Roça Tras-os-Montes

Roça Trás-os-Montes, named after the region of the same name in northern Portugal, is located in the hilly, cooler regions of São Tomé. This location made it well-suited for the cultivation of coffee, which was the island's main export crop before the cocoa boom. Founded in the 19th century, its architecture and layout are typical of a coffee plantation, with large drying terraces and specific processing facilities. The main house, often built in the style of a Portuguese country manor, presides over the plantation. The story of Trás-os-Montes is the story of the transition from coffee to cocoa as the latter became more profitable, illustrating the adaptability of plantation owners to global market conditions. Like all Roças, it relied on the labor of contract workers, whose fate was inextricably linked to that of the plantation. After independence, the plantation lost its importance. Today, its ruins, surrounded by overgrown coffee and cocoa trees, are a photogenic but also melancholic place, reminiscent of the island's agricultural diversity and volatile economic history.

Nearby cities

Milagrosa

Milagrosa bears its name as a tribute to the miracle of nature which has blessed this place with incredible fertility.

Almas

Almas sits on the gentle plateaus of Mé-Zóchi where the souls of ancestors seem to whisper in the ancient coffee trees.

Bombom

Bombom is a place of bustling activity on the outskirts of the capital where urban life and rural tranquility are balanced.

Santa Margarida

Santa Margarida lies hidden in the green labyrinth of Mé-Zóchi, a place where the forest silence is only interrupted by the distant sound…

Bombom (Plateau)

The Bombom plateau in Mé-Zóchi is a place of wide views and fertile hills where life proceeds at a steady pace.

Trindade

Trindade, the capital of Mé-Zóchi, sits proudly in the fertile midlands of the island where the air is cooler and the soil is deep black.

Batepá

Batepá is a place of painful historical significance where the memory of the 1953 massacre deeply shapes the identity of its people.

Madalena

Madalena is a quiet suburb of Trindade where the gardens bloom so lushly they look like small jungles.

Caixão Grande

Caixão Grande is a bustling town shaped by its location at an important transport hub in the midlands.

Bombom (Mé-Zóchi)

Bombom in the Mé-Zóchi district is a place of fertile hills and warm encounters.

Monte Café

Monte Café sits majestically in the cloud mountains of Mé-Zóchi, a historic center of coffee production that has preserved the charm of a…

Nature

São Nicolau Waterfall

São Nicolau Waterfall is one of the island's most famous and photogenic waterfalls, nestled in the cool mountain forests of the Mé-Zóchi …

Lagoa Amélia

Lagoa Amélia is not an ordinary lake but a rainwater-filled volcanic crater in the mountains of São Tomé, which now houses a fascinating …

More places

Bom Successo Botanical Garden

Located at the entrance to the Obô National Park, the Bom Successo Botanical Garden is a showcase of the incredible flora of São Tomé.

Mé-Zóchi Cloud Forest

In the higher elevations of the Mé-Zóchi district lies the mysterious cloud forest.

Nova Moca Coffee Plantation

High above the cloud forests of Mé-Zóchi lies the historic Nova Moca plantation, world-famous for producing high-quality Arabica coffee.

Roça Novo Destino

As the name 'New Destiny' suggests, this plantation in Mé-Zóchi represented the hope for economic expansion in the late 19th century.

Bago-Bago Mineral Water Plant

In the cool highlands of Mé-Zóchi, the Bago-Bago mineral water plant uses pure mountain springs to bottle high-quality drinking water.

Roça Plancad

Roça Plancad is located in the cooler highlands of the Mé-Zóchi district and specialized in the cultivation of high-quality coffee and co…

Roça Bemposta

Roça Bemposta was a significant plantation in the central highlands of São Tomé.

Pico Carvalhal

Located in the heart of the Mé-Zóchi district, Pico Carvalhal is a symbol of Central São Tomé's mountainous landscape.