Cave, Sandboarding & Tasting Tour

★★★★★★★★★★4.8 · 328 reviews · 4 hours - 270 minutes · from $70

Explore Boa Vista by 4x4 with turtles, sharks, caves, sandboarding, Santa Monica Beach, and Cape Verdean grogue tasting.

“We enjoyed the entire excursion - sand boarding was fun and Veronique was knowledgeable and made the experience enjoyable.”

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3.Sal Island Sea Turtle Watching Experience

★★★★★★★★★★4.5 · 256 reviews · 3 hours · from $37Best value

Watch nesting sea turtles on Sal’s beaches with expert guides, small groups, hotel transfers, and a strong focus on conservation.

“My experience was amazing! Anastassi salsa was brilliant with information, & care for the turtles. Not only did we see the babies leaving the nest going into the water, we were also able to witness the turtle laying her eggs, then covering them up carefully, & going back to the sea! An experience of a lifetime, & the cost is super value!”

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4.Turtle, Shark, Santa Monica, Sandboard & Tasting

★★★★★★★★★★4.7 · 228 reviews · 4 hours · from $76

Explore Boa Vista’s dunes, turtles, lemon sharks, Santa Monica Beach, sandboarding, 4x4 trails, and Cape Verdean tastes in four hours.

“Absolutely fantastic, I can highly recommend this trip it made our holiday. Our guides Julie and Stefan were great, really knowledgeable and made it loads of fun. We had a 24 year old and a 15 year old with us and I have never seen my 15 year old smile and laugh so much. We did sandboarding, saw green turtles, baby lemon sharks, an osprey, laughed so much at our drivers fun driving, enjoyed the tasting in the village and the tour of the village. Do it you won't regret it.”

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5.São Vicente’s Enchanting Sea Turtle Snorkeling

★★★★★★★★★★4.4 · 153 reviews · 1h 30m · from $70

Swim with sea turtles in São Pedro on a 90-minute tour from Mindelo, with transfers, gear, local guides, and free cancellation up to 24 hours.

“Alles super, aber vor Ort bekommt man das Schnorcheln für 15€ p. Person.”

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6.Snorkel with Sea Turtles Adventure

★★★★★★★★★★4.5 · 111 reviews · 1 hour · from $70

Swim with sea turtles off São Vicente on a guided boat trip from São Pedro, with gear, transfers, and beginner-friendly support included.

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7.Beautiful Beaches, Turtles & Djeu Island Snorkel

★★★★★★★★★★4.6 · 100 reviews · 7 hours · from $100

Review of Boa Vista’s Djeu Island snorkel, turtle and shark bays, Santa Monica Beach, caves, dunes, lunch and sandboarding.

“A great day seeing the best the island has to offer! Josh was a friendly guide who looked after us all throughout the day. Food was great, and we were lucky to see both turtles and lemon sharks during our tour. Would absolutely recommend this trip to anyone visiting!”

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8.Turtle Watching Adventure

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 98 reviews · from $45Top rated

Watch loggerhead turtles lay eggs on Sal Island with guides, red lights, beach walks, snacks, and a quiet glamping tent.

“A lovely briefing with the guide in a fairy lit tent with refreshments. Head down and wait in the sand to be called once a turtle is spotted. There were a few groups around us and a few turtles either side, doing there thing. All very respectful of the wildlife and a fantastic experience under a ‘super moon’. So lucky to be able to do these things, lovely creatures.”

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9.Guided turtle tour in a group in Boa Vista

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 67 reviews · from $104

See loggerhead turtles lay eggs or hatch on Boa Vista’s Ervatão beach, with hotel pickup, small groups, and expert local guidance.

“Fantastic tour! We were picked up at around 8pm from our hotel and taken on a short drive to the beach. Our guide was fantastic and gave us all of the necessary knowledge about the loggerheads turtles before we saw them. We saw well ovRead more”

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10.Snorkel and Swim with Sea Turtles

★★★★★★★★★★4.7 · 58 reviews · 1 hour · from $68

Swim beside sea turtles near Mindelo on a small-group boat trip to São Pedro, with hotel pickup, gear, guides, and 20 minutes in the water.

“We highly recommend this tour! 💯👍 A very smart driver picked us up at our hotel in Mindelo. We drove approx. 15 minutes to the beach in Sao Petro. Diego, our tour guide was already there and started immediately to prepare the boot. He gave us security instructions also life jackets. My wife stayed in the boot while I went snorkeling. It was amazing to see the sea turtles and fishes too. Four big ones surrounded me while swimming and snorkeling. After a while even a bigger one showed up. On board again Diego told us about the wildlife and fishing activities in this area. ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ Ka and Andi”

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11.Turtle Watching and Nesting Evening Tour

★★★★★★★★★★4.8 · 49 reviews · from $94

Watch loggerhead turtles nest on Boa Vista’s protected beaches with expert guides, hotel transfers, and a conservation donation included.

“This trip was amazing and a huge tick on my bucket list… being so close and watching these beautiful turtles make a nest and lay their eggs was an experience I will never forget. Our guides were fabulous, so friendly and knowledgeable. It was also a beautiful evening and I have never seen so many stars in my life. Highly recommend to anyone… nature is beautiful… I absolutely loved this experience.”

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12.Swimming and Snorkeling Tour with Sea Turtles

★★★★★★★★★★4.7 · 44 reviews · 1h 30m · from $67

Swim with sea turtles off São Vicente on a small-group snorkeling tour with gear, transfers, a local boat, and a 25-minute turtle limit.

“Absolutely lovely experience! We saw many beatiful fishes and there were 3 turtles swimming around, the turtels are very friendly and arent bothered by the people at all.”

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13.4×4 Tour – Sandboard, Shark & Green Turtle’s Bay, Snacks & Drinks

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 44 reviews · from $79

Explore Boa Vista by 4x4 with sandboarding, turtles, lemon sharks, village tastings, local drinks, and a friendly small-group guide.

“Brilliant excursion Fredy made the trip with his local knowledge and friendly manner the tour lasted longer than stated so was a good day out would recommend this to anyone who wants to escape the hotel for the day”

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14.3h Turtle Watching Expedition

★★★★★★★★★★4.7 · 39 reviews · from $76

Watch Caretta Caretta turtles at Boa Vista’s Pesqueiro Grande beach, with hotel pickup, expert guides, and practical tips for a respectful night tour.

“After an initial pick up error the trip was amazing. Drivers and guide were brilliant and the walk over the sand in the dark was managed very well. Managed to see a turtle camouflage her nest then waited… one came out but changed her mind. The another back along the beach, and it was magical. Clear night, lots of stars…. And to top it all off a solo hatchling appeared so we helped it on its way.”

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15.Live Snorkeling & Swimming with Sea Turtles in the Atlantic

★★★★★★★★★★4.6 · 29 reviews · 1 hour · from $57

Swim beside sea turtles off São Vicente on a one-hour boat and snorkel trip from Mindelo, with pickup, gear, guides, and small groups.

“Ver a las tortugas en su hábitat fue una maravilla el guía fue muy explicativo y agradable, la única pega que pongo es que considero que los grupos deberían ser reducidos en nuestra excursión solo íbamos 4 y había algún grupo más pequeño pero llegó un grupo como de 14 personas y nadaban en la misma zona por lo tanto ya se volvió todo agobiante para nada y no estar todo el tiempo chocando con las personas y ya se escondieron más las tortugas asique creo que eso es algo a mirar porque hizo que la experiencia dejará de ser agradable”

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