Now part of a national park with pristine snorkeling.
Vilankulo is already a fairly remote goal . But this democratic beach townsfolk in Mozambique is also a launching dot to an even more secluded and beguile island just off the shore . Stationed some 450 mile north of the state ’s capital city Maputo , Vilankulo ’s wide beach prospect and fresh seafood draw a crowd of mostly vacationing South Africans . And it ’s no surprise — Johannesburg and Mbombela are the only two places outside of Mozambique with direct flights to the lilliputian coastal airport . Those who ca n’t or choose not to fly must endure the pothole - riddle Mozambican roads so as to kick back with a cold bottle of 2 M each summertime .
But an minute - farseeing boat ride from the beer - sate beach of Vilankulo takes you to the deserted island of Santa Carolina , make out locally as Paradise Island , where you ’ll detect the fall apart dilapidation of the Santa Carolina Hotel . Nowadays , only occasional day - trippers are privy to what Santa Carolina once was , but that was n’t always the case . The straggle beach resort was once home to hedonic party and a life-time of luxury seen only through the eyes of the rich and famous . It ’s rumored that Elton John was a steady visitor , and some say it was here that — fingers scurry over the grand forte-piano in the ballroom — Bob Dylan pen his hit“Mozambique . ”
In its heyday , the lavish hotel boasted 250 handsomely appoint room . Now , island visitant are come across with the image of the edifice ’s faded pinkish and unripe façade jut out out into a seemingly deserted stretch of sea as their boat bob nigher to shoring . The eerie grounds beckon , extend subtle clue of the island ’s storied past , as you step onto a blinding white beachfront littered with pinecone .
David Santiago Garcia/Aurora Photos/Cavan/Getty Images
One of a serial of islands in the Bazaruto Archipelago at a mere 1.8 stat mi broad , Santa Carolina go steady itsfirst show inhabitantsby style of an 18th - century punishable colony . The precise history is a fiddling foggy , with local all relaying more or less different accounts of what really happened there , but evident oddment of an honest-to-goodness fortress indicate confirmation of its militaristic beginning . As does its name , which can be traced back to an ship’s officer ’s married woman who , accord to a1994 New York Times clause , died in childbirth and was immerse on the island .
What we do cognise for certain is that Joaquim Alves , a moneyed Portuguese businessman , built the Santa Carolina Hotel as a resort destination in the fifties . He was also the builder of one of Vilankulo ’s first hotels — Dona Ana — which has since undergone renovations and remains a popular selection for mod - twenty-four hours tourists . The Santa Carolina Hotel , complete with a small airstrip and chapel , played host to countless parties , hymeneals , and tropical pickup — until the seventies , when war and political tempestuousness caused the hotel to be abandoned . The subsequent tenner of go on tensions , a wobbly political clime , and alter economic conditions intend that the structure stand largely undisturbed and crumbling into the ocean , its ruins roamed only by singular tourer .
But that ’s not to say anyone can just roll up and explore at their leisure . Since the total archipelago is designated anational park , you ’ll need to bear a fee to visit . Thanks to stern rule against overnight guests , the small-scale volcanic island continue uninhabited , traversed only by vacationist looking to snorkel , picnic , or retrace the hushed footsteps of the mid - century celebrities who put the Santa Carolina Hotel on the map . The surrounding waters , now protect by a maritime park , are still as percipient as ever and , it should be noted , put up some of the best snorkeling in the area .
Zhanna Muzalevskaia/iStock/Getty Images Plus
While the magnanimousness of the Santa Carolina Hotel has gradually faded , the allurement remain entire . Holes still run along the back rampart of the old bar where wines and local rummy were funnel through cement to be served with a flourish by the barman . fade pink and blasphemous mosaic tiles still cling to the pillars of ballrooms that once command unbelievable view of the Bazaruto Archipelago ’s bright blue sea .
If you permit your mind wander , you may still hear the echoes of laughter and clinking glasses within the dilapidated wall , transporting you to an era when every Nox was buzz with the soak feel of being far away from realness . Venture far into the ruins and you ’ll find what ’s left of sea - present Boma fervency pits encircling the once carefully maintain hotel primer . The sense of nostalgia here is almost overwhelming — a touching admonisher that a uncomplicated plait of fate or turn in luck is all that can stand between live it up and quite literally sliding into the sea .
Back in Vilankulo , there ’s plenty to be done outside of scouting abandon hotels set on former slices of Shangri-la . Activities abound — take the air along the beach , goinghorseback ridingwith the famousRetzlaffs ofOne Hundred and Four Horsesfame , shoot the breeze trade and makers market place , and attempt out freshly caught prawns or flaming - grilled fish at local haunts . As for where to stay , the picture - double-dyed islets of the Bazaruto Archipelago lay claim to a server of ( non - deserted ) five - genius stamping ground , while greater Vilankulo offer your weft of more meek beachfront hotel and order .
Três Sereias- Mozambique
However you decide to while away your time in coastal Mozambique , see to it out the windswept grounds of the once luxuriant Santa Carolina Hotel is an unmissable experience , especially for those in tune with other - worldly elements . Because despite the resort ’s current condition , it ’s still , in the words of Bob Dylan , “ magic in a charming estate . ”
Photo by Sophie Baker
nooaonphoto/Shutterstock
