The sacred islands off the coast of Africa where you need permission to go ashore

For travelers, the desire to 'discover' truly untouched destinations is just that; a desire. But in 2019 I set out to explore a group of 88 islands and islets in the Atlantic Ocean that few had heard of: the Bissagos Archipelago.

New to cruise itineraries, it turned out to be one of the most exciting places I've been - a prelapsarian paradise that's rare these days. But then Covid struck, itineraries were suspended and the Bissagos were forgotten again. Five years later, the sun is once again shining on the islands, with French cruise line Ponant resuming its itineraries to ...