A 3km coral island with 500 years of Swahili, Arab and Portuguese history — UNESCO frozen in time
Ilha de Moçambique is a tiny coral island linked to the mainland by a single bridge, 3km long and 500m wide, yet it packs more history per square metre than almost anywhere in Africa. For three centuries it was the Portuguese colonial capital of East Africa and a pivot of the Indian Ocean trade network — Arab, Swahili, Indian, and European architecture all overlay one another in the same labyrinthine lanes.
Vasco da Gama stopped here in 1498 en route to India and it became Portugal's first foothold in East Africa. By the 16th century it was the most important port between Lisbon and Goa — the Fort of São Sebastião, begun in 1558, is the oldest surviving complete fort in sub-Saharan Africa. The island served as the capital of Portuguese East Africa until 1898, when the capital moved to Lourenço Marques (now Maputo). UNESCO inscribed it in 1991.