22 Day West Africa Tour featuring Senegal, Gambia, Ivory Coast, Ghana, Sao Tome, Togo and Benin.

Arrive in Dakar, Senegal. Pick up and transfer from airport to your hotel. Check into your hotel and relax. Overnight at a hotel in Dakar. Meals Included: Dinner.

After breakfast, depart your hotel and be transferred to the ferry terminal. Here, you will board a ferry to the infamous Goree Island and begin your post extension tour of West Africa! This 20-minute ride takes us back in time over 200 years. GOREE Island was once the depot and departure point of millions and millions of Africans shipped into bondage to the Americas. At the slave house, we listen to the curator narrate 3 to 4 centuries of black slave trade as it happened in West Africa. After prayers and libation to the memories of our ancestors who perished in the door passage, you will tour the island with stops at the Women's Museum. The tour shall include a lecture delivered by the curator on the theme ‘300 years of slave trading in West Africa’. Enjoy lunch on the Island on your own.

After lunch on your own, we depart to discover Dakar, capital city of Senegal. Stop at the Presidential Palace the African Arts Museum with its great collection from all over West Africa, the catholic cathedral of the African Memory, stroll through the colourful market of SANDAG, pass by the great mosque, the university, the sand painting gallery, Monument of African Renaissance and at last stop at the biggest craft market and experience the friendly bargain system.

Overnight at a hotel in Dakar.
Meals Included: Breakfast & Dinner.

After breakfast, check out of your hotel and depart for the discovery of the phenomenal Pink Lake. Track the last lap of the famous rally Paris/Dakar by 4x4 buggies and stop to meet hundreds of men and women mining the salt from the rose coloured body of water. If time permits, we will visit a Fulani village and experience African lifestyle at first hand. We take a ride up and down the sand dunes and discover the long stretch of the Atlantic Ocean. Afterwards, continue the drive to St. Louis. Upon arrival, check in at your hotel and relax.

Overnight at a hotel in Saint Louis.
Meals Included: Breakfast & Dinner.

After breakfast, Head to the fishing village of Cayar. On your way, make a stop in the Fulani villages to interact with local community members. Continue to Cayar, where you will encounter the renowned fishing village. You will watch the shoreline turn into a bustling market where fishermen and female retailers negotiate their daily catch. You will encounter the lively arrival of big game fishing where hundreds of colourful boats will tow in their catch from the Atlantic Ocean to the shore. Check into your hotel in Dakar and spend the rest of the day at leisure.

Overnight at a hotel in Dakar.
Meals Included: Breakfast & Dinner.

After breakfast, spend the rest of the morning packing. Transfer from hotel for check in and depart to Ivory Coast. Upon arrival, you will be met at the airport and transferred to your hotel for check in.

Overnight at a hotel in Abidjan.
Meals Included: Breakfast & Dinner.

After breakfast, embark on a sightseeing tour of Abidjan. Serving as the capital, Abidjan is the biggest and most important city of Cote d'Ivoire. With a population of around 6,500,000 people, it is the second largest city in West Africa after Lagos. Today, Abidjan remains the economic and cultural capital of the country.

In the district of Riviera, you will visit one of the world-famous dance and theater academies –Village Ki-Yi Mbock where you will be treated to a captivating dance show by young artists from diverse backgrounds. Cross the beautiful Ébrié Lagoon via the Henri Konan Bédié Bridge, built in 2014. At Centre Artisanal de Abidjan (the Art and Crafts Market), located in the area of Treichville, stroll through the market browsing at the stalls stocked with souvenirs. Afterwards, visit the “Treichville market” where you will have the chance to get more souvenirs (jewelry, clothes, cloths, pagnes, and woodcrafts).

Overnight at a hotel in Abidjan.
Meals Included: Breakfast & Dinner.

After breakfast, take in some of Le Plateau's most modern architectural buildings, such as St Paul's Cathedral and La Pyramide, designed by the Italian architect Rinaldo Olivier and celebrated as one of Ivory Coast's most impressive structures as you drive through the city en route for today’s village visit. Meet the villagers and participate in KASA (TALK TIME) amidst drumming and dancing - An activity to learn more about West African traditions and culture. There will be folklore and storytelling which will be led by elders in the community. The group will have the opportunity to talk and interact with them.

Overnight at a hotel in Abidjan.
Meals Included: Breakfast & Lunch

After breakfast, check out of your hotel and depart from Abidjan for a scenic drive to Axim with a stop at Grand Bassam. You will tour the colonial city of Grand-Bassam, the former French settlement, and home to many colonial buildings. Continue the journey with a visit to the Elubo refugee camp, home to many survivors of the 2011 Ivorian civil war. Meet with them and listen as they recount their stories of their persistence during the horrific period. Upon arrival in Beyin (Ghana), check into your hotel and relax.

