Cidade Velha (Old City)

Cidade Velha (Old City in english), is the most important historic site in the archipelago and is of international importance. The city became a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2009.

Old City is where the history of Cape Verde began, where the first Cape Verdeans were born. This is the place of culture and history. A city that suffered many attacks and a city that became a center of international slave trade.

There are many monuments to be visited in the city, which shows up close the history of Cape Verde:

• The historic monument (Pilorinho), where slaves and those considered marginal were flogged.
• Fortaleza Real, built in the late 1500s to protect against pirates such as Francis Drake and Jake Kassard.
• Ruin of the European Cathedral built in Africa in 1556 and ending in 1700.
• Walk along Banana Street, the first street of Portuguese urbanization in the tropics that leads to Nossa Senhora do Rosário Church, one of the oldest buildings in the Old City and of all Cape Verde with more than 500 years of existence built in 1495 still in operation.