São Vicente: Snorkel Experience with Sea Turtle

Mindelo, Cape Verde

1 hour (approx.)
Pickup offered
Group discounts
Mobile ticket
Offered in: English

Overview

Join this small group tour to get up and close with sea turtles in Sao Pedro, which starts and finishes in Mindelo. You’ll keep costs down by sharing the boat with your small group, but still have plenty of time to explore the underwater world at your own pace. All snorkeling gear is provided so you don’t need to bring that yourself. Just enjoy your time swimming with turtles.

Hotel or port pickup provided for ease
Life jackets are on board for your safety
All your snorkels and masks are provided so no need to bring
Swim with turtles for about one full hour

What's Included

Pickup and drop-off at your accommodation
Transportation
Snorkeling equipment (masks and fins)
Boat Ride
Life jackets on board
Guide/Driver
Liability insurance

Meeting and Pickup

Pickup points

Select a pickup point

Pickup details

Travellers of cruise ships will be picked-up at the exit gate of Port of Mindelo.

What To Expect

Sao Pedro

Mindelo

Additional Info

Confirmation will be received at time of booking
Not wheelchair accessible

Most travelers can participate
This tour/activity will have a maximum of 10 travelers

Supplied by

Cancellation Policy

You can cancel up to 24 hours in advance of the experience for a full refund.

Traveler Photos

Gallery picture 1 (from a traveler's review)

Gallery picture 2 (from a traveler's review)

Gallery picture 3 (from a traveler's review)

Gallery picture 4 (from a traveler's review)

Gallery picture 5 (from a traveler's review)

Featured review

W3ndi

absolutely excellent experience. would thoroughly recommend to others. Very friendly and helpful driver and boat crew. Saw 3 turtles and so many fish. What an experience. Thank you

Reviews

4.3

based on 37 reviews

Total reviews and rating from Viator & Tripadvisor

We perform checks on reviews

Ensure you know who is...

Robert_W, Feb 2026

Ensure you know who is meeting you as we had a problem after getting off ship until photo sent of driver Experience was excellent and the guys looking after us in boat were great encouraging my wife to go into the water and swimming with her to ensure her safety

Excellent

W3ndi, Nov 2025

absolutely excellent experience. would thoroughly recommend to others. Very friendly and helpful driver and boat crew. Saw 3 turtles and so many fish. What an experience. Thank you

Experience of a lifetime

Danielle_G, May 2025

Absolutely phenomenal and unforgettable experience! Swimming with the turtles was something I will never forget. The men on board of the boat were super kind and even got us some nice pictures!

We had a blast!

Carolyn_H, Apr 2025

The pick up was very convenient and the driver gave us a nice explanation of various sites along the way to the beach and afterwards, back to the port. About 12 guys launched our boat from the beach, and we went just offshore. The staff on the boat were very friendly and helpful. We were amazed to be able to observe at least six green sea turtles who swam gracefully all around us. What a beautiful experience!

Fun day swimming with the sea turtles

Renae_A, Apr 2025

The boat team was great. We saw lots of turtles. It was an amazing adventure. Would highly recommend.

Great but overpriced

tom_g, Apr 2025

Whatever they say, they DO all throw bait to attract the turtles, but the experience is wonderful, if too expensive

Authentic Island experience

Sherwin_K, Nov 2024

Not for pampered tourists. Loved snorkeling with turtles…. We had our own gear, which was much easier and better quality than what was provided.

By country tours were great-not to be missed.

KathleenM_D, Nov 2024

Maira David and Miguel from Bu Country tours were fantastic. Friendly, courteous and informative they were wonderful. This is a lifetime experience not to be missed. It is not strenuous-you simply float by the boat and the turtles are all around you. We had five random size green turtles that were absolutely beautiful stay with us the entire time. The turtles are not aggressive at all and many times you brush up against them. They are truly beautiful creatures. Don’t miss this while in Mindelo.

Response from Host, Nov 2024

Thank you for sharing your wonderful experience! We're thrilled to hear that Maira, David, and Miguel made your tour special with their friendly and informative approach. Swimming alongside green turtles in Mindelo sounds like a truly magical encounter, and we're glad you enjoyed this unique and peaceful experience. We agree—it’s a lifetime memory not to be missed! Thank you for choosing Bu Country Tours, and we hope to welcome you back on another adventure soon!

Turtle-ganza!

David_P, May 2024

If you have ever done a turtle dive in the US, recalibrate your expectations. After the 200-300-meter boat ride, we are at the site with around a dozen turtles. For the half-hour, we snorkeled around, and the turtles (and a few fish) swam around. Several times, they bumped into us! The water was warm and calm enough to make the whole excursion amazing!

Response from Host, Jun 2024

Thank you for sharing your experience with us! It looks like you had a great time snorkeling with the turtles. Swimming alongside these magnificent creatures in warm, calm waters must have been truly amazing. We appreciate your comments and want to ensure that all our guests have memorable experiences. If there is anything we can do to improve your future adventures with Bu CountryTours, please do not hesitate to contact us. Thank you for choosing us for your tour. We look forward to welcoming you back for more unforgettable experiences.

Wonderful

Elisabetta_H, Oct 2023

It was a very special experience. The guide was very friendly and were very helpful. The organization worked great. Thank you für all.

Response from Host, Nov 2023

We're delighted to hear that you had a very special experience and that our guide was friendly and helpful. We're glad the organization went smoothly. Thank you for choosing our services, and we look forward to welcoming you again in the future!

