Winter 2023 (Blue represents air travel; Bissau via Dakar! to Conakry) while red is travel by public transport )

Pff.. that was a tough trip! 48 days of driving through West Africa from Dakar to Monrovia, the capital of Liberia on mostly bad roads; dust and more dust.

We started in Senegal where we visited Senegalese friends of Anne-Marie in Mbour. From there we travelled through Senegal and a mini part of Gambia to Guinea Bissau. We had to travel through Senegal entirely by private transport because there was a general transport strike (the first since independence in 1959, I understand). This caused the costs to increase somewhat.

In Guinea Bissau we stayed in and around the capital Bissau because Annemarie had not received her e-visa for Guinea (Conakry) and we had to sort this out at the embassy there, which fortunately worked out. This meant we had to skip a visit to Varela on the coast and a visit to the island of Bubaque.

From Bissau to Conakry we could not do it by road because an e-visa for Guinea would only be valid upon arrival at the airport. From Bissau to Conakry is only a 1 hour flight but there is no direct flight (anymore). So we flew back to Dakar and from there we flew back to Conakry! (see map)

In Conakry we continued our second part of the journey. Through the interior of Guinea to Liberia.

We saw beautiful nature but the chaos of the various villages and cities still dominated.

It is often difficult to get into nature as a backpacker. You travel by public transport from city to city. In different parts of the world it is often possible to organize an (individual) excursion at an affordable price in nature but not in this part of the world;

There is simply no tourism. You have to figure everything out yourself and if you do arrange something with a private car it often costs quite a lot of money in comparison, certainly in comparison with Asia or South America!

Fortunately, we also have positive experiences such as the Seredou Forrestiere in Guinea that we read about in the french guide “Petit Fute “. We called the telephone number that was fortunately operational and the forest ranger organised a taxi for us from our hotel nearby to their place. Great!

We arranged another excursion to the Kpatawee waterfalls in Liberia ourselves by contacting the Facebook page of the lodge there. From the nearby town we arranged a private taxi to the local bus station. Of course, bargain!

Police;

The police are often corrupt.

Something you will always have to deal with are the many roadblocks along the way with police checks. If you travel by public transport, you will generally not have much trouble with this. The driver usually pays a tip to the police!

As a white person, they usually leave you alone. Once in Senegal we had to unpack our backpacks, but fortunately that rarely happens.

If you travel with your own transport, you can certainly have trouble with the police with fake violations, etc.

TIPS

In many places you can use Orange Mobile money. This can be useful in emergency situations if you cannot withdraw money and have no more cash. I tried it out in neighboring Liberia.

When applying for a SIM card, you also have an account created with Orange mobile money. You then deposit some cash on it on the spot. You can also withdraw money from various stalls on the street. I assume that this involves small amounts given the low standard of living in these countries.

What is interesting is that in emergencies you can also transfer money from your visa card (or mastercard) to your Orange Mobile Money via an intermediate step: it seems to be possible since the end of 2022 (I have not tested this myself yet) via RIA money transfer:

Transfer money to RIA with your visa card. With RIA you transfer money to your Orange Money. You then pay for a hotel, restaurant or shop with Orange money or withdraw cash at an Orange Money stall.

LANGUAGE

In the French-speaking countries, French is the language and that usually works fine because Anne Marie speaks French well. Note that not everyone speaks (sufficient) French, but in general it works fine. You can hardly get by with English.

In Liberia it is English, but then Pidgin English which deviates greatly from the original English and is difficult to understand. Fortunately, there are still enough people there who do speak reasonably normal English.

What could we have done differently?

First of all, do not travel through this area during the hottest period. Especially in February (and March/April) it is very hot. Usually 35+. In the (early) morning it is still nice because it cools down considerably at night. From 10:00 it gets really hot and that lasts until the end of the afternoon. It is better to travel immediately after the rainy season from November to early January. It is still warm then but the temperatures are more bearable. You could also consider traveling during the rainy season. There is simply more cloud cover then, although it really does not rain all day! Of course you have to choose the period with the least rain.

We should also have visited the island of Kassa near Conakry again this time, it is a wonderfully peaceful nature moment in these often hectic road trips.

At Kindia we should have visited the Kilissi waterfalls again, also a beautiful nature moment.

