Take the renowned author of Chocolat, an award-winning chocolatier and a newly opened chocolate factory on the tiny tropical African island of Principe. Mix under the equatorial sunshine with a couple of dozen sweet toothed visitors and you have the recipe for a mouthwatering Chocolate Safari.

This is exactly what will happen in September this year, when the luxury tented villas of Sundy Praia Lodge beach resort will play host to a unique event on the island of Principe. The island was once the world's largest producer of cacao and now supplies an exclusive number of global outlets with some of the best organic and fairly traded chocolate in the world.

Over seven days, guests at Sundy Praia will join author Joanne Harris and award-winning chocolatier, David Greenwood-Haigh, to look at chocolate in its many layers, from insights into a sometimes dark history to making the best truffles and even how to write more effectively about food. The week will also include a visit to the cacao plantation owned by Claudio Corallo, whose 'bean to bar' chocolate has been voted best in the world; a chocolate making workshop at the newly opened factory on Principe's Roca Sundy estate; a visit to an ancient cacao plantation dating back to 1880 and a chocolate massage ritual at the Sundy Praia Wellness spa. The activities of the week will be interspersed with dining opportunities on both São Tomé and Príncipe, hosted by Ms Harris and Mr Greenwood-Haigh, Claudio Corallo and the head chef at Sundy Praia's superb Oca restaurant.

Africa's second smallest nation, the former Portuguese colony of São Tomé and Príncipe sits almost exactly on the equator just 130 miles off the coast of Gabon, offering year-round warmth, rainforest walks, pristine beaches and opportunities to see turtles nesting and watch the hump back whales as they migrate past the island between the months of July and October. Sundy Praia Lodge is Sao Tome & Principe's only five star property, offering just fifteen tented villas set within the rainforest but right by the beach. It is one of three hotels on the island of Principe which work closely with the Principe Government and the Principe Trust Foundation to ensure that all development is beneficial to the local community and the environment. The island was declared a UNESCO Biosphere Reserve in 2012 and has recently signed up to an ambitious initiative called Principe2030, which pledges to reach 10 of the 17 UN Sustainability goals by 2030. 

The Tropical Chocolate Safari is being offered by Devon-based Reef & Rainforest Tours (mail@reefndrainforest.co.uk; tel: 01803 866965) and will run from September 3 – 10th . The tour will cost from £3495 per person, based on two sharing a one bedroom tented villa on half board basis, including all activities and return flights between São Tomé and Príncipe. The price doesn't include international flights, which are from London via Lisbon with TAP Air Portugal and can be booked through Reef & Rainforest, an ATOL bonded tour operator founded in 1989: this is their 30th year of operating.