Flights to Luanda with Air France from $1,275*

Luanda - a luxury stay in Angola

Located on the coast of the Atlantic Ocean, Luanda is a cosmopolitan city, the capital of Angola with four million inhabitants. Surrounded by nature, the city has grown with developments of new townships and stands as the throbbing, cultural heart of the country since its creation in the 16th century. Luanda ranks highly among the most expensive capital cities in the world and offers high-end stays to both corporate visitors and leisure tourists. A vibrant nightlife, restaurants, bars and live music entertainment abound in Luanda, where the main spoken language is Portuguese.

Fly into Luanda Airport with Air France, and enjoy a stay in this great African city, with the centre ideally situated along the harbour with many interesting sights and attractions.

The centre of Luanda is known as the “Marginal” and the seafood promenade is a pleasant walk as well as being a great place to taste fresh local seafood dishes in an attractive setting. The walk leads into Luanda Bay or “Aloha”, a favourite waterfront for surfers and water sports lovers. Mussolo is a popular beach for swimming, sunbathing and picnics that is reputed for its beautiful clear water and fine sand on the island, Ilha, lying close to the main coast.

If you love nature and wildlife, the Kissama Nature Park is an ideal destination, about 80 km outside the capital city; majestic baobab trees, wild game in a stunning, natural landscape rich in flora, bordered in the north and the west by the Kwanza River. Your trip into Kissama Park can also include a boat trip along the great river where you will be amazed by the variety of birds and monkeys that you can see.

For another day out of Luanda, you may want to visit Shipwreck Beach, by car or by boat. As its name suggests, this site is filled with shipwrecks that seem to have naturally drifted to that part of the coastline. From fishing boats to large cargo ships, an array of vessels abandoned and left to decay; one could say a natural museum of maritime history.

There are interesting museums to visit back in the busy city. Luanda's Museum of Anthropology offers a great insight into the life of the many tribes that make up the population of Angola. Collections of masks, sculptures, musical instruments, artwork and jewellery dating from different periods are on display.

A family outing to the Natural History Museum will impress visitors of all ages with its vast collection of animal species with one floor dedicated to mammals and a lower level to bird species.

Eating out in Luanda is often a pleasant surprise. Angola's Portuguese past influences the local cuisine of today, seafood is widely available of course, thanks to the city's geographical location, however, a local delicacy, “mufete” is also highly tempting, a rich bean stew with yucca and sweet potatoes. Reputed restaurants such as the Restaurante da Dona Bela and Casa do Peixa da Gabela are located on Ilha Island. For more about restaurants and dining out, visit the Luanda Tourist Information website below.