TRAVEL DIARY

Toubab Dialow Senegal•12 January 2023•29°

We took an old taxi from Dakar airport to our coastal town. The plane ride was quite stuffy, but upon arrival, we were greeted by a refreshing summer breeze – a welcome to the Tropics! We withdrew 400,000 CFA (equivalent to €600) and purchased a SIM card with 7GB for €8. Our accommodation was a Gaudi-esque complex, part of a cultural center established 30 years ago. The rooms were simple yet cozy, with views of the Atlantic Ocean. The food was delightful; I had fish Yassa, and my travel companion chose the daily special, also fish. We enjoyed two large local beers at 0.63L with 4.2% alcohol, two small beers, and a bottle of water, all for just €30. Fishermen’s songs serenaded us in the background.

Toubab Dialow Senegal•12 January 2023• 29°

Sobo Bade  Gaudi style

13 Januari 2023•30°

At 9am, it’s not quite warm yet, perhaps around 20 degrees, with a pleasant breeze. At 11:15, there are many guests here from France, Belgium, and Germany. Annemarie has just spoken with Sonia, who is extremely enthusiastic. We plan to visit on Sunday afternoon, followed by additional meetings on Monday and Tuesday. Senegal has roughly the same population as the Netherlands but is nearly five times larger. It’s the most humid country we’ve visited on our trip, yet it remains underdeveloped. The standard of living in Senegal is less than half of that in Morocco. Gazing out at the ocean, I see someone bathing in the distance, and two people dancing nearby. 😄 Walking through the village proves challenging; you quickly attract a persistent guide. This is typical in Senegal, as well as in Gambia and Mali, unlike many other African countries we’ve been to. I took a brief walk on the beach; the waves are wild, and the water feels quite cool—possibly more than 20 degrees?

Senegal•14 January 2023• 31°

The seawater here is as warm as the North Sea during summer—a stark contrast to our previous trip, which had consistently warm waters. The Cold Gulf Stream flows along the coast, and while I knew it reached as far as Morocco, its full extent remains unclear to me after some internet research. Our next encounter with seawater will be over 300 km further south in Guinea Bissau, and I’m eager to see the conditions there. Tomorrow, we head to Mbour, which is 40 km to the south. We’ve booked a taxi for this leg of the journey at the reception, at a cost of 20,000 CFA (€30), which seems reasonable.

Sobo Bade: Excellent cuisine. You can eat here for two for just under €30, including two large beers

Small town on the Atlantic Ocean north of the Petit Cote

How do you get there?

By taxi from the airport; 30 minutes. They ask for 20,000 CFA (€30), we manage to haggle down to CFA 18,000. NB. at the taxi stand there is a large sign with destinations and prices; a ride to Mbour would cost (only) CFA 10,000. Nobody cares about this! Count on at least double that.

Hotel/restaurant;

Several accommodations with the Gaudi-like Sodo Bade standing out; Price room with air conditioning = € 33 excluding breakfast (there are also cheaper rooms without air conditioning, but I do not recommend them – see below) Breakfast (2 x delicious omelette with coffee) € 14. Main meal for two with a pint (0.63cl) of beer each; €27.

What do I think of Sobo Bade?

Overall rating **** ;

Location; ***** ; beautiful ocean views.

Complex ***** ; complex built in Gaudi style. Beautiful!

Restaurant ***** ; fantastic Senegalese dishes

Accomodation ***; the room is small, attractive but (very) simple. Bed is OK. Sanitary **; Toilet is OK, the shower is shielded with a curtain in the room and only a tiny trickle of water comes out:

In summary, if you accept the limitations of the sanitary facilities (perhaps it is better in the other rooms), then it is a great address

Travel further: We arranged a taxi to Mbour, 40 km/55 minutes, at the reception for 20,000 CFA = €30)

FILM TIP:

Sobo Bade naar Mbour Senegal•15 January 2023• 31° Route review **.

