You can sip some of the world’s best coffee, eat fresh fruit and seafood, delight on gourmet chocolate, stay in the crumbling roças (houses) of the old colonial plantations, dive and snorkel in uncharted waters, trek the endlessly bio-diverse jungles, and explore sleepy fishermen’s villages at your own, leisurely pace on a walking luxury safari, away from anything that resembles hustle and bustle. São Tomé Town is a charming, colonial capital where accommodation is in old cocoa plantation houses.
At the southernmost tip of the island, Praia Jalé is an eco-tourist region and home to nesting sea turtles. Off the southern tip of the island lies the tiny islet of Ilhéu das Rolas, which straddles the Equator. It has some pleasant beaches - perfect for a beach holiday in Africa - and offers good diving. São Tomé is the kind of place you may never have heard about, but once you visit, you just might never leave.
Príncipe is the smaller of the two islands and is, if at all possible, even more laid-back; its only main town, San Antonio, has some distinctive colonial architecture, whilst its beaches are deserted and its waters are good for snorkelling. There is a wonderful lodge here that offers remoteness, idyllic beaches, and amazing fishing.