Enchanting Vilanculos...
Draped along Africa’s Indian Ocean coastline from South Africa up to Tanzania is magical Mozambique. Vilanculos is a small, vibrant, coastal town 700 kilometres from the Mozambique capital, Maputo. It boasts a new international airport and is the gateway to the Bazaruto Archipelagos, idyllic offshore islands that make up a string of jewels in the Indian Ocean.
Vilanculos has been growing extensively over the last decade, and has been the recipient of considerable inward investment into its tourism infrastructure. The gateway to the archipelago is the town of Vilanculos Dhows travel between the town and the Bazaruto Archipelago. The town itself is only about 5 km long filled with all the amenities needed to make your visit comfortable yet local.
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Vilanculos is a piece of paradise with dazzling powder-white beaches, coconut palms, crystal blue waters, superb all-year round temperate climate and is the perfect hideaway for a holiday that offers a perfect mix of relaxation and adventure.
Dining out is a pleasure as there are a handful of excellent restaurants offering the freshest sea food and Portuguese specialties not to mention fantastic Western fair. |
For those who prefer self-catering, the local markets and fishermen have all that is necessary to do your own thing. Plus there are small supermarkets who stock all your familiar South African brands.
Adventure comes in so many forms – best marlin fishing in the world, snorkeling, boating, diving, kite surfing and just good old swimming. Dhow sailboat trips and motorboat trips are offered by many to fulfil your adrenalin rush or provide the amazing opportunity of swimming with dolphins or sea turtles. The people are friendly and in no time at all, you would have made life-long friends.
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Island Life
The Bazaruto Archipelago is situated 10 to 15 km offshore between Vilanculos and Inhassoro and consists of five islands; Bazaruto, Benguerra, Magaruque, Santa Carolina and Bangue. These islands and surrounding waters constitute the Bazaruto Archipelago National Park. Bazaruto is the largest island in the archipelago with towering dunes and islands lakes, frequented by water birds and home to the Nile Crocodile. The south point of the island, Ponta Dundo offers a spectacular view of the achipelago from the summit of the dunes.
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Two-Mile Reef is situated off the eastern shoreline of Benguerra and offers great snorkeling and diving opportunities. Beautiful and diverse coral formations and thousands of tropical fishes from tiny clownfish to large wrasses and parrotfish can be found here.
Moray eels, various rays and white-tip reef sharks can also be seen when scuba diving. Magaruque is the third largest island in the achipelago. One can walk around this small island in a couple of hours. A base reef on the lee side of the island is a popular snorkeling area. |
Nature Conservation: Dugongs and Dolphins
Mozambique's amazing underwater world is the World's best kept secret. The Bazaruto Archipelago shelters East Africa's largest population of dugongs - a highly threatened marine mammal - as well as important populations of turtles, whales, dolphins, and the threatened whale shark. At Vilanculos you have the opportunity to experience the extraordinary marine life of the Bazaruto Archipelago up close.
The Bazaruto Archipelago is today one of the largest nature reserves in Mozambique and it is believed that this is the only place along the East African cost that still hosts a significant dugong population. |
Dugongs are now a protected species in Mozambique as remaining populations of dugong are greatly reduced, although they once covered all of the tropical South Pacific and Indian Oceans. According to local fishermen, it was once very common to see dugongs in large numbers in Mozambique's waters, but those numbers have fallen dramatically because they have been hunted for food, and accidentally caught in fishing nets where they die as a result. Their naturally slow reproductive rate, long gestation period, and slow growth rate contribute to the fragility of the population. WWF has launched a number of campaigns in Southern Mozambique to help raise awareness of the endangered dugong
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