After an hour’s drive, we arrived at the Blue Africa hotel in Mbour, right on the beach. I had booked the room through Destinia a Spanish hotel booking site because Booking.com and some other better known sites have few hotels in this part of Africa. We were given a bare room without its own shower and toilet (and that for €41!). After some sputtering on my part, we got a great room with a terrace and private sanitary facilities😀

M’bour •16 Januari 2023• 31°

Today was truly memorable😄. My wife reunited with old friends she met while backpacking in the eighties: Dabis, who is 71, and Sonia, who is 45. Sonia, unfortunately, is disabled due to polio—a truly dreadful virus. The gathering was held indoors, where thick walls provided a respite from the heat. Ndeye, Sonia’s daughter who married a Belgian retiree, supports them financially. Thanks to a 35-year-long support from Annemarie and a group of friends, they have secured a nice rental house. They keep the decor simple since Sonia’s mobility is quite restricted, and she spends most of her time indoors. She keeps herself occupied with music and her personal style, using a Bluetooth speaker to play videos from her phone. We had a tea ceremony, and I even danced a bit more😇. The tea was surprisingly effective🤣. Later, they ordered food—some rather chewy mutton chops with onions. But that didn’t dampen our spirits.

•16 January 2023• 31°

I ventured into the sea this morning; it was still delightful. Later, I enjoyed dinner with Dabis and Sonia, savoring a fish stew with sauce. The fish must have been enormous, judging by the meaty texture 😉. It was quite palatable. I took some additional photos of the area surrounding the house. There was a lot of video calling back and forth 😄. Three hours later, it’s become somewhat exhausting 🙃. Neither Annemarie nor I understand much of what’s going on 😉. Dabis is accompanying us to our hotel and her daughter is doing her makeup. They live in a rather confined world. There’s a fishy odor outside. We’re currently waiting for Dabis to finish getting ready. The hotel isn’t exactly upscale 🙂 Sonia spends her time watching African videos on YouTube, which she streams through a Bluetooth speaker on her phone.

die ze op haar telefoon via een bluetooth speaker afspeelt

Blue Africa: nice hotel; rooms €40-45 . Direct on the beach!

17 January 2023• 32°

Last night was quiet. Today, I met Dabis and Sonia for lunch at 2 p.m. We went for a swim in the sea first, which was enough for me. Our hotel is mostly filled with elderly group tourists from France, who have been visiting this place for 40 years. The food here caters to tourists as well. Our real adventure begins tomorrow. We’ll take a bus or an old Peugeot 504 to Kaolack for a stopover, then continue through a part of Gambia to Ziguinchor. At 4:00 PM, lunch ended with a large serving of chicken, which I dreaded. I managed to eat, as it’s a communal dish. Despite the encouragement to eat more, I was full. I’ve disliked chicken since I was five, so I stuck to the rice, vegetables, and eggs. The ladies are now preparing for a photo and video session—so much has been recorded already. By 5:00 PM, we’re waiting, watching a lavish wedding program on TV5, showcasing a glittering French society. It paints a rather extravagant picture of Europe. We’ve scheduled our taxi for 6 p.m. Meanwhile, the makeup session continues, and Annemarie receives an African dress as a heartfelt gift. It’s a touching goodbye.

. M’bour•17 January 2023• 32° ;

Mbour

200,000 inhabitants, 87 km south of Dakar and 45 km from Blaisse Diagne airport.

Mbour embodies the quintessential Senegalese provincial town, renowned as an important fishing hub. The air is often filled with the scent of smoked fish. Similar to many West African cities, Mbour offers few traditional sights, with the beach being its primary allure. To the north lies Saly, a tourist enclave frequented mainly by package tourists from France and the Netherlands, including those traveling with Tui. Our stay was at the Blue Africa hotel in Mbour, which sits directly on the oceanfront. This small hotel boasts a wonderful ambiance. The beach is pristine, and the bay location makes the sea ideal for swimming. In January, the water temperature hovers around 20 degrees Celsius, akin to the North Sea in summer, which is quite cool due to the cold Gulf Stream that skirts Senegal’s coast.

Navigating the town via Google Streetview, you’ll notice that most roads are unpaved, giving the impression of strolling through a large village. Only RN 1, which cuts through Mbour, along with a few other main streets, are paved. Remarkably, there’s a Decathlon store, two sizable French supermarkets, and a Brioche Dorée bakery/café outlet. The locals are accustomed to tourists, allowing for peaceful walks without constant attention. Additionally, there are banks for cash withdrawals and an Orange outlet for purchasing SIM cards.

How do you get there?

From the airport (45km) by taxi; that will cost you at least CFA 20,000 (a sign at the stand says CFA 10,000) but nobody sticks to that. Haggling is (almost) impossible.

