What it is
A low desert island in the north, named for the salt worked here from the seventeenth century. Espargos, near the airport, is the main town. Santa Maria at the southern tip has the beach and almost all the hotels.
Why go
Wind and water. Santa Maria has consistent trade winds and is one of the established kitesurfing and windsurfing destinations in the Atlantic, with schools running all winter. The Pedra de Lume salt crater is a flooded volcanic pan where the brine is dense enough to float in. Lemon sharks come into shallow water at Shark Bay. Beyond that, Sal is flat, largely built out along the resort strip, and short on the landscape the other islands have.
When to go
December to March for wind, April to June for calmer water and easier swimming. Turtle nesting on the island's east beaches runs through the summer with organised night walks. If you want hiking or scenery, use Sal as an entry point and move on.
Most people stay 3-4 nights.