West Africa Discovery

As we travel to rural villages and coastal cities, we learn about the modern life and past history  that makes West Africa such a fascinating region. We begin in the Atlantic Coast city of Accra, where we tour Jamestown with its boat-lined shore and iconic red-and-white striped lighthouse. We visit the W.E.B. DuBois Center for Pan African Culture and Kwame Nkrumah Memorial Park before traveling to Lomé. Here, we visit the Palais de Lomé, the Grand Mache, and the city’s colonial-period administrative buildings. A tour highlight: participating in a cooking class at a local restaurant while we learn about traditional Togolese cuisine. Next we travel between rural Togolese villages before ending at our next destination: Ouidah. Here, we travel Ouidah’s infamous Slave Route and visit the Temple of Pythos, then board a motorboat and cruise to the “floating” town of Ganvie. We then return to Ghana for a boat excursion on the Volta River, stopping at fishing villages to meet the locals and learn about everyday life. A six hour drive brings us to Kumasi, Ghana’s second largest city. Here, we visit the Centre for National Culture, tour the Manhyia Palace Museum, travel to an Ashanti village, and meet local Akan people. Then we make our way to the picturesque village of Elmina. We stop at Cape Coast Castle, venture into nature on an outing to Kakum National Park for a rainforest expedition, and visit 15^th-century Elmina Castle. We end our journey through West Arica with a farewell dinner at a local restaurant.