Hotel/restaurant

Blue Africa (can be booked at Destinia, among others / not bookable at Booking.com)

€41 for a small bungalow including French basic breakfast.

Make sure you get a room with a terrace in the annex and not a room in the main building! NB; There are also separate houses. Directly located on the sea with its own beach area. Nice atmosphere. Small-scale. There is a bar with seats. The food is “tourist food” but acceptable. Price level is comparable to our previous hotel Sodo Bade.

How do you get around within Mbour?

In Dakar, taxi apps like Yango and Heetch are commonly used, but they weren’t operational in Mbour. Instead, we relied on regular taxis, which lack taxi signs and were summoned by the hotel reception. The wait for a taxi could be lengthy at times. The fare was typically CFA 4000 (€6), though it might be less expensive. Additionally, walking is an option, but it becomes intensely hot after 10 AM. The area is expansive, and the taxi ride from our hotel to our friends’ place took about 15 minutes.

Mbour – Kaolack• 18 January 2023• 32°

Route review **/*** The landscape is quite bare, dry, and sandy. The entire route is accessible via Streetview, and the road quality is satisfactory.

First, we’ll have breakfast, then pack, and take a taxi to the Gare Routiere. I’m curious about the type of transport we’ll find due to the national transport strike. With no other transport available, our taxi driver agrees to drive us to Kaolack for 50,000 (€75). We accept the offer!

Kaolack•18 January 2023•35°

We ended up in a rather upscale hotel. The room costs 40,000 (€60), which is over our budget, but it includes breakfast and there’s a lovely pool. The hotel boasts a beautiful location on the Saloum River. It’s quite hot here, 37 degrees according to my phone. We have early morning transportation arranged to Ziguinchor and are hoping the strike will have ended by then. Tomorrow’s plan is essentially a six-hour drive, and interestingly, the route passes through Gambia for a bit. That’s where we’ll cross the Gambia River on the new bridge that opened in 2019.

Hotel Le Relais de Kaolack

Kaolack; 250,000 inhabitants. Typical Senegalese provincial town. No sights except that the city is beautifully situated on the Saloum River.

How to get there?

Normally by public transport. Taxi Brousse (any time when it is full) or the Dem Dikk bus (state bus); 2 x per day from Dakar/Mbour. Due to the strike we went very luxuriously with private transport for € 75

Hotel/Restaurant;

In the city, there are numerous choices, yet we opted for a location just outside the city: the four-star Hotel Relais Kaolack, a member of the Senegalese Horizons Bleu chain. We didn’t make a reservation beforehand. For €60, including breakfast, one can get a spacious room set in a garden. The hotel boasts a picturesque location on the Saloum River and features a large swimming pool. However, the inability to dine outdoors was a drawback, and the restaurant lacked ambiance.

The food was French-oriented and of about the same price level as the two previous hotels. A pint (0.63cl) costs CFA 2000 = €3.00

The reception was very helpful and arranged a taxi for us to take us to the place where you could arrange private transport to Ziginchour, this in connection with the ongoing transport strike.

How do you continue?

Same, just as you get there. DemDikk bus goes once a day, but I have also seen other buses driving along the way.

Travel Diary >>

Ziguinchor; 19 January 2023• 34°

We arrived just before 4pm following a nearly seven-hour taxi journey, covering over 260 km. The road conditions worsened significantly after crossing the Gambian/Senegalese border, resembling Swiss cheese. Our driver spoke French, which Annemarie often struggled to understand. I chose the front seat to film easily, but consequently, I endured the full force of the scorching 37-degree sun. The car’s air conditioning was barely functional, and the open windows offered minimal relief at low speeds. Near the town of Bigone, 30 km from our destination, we had to switch vehicles due to a malfunctioning wheel. Our initial driver compensated the second driver for the remainder of the trip. Approaching Ziguinchor, we encountered a police checkpoint requiring us to partially unpack our backpacks, though not completely, something I hadn’t faced in 22 years (unlike Annemarie’s past experiences in Africa). Finally, the second driver used Google Maps to locate our hotel, which had a name too complex to pronounce. He expected a tip, and in my dazed state, I handed over two additional 2000 franc notes (totaling €6.00). This entire journey cost us nearly €170, including taxi fare, tolls, and tips. It’s not an everyday expense, but the transport strike left us with no alternative. And that concludes today’s events.

