Beyond the Horizon: Why São Tomé is the Next Luxury Outpost

Off the radar but never out of reach, the tiny African archipelago is quietly positioning itself as a sanctuary for the new luxury: raw, rare, and radically respectful.

There are destinations that whisper before they roar. São Tomé, the larger of the two islands that make up São Tomé and Príncipe, has long existed in the footnotes of travel literature: a post-colonial, post-touristic, verdant enclave adrift in the Gulf of Guinea. But for the next decade, it’s being reimagined as something else entirely.

This isn't a new Dubai, nor a Seychelles redux. The vision is subtler, slower, deeper. Anchored in a promise: that luxury doesn’t have to overwrite a place to elevate it.

In 2024, the Angolan group Oásis Verde secured development rights for two heritage cocoa plantations in São Tomé, in collaboration with UNESCO and several European design studios. Their plan? Create a boutique network of sustainable lodges and agro-cultural experiences, including a “Cacao Spa” and a floating library on a volcanic lake. But the ambition is not just ecological—it’s epistemological.

"We are not building a resort. We are extending an ecosystem," says Laurinda Silva, head of cultural partnerships for the project. "Everything from the food to the fabrics to the scent in the rooms comes from here—grown here, woven here, remembered here."

The tone is mirrored by the government's Ministry of Tourism, which recently partnered with several West African and Lusophone countries to develop an 'Atlantic Arc' itinerary of low-impact luxury destinations. São Tomé, for its blend of biodiversity and political stability, will anchor that arc.

In parallel, the Lisbon-based brand Zarafa, known for its slow-fashion and botanical perfumes, is opening its first retreat on the island’s southeastern edge: eight villas clad in volcanic stone, powered entirely by hydrothermal energy, with a perfumery atelier carved into the forest.

What makes this more than a trend is intention. There’s no scramble for beach clubs or heliports. The blueprint is built on reparation, education, and sensual humility. São Tomé is being shaped not as a place to escape the world—but to feel it again, intimately.

ULM Insight:

The future of destination luxury lies in islands like São Tomé—places unburdened by legacy tourism and rich with untold narratives. For investors and visionaries, the message is clear: the next frontier isn’t where the world has already looked. It’s where it hasn’t dared to imagine yet.

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