Rome is by far my favorite European city and the spectacular history, architecture and monuments that are waiting behind every corner just continue to take your breath away. If you’re in Rome I would hence really recommend to book a local guide if you can for a few hours to actually explain the significance of what you’re seeing (google can only do so much!!). If you’re booking a hotel I would recommend staying around Piazza Navona or the Trevi fountain to have walking distance to the most beautiful parts of town :)
We stayed at the Windsor Leme hôtel in Rio, it was about 100 euros per night and the ocean view rooms where absolutely incredible with a breathtaking view of the entire sea front stretching from Leme beach to Copa Cabana. After a few busy but amazing days in Rio we went to the small fishing village of Armação dos Búzios (a few hours by car outside of Rio) to relax for the final part of our trip. If you go to Buzios, make sure to check out the Pedrera small hotel and spa - their view, staff and facilities were above and beyond!
I just got back from Cape Verde and I absolutely loved it! Cape Verde offers an intriguing and welcoming Portuguese/West African creole culture, beautiful beaches and guaranteed weather all year round (it barely rains on most of the islands, but can get quite windy during certain parts of the year). However, it’s important to remember that Cape Verde consists of a total of 10 small islands with a mere 500 000 people overall (half of which reside in Santiago, home to the capital Praia). As such, if you want to make sure your vacation is filled with enough things to do, you should definitely make sure to visit more than one island. I would recommend spending a few days on the island of Sal, which has beautiful beaches and is easily connected to the other islands. They have a great island tour there where you can see all the island has to offer (usually about 70 euros, most hotels offer to arrange for a taxi driver/guide to take you around the island for a day to show you everything from desert mirages, to natural pools and sharks in their natural habitats! We stayed at Budha beach hotel which is a gorgeous but affordable resort in Santa Maria, the view is beautiful if you choose a ocean view. From there I would recommend you go to one of the local tourists offices and will present you with affordable options (local flights, ferries) to the other islands - there is no point doing it from before you arrive as it is relatively cheap and the only way to weight all your options. You have to fly between most of the islands but if you go to the cultural capital of Sao Vicente, you can easily take a ferry to one of the greener islands called Santo Antao which is perfect for mountain hiking and breathtaking landscapes. We made a travel schedule with Baracuda tours from Sal island and they pretty much hooked us up with an all inclusive island hopping for Santo Antao/ Sao Vicente including local guides, hotels, airport pick up and flights. Do note that food Ethiopian c is not as cheap as you might think in Cape Verde - especially not in the touristy areas/cities like Santa Maria!
Rome is by far my favorite European city and the spectacular history, architecture and monuments that are waiting behind every corner just continue to take your breath away. If you’re in Rome I would hence really recommend to book a local guide if you can for a few hours to actually explain the significance of what you’re seeing (google can only do so much!!). If you’re booking a hotel I would recommend staying around Piazza Navona or the Trevi fountain to have walking distance to the most beautiful parts of town :)
We stayed at the Windsor Leme hôtel in Rio, it was about 100 euros per night and the ocean view rooms where absolutely incredible with a breathtaking view of the entire sea front stretching from Leme beach to Copa Cabana. After a few busy but amazing days in Rio we went to the small fishing village of Armação dos Búzios (a few hours by car outside of Rio) to relax for the final part of our trip. If you go to Buzios, make sure to check out the Pedrera small hotel and spa - their view, staff and facilities were above and beyond!
I just got back from Cape Verde and I absolutely loved it! Cape Verde offers an intriguing and welcoming Portuguese/West African creole culture, beautiful beaches and guaranteed weather all year round (it barely rains on most of the islands, but can get quite windy during certain parts of the year). However, it’s important to remember that Cape Verde consists of a total of 10 small islands with a mere 500 000 people overall (half of which reside in Santiago, home to the capital Praia). As such, if you want to make sure your vacation is filled with enough things to do, you should definitely make sure to visit more than one island. I would recommend spending a few days on the island of Sal, which has beautiful beaches and is easily connected to the other islands. They have a great island tour there where you can see all the island has to offer (usually about 70 euros, most hotels offer to arrange for a taxi driver/guide to take you around the island for a day to show you everything from desert mirages, to natural pools and sharks in their natural habitats! We stayed at Budha beach hotel which is a gorgeous but affordable resort in Santa Maria, the view is beautiful if you choose a ocean view. From there I would recommend you go to one of the local tourists offices and will present you with affordable options (local flights, ferries) to the other islands - there is no point doing it from before you arrive as it is relatively cheap and the only way to weight all your options. You have to fly between most of the islands but if you go to the cultural capital of Sao Vicente, you can easily take a ferry to one of the greener islands called Santo Antao which is perfect for mountain hiking and breathtaking landscapes. We made a travel schedule with Baracuda tours from Sal island and they pretty much hooked us up with an all inclusive island hopping for Santo Antao/ Sao Vicente including local guides, hotels, airport pick up and flights. Do note that food Ethiopian c is not as cheap as you might think in Cape Verde - especially not in the touristy areas/cities like Santa Maria!