Hôtel Kadiandoumagne ****; Beautifully situated on the river. The rooms may be on the expensive side for a budget traveler, but the place is pleasant.

Ziguinchor/ Senegal•20 January 2023•32°

This morning, we obtained a visa for Guinea Bissau at the local consulate for €40 per person. The process was quick and straightforward, a swift business for them. Walking is pleasant in the early hours, but after 11:00, it becomes hot. We came across a rare find here, a standalone restaurant/café/bar with an actual beer tap, not attached to a hotel. Our hotel, considered luxurious by local standards, charges €68 per night, breakfast included. The breakfast offers a satisfying omelette with Emmenthaler cheese, a rarity here. Presumably, the Swiss owner is the reason behind this. The meal is complemented with fruit and three types of juice: grapefruit, bissap (hibiscus), and baobab (which is delicious). Post-stay, we plan to find more economical options, which is feasible in Bissau. Unfortunately, Annemarie has yet to receive her e-visa for Guinea Conakry despite having paid for it. We’ll visit the Conakry embassy in Bissau to resolve this issue.

We’ve had our fill of the “luxury” hotel atmosphere these past few days. Now, it’s time for something more akin to a “backpacker” vibe. This hotel is quite popular with the French and Swiss septuagenarians, as well as some affluent Senegalese. Well, we’re not exactly spring chickens ourselves! 🤣 I’ve just reserved a room at a hostel in Bissau, managed by a local and a Swiss. Conveniently, it’s located across from the Guinea Conakry embassy—could be useful.

•21 January 2023•32°

My watch strap broke, and replacements are not available here. However, watches are sold, and after some bargaining, I purchased a counterfeit Rolex for €10. If it breaks, perhaps the strap can be salvaged. The bus service remains on strike, but luckily, it’s only 15 km to the Guinea-Bissau border. The Casamance River here is as broad as the Hollands Diep in Netherlands. The opposite bank resembles the Dutch Biesbosch National Park with its mangroves. The cuisine and dining times are French-influenced. Dinner is at eight in the evening, and lunch runs from 13:00 to 14:30. This is not surprising since it was a French colony 65 years ago. Tonight, we’ll dine at the adjacent restaurant.

With 250,000 inhabitants situated on the Casamance River, the city may lack notable landmarks. However, in the center, there’s a unique bar-café with a beer tap, Le Kassa, featuring an indoor terrace—a rarity in West Africa.

Additionally, this provincial city is convenient for managing tasks like obtaining a Guinea Bissau visa at the consulate within 10 minutes for a fee of €40. An Orange mobile branch is available, along with the required ATMs for cash withdrawals. Additionally, directly across from our hotel is an Omega Petrol station featuring a large shop that offers yogurts and fruit juices.

How to get there?

The Trans Gambia Highway spans 260km and traverses Gambia for a brief stretch, including a bridge crossing over the Gambia River..

Beyond Gambia, the road conditions deteriorate significantly, with numerous potholes. The complete trip takes approximately seven hours by private car.

We encountered minimal issues with border formalities as our driver opted for lesser-known trails to bypass corrupt customs officials.

An alternative route is through Banjul/Serekunda in Gambia, which requires taking the ferry at Barra.

Hotels/Restaurants

Hotel Kadiandoumagne ****

A great hotel that is beautifully situated on the river. Very large terrace. The swimming pool is disappointing.

The price (€68) quality ratio is fine, especially because this includes an excellent breakfast buffet!

The lunch and dinner are fine.

A daily menu (three courses) costs 10,000 = €15. If you order a menu separately, you will end up with a beer between €35 and €40 (2 persons).

Hotel Le Perroquet (=Parrot) ***

Next to hotel Kadiandoumagne and a good choice if you want to spend less money on an overnight stay. A room here costs only €27 but will undoubtedly be of lesser quality than at hotel Kadiandoumagne

A main meal for two with beer costs only €15 here. A pint of Gazelle also costs half (€2.25 instead of €4.50)

Cafés

Café Kassa, A wide selection of alcoholic beverages, draft beers and simple dishes with average ratings..

What can you do there?

It is very nice that hotel Kadiandoumagne offers various excursions in the area that are also affordable.

