Refúgio da Ilha is located in the Lobata district, on the island of São Tomé, in the São Tomé and Príncipe archipelago, in the Gulf of Guinea, West Africa. Lobata is known for its old roças, the colonial cocoa and coffee plantations that shaped the island's economy for decades.
São Tomé and Príncipe is one of Africa's smallest countries, with a lush volcanic landscape, black sand beaches and dense tropical vegetation, considered one of the continent's least-explored ecotourism destinations.