Explore South Luanda

OVERVIEW

View important landmarks, experience an Angolan open-air market and learn about the country’s slave-trading history on this illuminating tour. Understand how the country’s vast oil and diamond resources fueled growth and affluence, evident along crescent-shaped Marginal Bay. View Portuguese-built San Miguel Fort and the rocket-like Agostinho Neto Mausoleum tower, honoring Angola’s first president. You’ll enjoy free time at popular Benfica Market, browsing hand-woven baskets, art, perfumes and exotic spices. At the Angola Slavery Museum, learn of Luanda’s involvement in the tragic slave trade during colonial times and of the countless slaves who were processed on the same spot before being baptized at nearby Capela da Case Grande and put on ships to the Americas. You’ll discover that Álvaro de Carvalho Matoso, the land’s owner, was one of the biggest African slave traders and that the practice was continued by his family until outlawed in 1836. Delight in enthralling vistas of jagged cliffs, sharp pinnacles and deep gullies shaped by centuries of erosion at Miradouro da Lua, also known as Moon Valley Viewpoint. Linger for a snack at a traditional restaurant and reflect on Angola’s tragic past and resurgent future.

HIGHLIGHTS

• Experience the stunning rebirth of Luanda, Angola’s capital, following a long civil war.
• See Luanda’s oldest building, San Miguel Fort, which guards the entrance of picturesque Marginal Bay.
• Marvel at the rocket-shaped Agostinho Neto Mausoleum, built to honor Angola’s first president.
• Revel in free time browsing popular Benfica Market for the perfect Angolan memento.
• Learn of the horrors of the area’s slave trade at the Angola Slavery Museum.
• Enjoy a snack at a traditional restaurant after admiring breathtaking views from Moon Valley Viewpoint.

HELPFUL HINTS

• Dress in weather-appropriate clothing.
• Wear flat comfortable walking shoes.