Nice experience swimming among turtles, but not so good organization

David_I, Mar 2026

Overall the activity has been good, because it has given me the opportunity to swim among turtles, something I had not done until now. However, the organization was not so good, because the activity provider did not contact me in advance to confirm the time and place of collection, so we went to the meeting point and, seeing that there was no one, I had to call Viator to contact the activity provider. We were later informed that the activity would be delayed by 20 minutes for organisational reasons, but I think they should have told us before the departure time indicated on the booking confirmation (14:30). Totally, in the end we left the meeting point 20 minutes later than planned, and although it is true that the activity was good and I enjoyed it, I cannot say the same of the organization.

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Excursion does exactly what...

Petrel_V, Feb 2026

Excursion does exactly what it promises; you snorkel with the sea turtles. Fishing boat departs from beautiful bay, you sail only 5 minutes and look for the sea turtles. Then you splash into the water from boat. With snorkel. Some boats have small swimming steps to kim in and out. Some don't either. Piece or 7 Turtles seen of which 1 to a meter tall! Super cool. About 45 min been in the water. Had no further information about the beasts themselves.

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Een unieke ervaring

Peggy_V, Dec 2023

Geweldige ervaring om zo dicht bij de schildpadden te zwemmen. Een unieke ervaring. Je wordt opgehaald bij je hotel en ook weer teruggebracht. Aanrader!

Response from Host, Dec 2023

We zijn verheugd te horen dat je een geweldige ervaring hebt gehad om zo dicht bij de schildpadden te zwemmen. Het is inderdaad een unieke ervaring en we zijn blij dat je er zo van genoten hebt. Het is ons een genoegen om te zorgen voor het ophalen en terugbrengen naar je hotel, en we waarderen je aanbeveling. Bedankt dat je de tijd hebt genomen om je ervaring te delen, en we hopen je in de toekomst weer te mogen verwelkomen voor meer onvergetelijke avonturen.

Sollte man sich nicht entgehen lassen 😄

Thomas_J, Oct 2023

Sehr schönes Erlebnis 👍 top organisiert, Abholung am Hafeneingang und Transport zum Strand. Dort ins Boot und keine hundert Meter ab ins Wasser,die Schildkröten waren sofort da und sind um einen herum geschwommen.

Response from Host, Nov 2023

Wir danken Ihnen herzlich für Ihr positives Feedback und freuen uns, Ihnen ein angenehmes Erlebnis bei unserer Schnorcheltour geboten zu haben. Wir hoffen, Sie in zukünftigen Abenteuern wiederzusehen. Vielen Dank, dass Sie unsere Dienstleistungen gewählt haben.

Sehr schöne Tour mit grenzwertigem Preis-Leistungsverhältnis

Claudia_K, Mar 2023

Die Tour als solche ist wirklich sehr empfehlenswert. Wir wurden pünktlich abgeholt, das Auto war zwar überhaupt nicht vertrauenserweckend (kaputt, Risse in der Frontscheibe), erfüllte aber seinen Zweck. Am Strand angekommen ging es aufs Boot und nach einer sehr kurzen Fahrt und guten Anweisung ging es direkt los. Zu bemängeln habe ich hier, dass für meine im Vorfeld angemeldete 5jährige Tochter bis auf eine Taucherbrille kein Equipment (weder Schnorchel, noch Flossen, geschweige denn eine Schwimmweste) vorhanden war. Auch nicht schön ist, wenn man am Ende sieht, dass dem Guide, der die ganze Schnorchelstunde (an-)geleitet hat, letztlich umgerechnet 10 € für insgesamt 5 Teilnehmer überreicht werden (wir haben 50€ - auch das Kind - pro Person bezahlt). Kein Wunder, dass dann doch recht auffällig nach Trinkgeld gebettelt wird. Hier sollte wirklich überdacht werden, wer die „Arbeit“ hat und „mehr“ beim Schnorchelguide ankommen. Tipp: die Tour kann man auch gut individuell vor Ort buchen (und dem Schnorchelguide so eine faire Bezahlung zukommen lassen); unbedingt Unterwasserkamera mitnehmen!

Response from Host, Jun 2023

Hallo Claudia, Wir danken Ihnen für Ihr Feedback zu Ihrem Erlebnis mit unserer Schildkrötentauchtour. Es tut uns leid, dass es einige Unannehmlichkeiten gab, und wir möchten gerne auf einige Punkte eingehen. Was die Ausrüstung betrifft, verstehen wir die Bedeutung, allen Teilnehmern, einschließlich Kindern, ein komplettes Set zur Verfügung zu stellen. Wir bedauern aufrichtig, dass Ihre 5-jährige Tochter während der Tour nicht angemessen ausgestattet wurde. Die Sicherheit und Zufriedenheit unserer Kunden, unabhängig vom Alter, liegt uns sehr am Herzen. In Bezug auf die Vergütung des Schnorchelguides möchten wir klarstellen, dass sie eine faire und angemessene Bezahlung für ihre Arbeit erhalten. Die Angabe, dass der Guide nur 10€ erhalten hat, ist ungenau und entspricht nicht der Realität. Wir legen großen Wert auf die Hingabe und die Arbeit unserer Guides und stellen sicher, dass sie gerecht entlohnt werden. Wir bedauern etwaige Missverständnisse und betonen erneut, dass unser Engagement darin besteht, ein faires und respektvolles Arbeitsumfeld für das gesamte Team zu schaffen. Wir danken Ihnen nochmals für Ihre Bewertung und möchten Ihnen versichern, dass wir stets bestrebt sind, die Bedürfnisse und Erwartungen unserer Kunden zu erfüllen. Mit freundlichen Grüßen, Das Team von Bu Country Tours