Overnight at a hotel in Beyin.
Meals Included: Breakfast & Dinner.

After breakfast, depart early in the morning and head over to Beyin to begin preparations for the journey over to the Nzulezu Village. Enjoy a peaceful and serene canoe ride that will last approximately 45mins. According to local legend, the village was built by a group of people from Oualata, a city of the ancient Ghana Empire and in present-day Mauritania, which came about from following a snail.

The village was nominated to become a World Heritage Site for its importance in anthropology: in addition to being one of the few ancient settlements on stilts and platforms left in the world, there is a preserved wealth of local traditions connected with the cult of the lake. In the village there is a church and a school. As the village is extremely isolated, Nzulezo suffers from numerous health problems, including the vast spread of malaria. After visiting the village, you will have another serene canoe ride back to Beyin.

Afterwards, take a walk in the town of Beyin and observe typical daily activities of the local people. You may assist them and try your hands at weaving palm fences that have various uses within the community. Overnight at a hotel in Beyin. Meals Included: Breakfast & Lunch.

After breakfast, check out of your hotel and depart for Cape Coast. Upon arrival, continue on a guided tour to an open-air market in where you will visit a market and be introduced to different local food varieties and purchase ingredients for the cooking class while you get to directly interact with the market women. This is a practical experience designed for people with a passion to go beyond just eating at a restaurant to exploring in detail what goes into making those lovely Ghanaian dishes adored by all. You will have the opportunity to select from the market, fresh ingredients to make delicious food from a menu that you choose for the day.

Get to learn some bargaining skills at the market as usually done by locals as part of the market shopping experience. After your market visit, depart to a local kitchen to learn how to make Ghanaian dishes and drinks. This would be served for either lunch or dinner. At the end of the class, you get to enjoy the food you prepared. Choose your preferred meal from a list to learn about it. Its origin, mode of preparation and if it is a festive or everyday dish. Recipes are provided at the end of the class for you to be able to recreate this timeless experience. Local drinks will be served with your food. Check into your hotel and enjoy the rest of the evening at leisure.

Overnight at a hotel in Elmina / Cape Coast.
Meals Included: Breakfast & Dinner.

After breakfast, check out of your hotel and embark on a guided walking tour of Cape Coast. Get to meet the real locals as we guide you through the animated streets of Cape Coast. Get to discover a blend of culture & history on our exceptional free Walking tour. Immerse yourself in our rich Ghanaian culture as you learn about some of the secrets & local legends. Go off the beaten track as you explore the lesser known places, sights & stories. After lunch, visit a fishing village that’s both picturesque and gritty, charming and though-provoking. What better way to appreciate it than to immerse oneself in its main industry – fishing! Meet with local fishermen to learn the intricacies of their trade and the challenges they face in their day-to-day work. Next, meet the fish mongers in the village who will demonstrate the various stages of smoking the fish in earthenware ovens. This is a unique way to experience one of Ghana’s oldest and important trades.

Overnight at a hotel in Elmina / Cape Coast.
Meals Included: Breakfast & Dinner.

After an early breakfast, depart to Accra to explore a typical Ghanaian market and have a peek into the various Ghanaian meals and raw foods. Continue to the art market where you will find many handicrafts and art work made by local artisans showing the diverse rich Ghanaian culture. Take this opportunity to speak and ask the artisans questions about how they make ends meet daily, and their dependency on their daily sales.

Overnight at a hotel in Accra.
Meals included: Breakfast & Dinner.

After breakfast, visit and spend the day at the City of Refuge Children’s Village, a grassroots organization that cares for children who have been trafficked, orphaned, or abandoned. The mission of the village is to look after children who are marginalized, promote understanding of the value of every child, create opportunities for community change, and increase awareness of the issue of trafficking. This children’s home, called Freedom Center, was established in 2007 and provides childcare, education, recreation, spiritual fulfillment and a nurturing environment for children in need. Today, you will assist with after school programs or other projects at the school, such as construction
and painting.

Overnight at a hotel in Accra.
Meals included: Breakfast & Dinner.

After breakfast, depart for a scenic drive to a beautiful village located in the Volta Region. You will have the opportunity to pay a courtesy call on the paramount chief and elders amidst traditional drumming and dancing by the villagers and also participate in a naming ceremony, where you will be given a traditional African name. Afterwards, depart to Accra and check into your hotel and relax.

Overnight at a hotel in Accra.
Meals included: Breakfast & Dinner.

After breakfast, check out of your hotel for Togo. Upon arrival, head straight for a city tour of Lome. Drive by the Musée National (National Museum), as well as the Place de I’ Independence (Place of Independence, where the Independence Monument is situated). Visit the Grand Marche (Grand Market) and Marche des Feticheurs (Fetish Market). At the market, consult a voodoo doctor who will then prescribe items for purchase from the market, from which he will prepare a charm for you. These charms can be for good luck, safe travels, good health or anything else you need. This is also an opportunity for you to speak with them and ask questions about how they learned their craft.

