The four ships were:* The "São Gabriel", commanded by Vasco da Gama; a carrack of 178 tons, length 27 m, width 8.5 m, draft 2.3 m, sails of 372 m²* The "São Rafael", whose commander was his brother Paulo da Gama; similar dimensions to the "São Gabriel"* The caravel "Berrio", slightly smaller than the former two (later renamed São Miguel), commanded by Nicolau Coelho* A storage ship of unknown name, commanded by Gonçalo Nunes, later lost near the Bay of São Brás, along the east coast of Africa===Journey to the Cape===The expedition set sail from Lisbon on 8 July 1497.
V času, ko je bil Vasco da Gama star deset let, so ti dolgoročni portugalski načrti obrodili prve sadove.