Maio  não se reduz ao ilhéu minúsculo e adormeçido de praias sem fim que os guias turísticos gostam descrever.

Sem dúvida, nos tempos coloniais, a ilha foi um quintalinho de escravatura e exploração nos tempos das salinas. Havia uma só escola primária em 1974, onde hoje em dia todas as crianças podem frequentar a escola e as que querem estudar o 11° ano.

Todas as aldeias foram electrificadas e o anel de estradas calcetadas que as liga vai fechar em breve.

Many houses are under construction in Vila do Maio. A modern harbour, a banc, two filling stations, a car-rental, all that has already emerged and hopefully a little hospital will open its doors in the next future. As life continues quiet, the few foreign visitors, coming just for a week for water-sports and total relax, hardly discover the historically unparalleled social development of the island going on in modern times.

Tourist Infrastructure is dominated by simple and friendly local guesthouses, where everything works out slowly slowly and where guests become part of the day-to-day culture of a small town. 
There is one only, lonely spanish Beach-hotel called  Bela Vista at the bright beach of Morro.
A french beach-club remains closed.

As long as aircrafts are small, the transport of boards and riggs is a problem not yet overcome. While so, no ugly surf-containers and shameless diving schools crawl along the most natural of  beaches and the island is a refuge of the troughtful and quiet guest, some of them having decided to built themselves a little house to spend holidays and may be, one day, will retire here.