West Africa Discovery (Ghana, Togo & Benin)

Depart on overnight flight(s) to Accra.

Upon arrival in Accra, the capital and largest city of Ghana, transfer to your hotel.  As guests’ arrival times may vary, no group activities or meals have been planned. The day is free to rest and relax after your overnight flights.

Overnight: Mövenpick Ambassador Hotel Accra

Get your first taste of this diverse Atlantic Coast city on a full-day tour.

Founded in the 17th century by the Ga people, Accra played a vital role as the capital of the British Gold Coast starting in 1877; this role ended in 1957, when Ghana became an independent state and Accra was named its capital. Accra has since become a modern metropolis, with quickly expanding commercial areas developing alongside historic 19th-century colonial architecture. Begin with a tour of Jamestown, primarily a fishing community and one of the oldest districts in Accra. Here, brightly colored boats crowd the shoreline and makeshift shacks surround the iconic red-and-white-striped lighthouse of the 17th-century James Fort. Stop at a workshop that specializes in crafting “fantasy coffins.” These coffins can take the shape of almost any animal or object – birds, bugs, fish, mammals, tools, weapons, vehicles, and anything else one can imagine. Some are even designed to represent ancient proverbs or to evoke religious or magical meanings. The unique, handmade coffins originated in Accra and are now collected and displayed in museums worldwide. 

Continue to the W. E. B. Du Bois Center for Pan African Culture. It was here that the American sociologist spent his last years from 1961–1963 compiling the Encyclopedia Africana, a comprehensive encyclopedia about Africa and peoples of African descent; unfortunately, Du Bois passed away in 1963 at age 95 before he was able to complete the project. Then, visit Kwame Nkrumah Memorial Park with its bronze statues and fountains that pay homage to Ghana’s first president. Lunch is included today; and tonight, gather for a welcome dinner at your hotel.

Overnight: Mövenpick Ambassador Hotel Accra

Meals: B, L, D

This morning travel by coach to the former Gold Coast where Africans from across the continent were held in forts and castles before being forced onto the ships that would take them to the Americas. Reach the fishing village of Elmina in time for lunch at a local restaurant then embark on a tour of 15th-century Elmina Castle. A one-time trade settlement whose dungeons held tens of thousands of enslaved persons, Elmina Castle today is a UNESCO site and Ghanaian national museum. En route to your hotel, see Elmina’s Posuban Shrines, whose unusual statues have historic roots in Fante tribal culture. Dine tonight at the hotel.

Overnight: AnoMansa Beach Resort at Elmina Bay

Meals: B, L, D

Your odyssey continues this morning at the Cape Coast Castle, a UNESCO site that houses a museum documenting the slave trade. Between 1662 and 1867, more than 500,000 captive Africans were held here. This afternoon, we visit Kakum National Park where we have the opportunity to experience the rainforest from above on one of the world’s longest and highest canopy walkways and to hopefully glimpse some of the park’s resident Diana monkeys, giant bongo antelope, and African elephants, among other fauna.

Overnight: AnoMansa Beach Resort at Elmina Bay

Meals: B, L, D

En route to Kumasi today, visit the Assin Manso Slave River Site, once a slave market and now a memorial site. Continue to Kumasi, Ghana’s second largest city, historical and spiritual capital of the powerful Ashanti Empire (1670-1957), and modern home of the Asante people. This afternoon, take a guided tour of the Prempeh II Jubilee Museum, with its rich collection of Ashanti artifacts, including colorful kente cloths and an authentic reproduction of an Ashanti house.

Overnight: Oak Plaza Suites

Meals: B, L, D

This morning meet the Akan people, known for their rich culture heritage and skilled craftmanship. See the artistry on display at a market selling locally crafted woodwork and at a weaving workshop that produces intricately designed kente cloths. Then, don the colorful cloths yourselves and join in a time-honored ceremony to receive Akan names. Continue your discovery of the “Garden City of West Africa” this afternoon at the Manhyia Palace Museum, housing a collection of gold jewelry worn by the Ashanti court.