Travel further:

The Guinea Bissau border is 15 kilometers away. Typically, one would take a Taxi Brousse from the Gare Routière straight to Bissau. However, due to the strike, this option was unavailable, and we resorted to hiring a private taxi to reach the border..

From the border you can take a moto taxi to Sao Domingo.

From the bus station in Sao Domingo, you can catch a taxi brousse to Varela.

The journey to Cap Skirring on the Atlantic Ocean is a brief 70 km, taking just over an hour. The Taxi Brousse charges about €3.00 per seat. By purchasing all 7 seats for around €20, you can enjoy the luxury of private transportation!

Please note!

Traveling from Cap Skirring to Varela in Guinea Bissau is not possible directly due to the absence of a border crossing. Therefore, one must return to Ziguinchor and proceed to Varela through the designated border crossing.

Le Perroquet tip: “The hotel next door may not be as upscale, but the atmosphere feels more like our own. The rooms are priced at CFA 18,000, which is half the cost of our hotel.”

To the Guinea Border

We arranged for a taxi at our hotel’s reception; it cost CFA 20,000 (€30) to the border. It was expensive, but transportation was halted due to the National Strike. The customs check was very straightforward. Afterwards, we took a moped ride to Sao Domingo, which was 10 km away.

SENEGAL 18 miljoen inhabitants

Capital: Dakar 3,5 mln. GDP per capita = $ 1558 (nominal)

President: Macky Sall (64) since 2012

Travel guide:

Arrival

Blaise Diagne International Airport;

The new airport is located 45 km outside Dakar; There is a rail connection to Dakar under construction that is not yet ready. The connection will be ready in 2025., Early 2023 I thought the construction work was already quite advanced. The TER will transport passengers to the center of Dakar in 45 minutes.

Until then you will have to take a taxi that costs around € 30. There is also an Express bus that costs around € 20 for two people.

Sim enzo:

Money;

CFA 1000 = just over €1.50

The CFA is linked to the Euro.

You can withdraw cash from an ATM right after the airport check-in. Although a commission fee is unavoidable, it’s necessary. To avoid extra charges, always choose to withdraw without currency conversion. While ATMs are available in larger towns, you won’t find one in smaller villages like Toubab Dialaw.

Mobile Money

You could try it once: money on your phone via your provider. When purchasing a sim card, have a mobile money account created. Then you can pay with your phone in many places via a QR code.

Transport within Senegal;

There are government buses under the name Dem Dikk but their frequency outside the Dakar region is not great.

There are also other bus companies but I have not been able to find any information about them.

The majority of transportation is carried out using collective taxis, typically old French Peugeots (504) and Renaults. These vehicles often cram 5 to 6 people (four in the back and one or two in the front) into a standard car, and 9 to 10 people (two sets of four in the back and one or two in the front) into a station wagon. The latter is also known as Taxi Sept, or Taxi Brousse, which refers to old buses with around 14 seats. Adding to the confusion, Taxi Sept is occasionally also referred to as Taxi Brousse.

TIP: Purchasing additional seats can provide you with more space and also benefit other passengers.

Accommodation:

A wide choice of hotels, the best hotel search engine in my opinion:

The four hotels we visited in the Senegal part of our trip are all recommended;

However, two hotels exceeded our budget norm of €45.00 (without breakfast) and €55 including breakfast.

Sodo Bade €33 per night excluding breakfast/ Blue Africa €41 including, very basic breakfast, per night/ Hotel Relais Kaolack €60 including breakfast and Hotel Kadiandoumagne €68 including breakfast.

Best room; Hotel Kadiandoumagne.

Best Restaurant: Sodo Bade (but Kadiandoumagne as a good second)

Appearance: Sodo Bade

Best facilities; Hotel Relais Kaolack; beautiful swimming pool.

Most beautiful surroundings; the location of all four hotels was beautiful, although Sodo Bade takes the cake

Extra plus: Hotel Blue Africa is located on the sea with its own beach!

Route through Senegal

As mentioned before: Toubab Dialow – Mbour (1 hour) >>Mbour- Kaolack 110 km (2 hours); good road

Kaolack Ziguinchor ;7 hours 260 km; partly very bad road!

Price level;

On average we spent €130 per day in Senegal (according to our budget) and that is very reasonable because we traveled through Senegal entirely by private transport due to the transport strike.

