Work will start soon on the creation of one of the biggest golf resorts planned for Cape Verde, the Atlantic island group 450 miles off West Africa.
Built around two 18-hole golf courses, the 417 hectare (1,030 acre) Cotton Bay Resort on the west coast of the island of Sal – known locally as ‘the sunseekers’ paradise’ – will comprise a mix of tourist villages and residential areas as well as four hotels. One will have a five-star rating.
TOPA (The Overseas Property Agency) based in Chippenham, Wiltshire, is selling the resort properties at off-plan prices which start at €133,000 for a one-bedroom apartment with a floor area of 58 sq m, rising to €241,000 for a three-bedroom duplex of 103 sq m.
The apartment buildings will be grouped in semi-circles ensuring that residents enjoy the best views of the sea, golf courses and lakes within the resort.
In addition to a marina with berths for 250 yachts, the Italian developer of Cotton Bay plans an Olympic-size swimming pool as well as other sports and leisure facilities including a water park, tennis courts, football pitches and a casino.
Shops, bars and restaurants will be linked by a seaside promenade.
Planting to create a botanical park included in plans for the resort is expected to start within the next 12 months.
Cotton Bay is 15 minutes by road from Sal’s international airport. Sal is the principal resort island in Cape Verde and takes its name from the salt fields in the crater of an extinct volcano. A popular centre for water sports, Sal is said to be one of the world’s top five windsurfing centres. Shipwrecks off the coast attract divers.
Cape Verde is located 1,000 miles south of the Canary Islands and is on the same latitude as Barbados. The closest tropical islands to the UK, they have been dubbed ‘the Caribbean without the jetlag.’
TOPA www.topa.co.uk