Four British vacationers died within a few months after falling ill on Cape Verde - authorities warn of health risks on the popular islands.
As the English daily newspaper The Times reports, there have been repeated health incidents in Cape Verde in recent months. Between August and November 2025, four British vacationers died on the islands off Senegal. The cases are linked to outbreaks of Shigella, a bacterial intestinal disease that is transmitted via food, water or direct contact.
Located 350 nautical miles west of Senegal in the Atlantic Ocean, the ten islands of Cape Verde offer sunshine and warm temperatures all year round. The destination is particularly popular with Brits: between 2000 and 2024, visitor numbers rose from 115,000 to almost one million, of which around 36 percent were British. The islands of Santiago, Sal and Boa Vista in particular are considered an attractive alternative to the Caribbean, especially for all-inclusive vacations.
As the Times found out, hundreds of tourists on the islands were affected by Shigella towards the end of 2025, with returnees to Europe also reporting illnesses. The UK Health Security Agency registered 137 cases between October and December 2025, 80 percent of which had recently visited Cape Verde. Further reports came from the Netherlands, Sweden, Ireland and France.
According to the daily newspaper, government representatives held emergency talks with hotels and are investigating measures to combat the bacterial pathogen. Medical care on the islands is limited. The British government describes them as "very basic and limited". Vacationers should pay particular attention to hygiene and seek medical help at an early stage if symptoms occur.
