Cape Route to India: Route Map and History
Sea route around Africa opened by Vasco da Gama in 1498. For three and a half centuries it carried the spice trade of the Portuguese, Dutch and English East India companies, until the Suez Canal opened in 1869.
Open the Cape Route to India in the interactive map
Key facts
| Active | 1498 – 1869 (approximate) |
| Length shown on the map | about 20,700 km |
| Main stops | 7 |
Stops along the Cape Route to India
| Stop | Ruled by in 1500 | Ruled by in 1650 | Ruled by in 1783 | Ruled by in 1815 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Lisbon | Portugal | Portugal | Portugal | Portugal |
| 2 | Cape Verde | Unclaimed / no data | Unclaimed / no data | Unclaimed / no data | Unclaimed / no data |
| 3 | Cape of Good Hope | Khoisan | Unclaimed / no data | Cape Colony | Cape Colony |
| 4 | Mozambique Island | Bantu peoples | Unclaimed / no data | Unclaimed / no data | Portuguese East Africa |
| 5 | Malindi | Islamic city-states | Unclaimed / no data | Zanzibar | Zanzibar |
| 6 | Calicut | Vijayanagara | Vijayanagara | Malabar | British East India Company |
| 7 | Goa | Vijayanagara | Vijayanagara | Maratha Confederacy | Maratha Confederacy |
The route is drawn schematically through its main stops; real caravans and ships used many variants. The state columns come from the border maps closest to each year.
Other trade routes
- Silk Road · 130 BC–1450
- Maritime Silk Road · 100 BC–1500
- Incense Route · 500 BC–AD 200
- Persian Royal Road · 500 BC–330 BC
- Amber Road · 100 BC–AD 400
- Route from the Varangians to the Greeks · AD 800–1100
- Trans-Saharan Route (western) · AD 300–1600
- Trans-Saharan Route (central) · AD 600–1900
- Hanseatic trade route · 1250–1600
- Atlantic triangular trade · 1520–1867
Last updated 9 November 2026. Sources: border data from historical-basemaps, land and rivers from Natural Earth; texts written for Chronica Maps from standard reference works. How we make the maps.