Overnight at a hotel in Lome.
Meals Included: Breakfast & Dinner.

Today, you will leave Lome for the third largest city in Togo - Kpalime. On the way, you will make a stop at funerary monuments as well as surrounding typical villages and markets. If that day is also a school day, you may visit a bush school to know more about the education system there. After reaching Kpalime, you will first visit Kloto Craft Center and then drive to “Campement”, an old German sanatorium perched atop Mount Kloto. In the afternoon, you will pay a visit to a local village in Kpalime to learn customs and legends of real Ewes, retold with folklores, singing, drumming and dancing.

Overnight at a hotel in Lome.
Meals Included: Breakfast & Dinner.

After breakfast, check out of your hotel and depart for a visit to Togoville, a beach resort on Lake Togo. Cruise on the Lake to the 17th Century Catholic Cathedral, which hosted Pope Paul during his visit to Togo, as well as the 5 main voodoo shrines on the island. You will be offered insights into daily life along the River Mono, this part of the country is the border between Togo and Benin. The South of Togo has a rich voodoo culture, picturesque villages with colorful markets and a range of crafts to explore. Learn the importance of palm oil and liquor in the voodoo religion. You will make brief visits to a place where palm oil is produced locally, and next to a local sodabi brewery, where we will have a chance to taste the locally produced liquor. End the day with a private a voodoo ceremony where the followers and elders make sacrifices and fall in trances to evoke the blessings of the gods. Afterwards, return
to your hotel in Lome.

Overnight at a hotel in Lome.
Meals Included: Breakfast & Dinner.

After breakfast, check out and depart for a post extension visit to Ouidah, the cradle of African Traditional Religion, en-route to Cotonou. Tour the temple dedicated to the sacred Python, which is believed to give vitality and protection; you will also pay a visit to the sacred forest which houses many shrines dedicated to various deities.

Afterwards, visit the Port of No Return; a monument built by the Benin Government to commemorate the Africans that were taken from the Dahomey Empire during the Slave Trade. Continue the journey northwards to Cotonou. Check in at the hotel and relax.

Overnight at a hotel in Cotonou.
Meals Included: Breakfast & Dinner.

After breakfast, check out of your hotel and embark on a sensational visit to Ganvie (the village on water), commonly referred to as the Venice of West Africa. Witness first hand, the people of Ganvie carrying out their daily routine as vendors in dugout canoes pile high with wares, transacting commerce with one another and with tourists. You will enjoy shopping on the floating market and taking a relaxing canoe ride on the waterways of this exotic 300-year-old village. After lunch on your own, drive through the multicoloured centre of the administrative and commercial capital of Benin to view its many statues and monuments.

Overnight at a hotel in Cotonou.
Meals Included: Breakfast & Dinner.

After breakfast, head out for an indulging experience of a typical day in Benin. Make your first stop at Porto Novo, located about an hour away from Cotonou, Porto Novo is the second largest city in Benin as well as its capital. The name came from the Portuguese colony that lived in the town in the 15th century. Porto Novo has a lot of interesting sights and culture and up to this day, the Portuguese influence is still present.

Make a stop first stop at The Royal Palace, also known as King Toffa's Palace and more recently Musée Honmé, is a former royal residence and today museum in Porto-Novo, Benin. It contains an example of an Alounloun and most displays are related to the King Toffa period. Continue from here to the Marche du Dantopka in Cotonou. For tourists interested in shopping, there is only one place to go in Benin, the Grand Marche du Dantopka in Cotonou. Apart from the vast expanse of stalls and its seemingly endless supply of local jewellery, crafts, and knock-off CDs and clothing, the Grand Marche du Dantopka is simply an experience in itself. A veritable labyrinth of lanes and alleys, the market can be both exhausting and exciting at the same time. (Drive Time from Cotonou to Porto Novo- 1 hr).

Overnight at a hotel in Cotonou.
Meals Included: Breakfast & Dinner.

The Royal Palaces of Abomey, being a UNESCO cultural world heritage site, are ranked as one of the most famous tourist’s attraction sites in Abomey and the greater Benin. The palaces are vital representations of Benin's cultural heritage and attract thousands of tourists from across the world yearly. The palaces of Abomey are used for traditional ceremonies in modern-day Benin. During these ceremonies, rhythmic music, Benin's rich culture, rituals, religions, and customs are carried out in the complex. These ceremonies have significantly helped with the conservation of the complex, due to the palaces' continued functionality. Nearby sites include the Fetish Temple and a local arts centre
which sells traditional handicrafts. Overnight at a hotel in Cotonou. Meals Included: Breakfast & Dinner.

After breakfast, check out of your hotel and transfer to airport for check-in and final departure back home. Meals Included: Breakfast.