Overnight: Oak Plaza Suites

Meals: B, L, D

It’s a day of travel as you leave Kumasi this morning for Akosombo, a tranquil town on Ghana’s Volta River. Stop for a light lunch en route and dine tonight at your resort hotel.

Overnight: The Royal Senchi Hotel and Resort

Meals: B, L, D

This morning, visit an artisan of the Krobo tribe, known for their crafting of traditional Handmade Cedi glass beads. Watch a beadmaking demonstration followed by an opportunity to try your hand at fashioning these ornaments yourselves. Once known as “trade beads” for their use as currency during the slave trade, today the beads are valued for their beauty and artistry. The afternoon is free to relax and enjoy the amenities of the riverfront resort.

Overnight: The Royal Senchi Hotel and Resort

Meals: B, L, D

Today, experience the rich cultures of the diverse ethnic groups within the Volta Region. Begin with a visit to a Krobo tribe artisan community known for crafting traditional handmade glass beads. Ghanian Krobo glass beads were once symbols of status, wealth, and success, often worn by royalty and members of high society. These beads were even used as currency and in trade with Europeans. The Krobo craftspeople have passed down their unique bead-making techniques for centuries; bear witness to their artistry before having the opportunity to create your own bead to take home. Return to your hotel for a late lunch and an afternoon at leisure, with dinner together tonight.

Overnight: The Royal Senchi Hotel and Resort

Meals: B, L, D

Leave Ghana today bound for the tiny nation of Togo, known for its natural beauty, friendly people, rich cultural heritage (more than 40 ethnic groups coexist here), and formerly as the Slave Coast for its role as the heart of the slave trade. Reach Lomé, Togo’s capital, midday and have lunch at a local restaurant. Later this afternoon, visit the Palais de Lomé, an African arts and cultural center that once served as the country’s colonial headquarters.

Overnight: Hôtel 2 Février

Meals: B, L, D

One of the few world capitals that borders another country (Ghana), Lomé today reflects its German, British, and French colonial past, as you see on this morning’s city tour. Visit the Grand Marché, the vast central market with goods of all kinds, including the famed “Nana Benz” stalls and their textiles. Also see the German influenced buildings of the colonial period as well as the modern architecture that graces the city. Dinner tonight is a highlight as you participate in a cooking class at a local venue and learn about and savor traditional Togolese cooking.

Overnight: Hôtel 2 Février

Meals: B, L, D

Take a boat ride this morning from Le Lac to Togoville, a center of the practice of Vodun (voodoo) on the shores of Lake Togo. Explore the village, where a priestess teaches about Vodun ceremonies. Take a boat ride back to Le Lac for lunch. 

On the way to Cotonou, make a quick stop in Aného, scenically perched between the ocean and Lake Togo. Cross the border into Benin, traveling on to Cotonou. Dinner tonight is on your own.

Overnight: Sofitel Cotonou Marina Hotel & Spa

Meals: B, L

Once an active slave trading port, Ouidah today memorializes its ignoble past with monuments of the Slave Route, including the Door of No Return memorial arch, the site where more than one million Africans were taken to the ships that would bring them in bondage across the Atlantic. Travel this road on this morning’s illuminating tour. Also visit Ouidah’s Temple of Pythons, housing the snakes important to the Vodun religion. Later, attend a Zangbeto mask dance, an important Vodun practice featuring swirling performers adorned with layers of palm leaves and hay.

Overnight: Sofitel Cotonou Marina Hotel & Spa

Meals: B, L, D

A motor-boat ride across Lake Nokwe this morning brings you to the floating village of Ganvié, with its colorful stilt houses. Here, members of the Tofinou ethnic group live much as their ancestors did when they fled to escape the slave trade in the 18th century. Midday, return to your hotel to celebrate your discovery of West Africa over a farewell lunch. This afternoon is at leisure in day rooms before evening departures for the airport and return flights to the U.S. 

Please note: Depending on flight schedules, some guests may depart for the U.S. the following morning on Day 15, in which case an overnight stay at the Movenpick Ambassador Hotel would be included.

Day Room: Sofitel Cotonou Marina Hotel & Spa (Day Room)

Meals: B, L

Arrive in the U.S. today and connect with flights home.