Praia Jalé

Praia Jalé lies at the southern tip of São Tomé, a beach of dark sand backed by forest where four species of sea turtle come ashore to nest, and a community-run ecolodge there works with a conservation project monitoring the nests and running guided night watches. The village that used to hunt the turtles now protects them, and the arrangement is one of the better known conservation stories on the islands.

What you'll find

• The nesting turtles - four species coming ashore on the beach.
• The night watches - the guided monitoring the project runs in season.
• The community lodge - the accommodation run by the village.
• The conservation shift - a community that moved from hunting to protecting.

When to go

November to February is the main nesting season. Hatchlings emerge from around January. The dry gravana season runs June to September but has no turtles.

Good to know

Nesting is not guaranteed on any given night and watches can end with nothing. Lights and flash photography are prohibited. The lodge is very basic and the track in is rough.

Nearby

Porto Alegre is north, and Ilhéu das Rolas is offshore.