We spent an estimated €225 on additional transport costs

Dakar Airport;

Taxi Dakar airport to Toubab CFA18000 (= €28) ; common price CFA 20000. Hard to bargain

Sobo Bade:

Main meal with 2x 0.63 cl beer and 2 x 0.33 beer € 29

2x omelette coffee 9000 €14

0.63cl beer €2.30

Main meal in their restaurant; (2×) + 4 x 0.63 beer = € 28

Taxi Mbour ride 1500-2000 CFA

Mbour;

Hotel Blue Africa: same price level as Sodo Bade. Hotel €41 incl. French breakfast .

Private Taxi Mbour – Kaolack €75

Kaolack;

Relais hotel Kaolack €60 including breakfast

Tuna salad at this hotel €5.25

Gazelle 0.63Cl at this hotel CFA2000:   €3.00

Taxi Kaolack – Zinginchor CFA 100,000 = €150

Zinginchor;

Guinea Bissau visa in 10 minutes 25,000 €40 pp

Hotel Kadiandoumagne. in Ziguinchor €68 incl breakfast

Daily menu 3 courses  € 15 p.p

Gazelle 0.63 cl. = € 4.50 ; hotel next door (Perroquet) but half!

Perroquet: 2x main course 2x drink= €15

Zinguinchor – Bissau •22 January 2023• 33°

Road Map; Border till Sao Domingo= good. Sao Domingo- Bissau = first part = moderate; second part= bad

Guinea-Bissau is a former Portuguese colony, a great opportunity to enjoy one of my favorite dishes again: Bacalhau, the Portuguese word for cod, which in culinary context refers to dried and salted cod.

Unlike Senegal, there are hardly any (French) tourists here, but there are people who work for an NGO. We know this atmosphere from other (African) countries we have visited.

Bacalhau with baked potato and onions = CFA 10.000 = €15.

Bissau•23 Januari 2023• 30°

An exciting day. Will we be able to get Annemarie’s e-visa for Guinea Conakry quickly? Our guesthouse is diagonally opposite the embassy. If we don’t succeed, our trip will look very different. Bissau is still very Portuguese-oriented. In the restaurants, the TV is always set to Portugal, including the weather forecast. There are many Portuguese. The language is a problem; almost no one speaks a language other than Portuguese, which is very difficult. The city has a unique atmosphere with its dilapidated colonial buildings. The number of (old) Mercedes cars driving around here is striking. We first go to the embassy before making further plans. Around ten o’clock we were received by a high-ranking official, or was it the ambassador himself? A friendly man. We understood that he would arrange it. In the end, we agreed that if we had not received an e-mail with the e-visa in PDF by 14:00, we would come back at 15:00. We went for a city walk; there is not much to do here. There are many dilapidated buildings, which has its charm. During our walk we didn’t find a place to have a drink. We returned to our restaurent where we had an omelette for breakfast this morning. Cafe Imperio is the place to be! This afternoon we spent another hour at the embassy and we got Annemarie’s e-visa. Our trip can continue. What a hassle, but it’s finally over!

Yes, there is a real Spar supermarket here, but it is very expensive. Cheese and dairy are twice as expensive as in our country, so only for expats. We went for an evening walk. After 7 pm it gets dark. It is one of the strangest capitals I have ever seen.

Yesterday we both got food poisoning at the restaurant where we had dinner the day before 🙃🙃 We are in bed exhausted. Fortunately, we have plenty of time. On Monday we fly to Conakry via Dakar. Today and tomorrow we will recover and then we want to visit a place in the area in a mangrove area.

Bissau• January 25, 2023•24°

What a country. We have recovered nicely. We are actually only busy arranging and arranging. No money from the ATM. Looking for other ATMs. We wanted to go to a place nearby but is the hotel open there? No phone number, let alone website🤣 and so on. The National Museum is permanently closed. The Swiss who owns our guesthouse is nice and helpful but does he have the necessary information? Has he been living here since ?? Of course it is an experience again… Withdrew money at the airport (well we were the only beings there together with a guard🤣), walked into the city: a large market. And now eat a Hummus on one of the few terraces. Yes there are also Lebanese in West Africa. Tomorrow to Quinhamel 40 km outside Bissau in nature. Annemarie was able to call the hotel via Skype and the owner spoke perfect French.😃 Positive about this country is that you can walk around quietly everywhere without being addressed all the time as often happens in Senegal.

Presidential Palace

Quinhamel•26 Januari 2023• 35°

We took a taxi to the roundabout at the airport, where minibuses leave for Quinhamel. We were charged 5000, although it should have been 2×1000 plus 1000 for luggage. A passenger in the front of the van said that it was now full and that we could leave because the Brancos (whites) had paid for two. The van left and more passengers got on along the way. It was only an hour’s drive. I saw on my satnav where we had to get off, but despite my shouting “stop”, the driver kept going until he stopped at the turnoff for another hotel. Luckily this was also the end point and he turned back from there. We got off at the right place and a short but hot 20 minute walk in the blazing sun awaited us. Annemarie with her 13kg rucksack and daypack, and me with my hybrid wheeled suitcase through the sometimes loose sand. And then we were there. A beautiful place.

Quinhamel; Indum Mar • 26 Januari 2023• 36°

Quinhamel•27 Januari 2023•28°

So far we are the only guests. The river near our hotel has almost dried up this morning, which indicates a large tidal range. We went for a walk and got a lot of attention. “Branco! Branco!” Around 10:00 it is already too hot to walk for long. We are on the central square, a remnant from the Portuguese period, something you often see in countries with a Spanish or Portuguese influence. There are always benches. It is striking that school children have to bring their own chair. On the way back we come across a large termite mound. It is scorching hot and there is little shade. Fortunately, the water near our hotel is a tributary of a river that is directly connected to the sea. It is clean and salty, just like seawater. We swam in it for almost an hour. 🙂🏊‍♂️

Quinhamel•28 Januari 2023•28°

Explored the immediate surroundings of our place. Tide area, abandoned cotton plantation, baobab trees. Nice swimming but at the edge of the water there are pointy stones.😕 My Decathlon swimming shoes were swallowed up in the suction mud yesterday.🤕🏊‍♀️ At the weekend it is busy here with day trippers from Bissau. During the week you are alone here.🙂 A world of difference. “Enjoy” the noise🥵 Ordered another liter of sumo naturel, monkey bread tree juice or baobab juice. Deliciously sour and healthy. It is the only pure fruit juice that is available here (and in several other) places. Now there is also a hint of Hibiscus in it, hence the red color. The crowds are over at 7 p.m. and it is quiet again. This is a good place to digitally detox because the internet works more often than not and when it does work it’s like a wave, just like shortwave radio used to be.

Back in Bissau, tomorrow flying to Conakry•

January 29, 2023•30°

The return trip went smoothly. We are back with the Swiss. We are leaving Guinea Bissau tomorrow. Nice to have visited once. Friendly people and you are not bothered anywhere. Too bad that Portuguese is the language and that communication is therefore impossible. We made a nice trip of 3 days in nature on our own. The beautiful islands off the coast are unfortunately inconvenient to reach. The ferry sails on Friday afternoon to the island of Bubaque and back on Sunday afternoon. That is too short a stay for all that effort (3/4 hour one way) and costs (return €50 pp). So everything is focused on the weekend when the few wealthy Bissauers with the expats present are free.

Guinea-Bissau•29 January 2023• 35°

Tomorrow we fly with Air Senegal first to Dakar in an hour and a half. Then 3 hours at the airport and then we fly back from Dakar to Conakry. There is no direct flight (anymore) from Bissau to Conakry.

•30 January 2023• 28°

We obviously wanted to travel overland from Bissau to Conakry, but the e-visa would only be accepted upon arrival at the airport. So not at the land borders. That is why we are going by plane. There were some problems with the boarding passes, apparently they were not in their system. Good that we were there on time. Eventually we got a handwritten boarding pass. We fly with an ATR 72 to Dakar and it flies a bit lower than such a huge plane. Better view.

Guinea Bissau

Population; 2.3 million. As big as the Netherlands.

Freedom index : 43 ( partly free)

Population GDP per capita (nominal) $857 (Morocco $3900; Netherlands $56,000) Illiteracy is high; about 50%!

Reise Know How 2018 Senegal (German language) ; chapter Guinea Bissau. The Lonely Planet West Africa also pays attention in a chapter to Guinea Bissau. There are no other travel guides specifically about this country

Simcard

We Bought a SIM card in Sao Domingo (10km from the Senegalese border) at a stall at the local bus station. The SIM was activated immediately and worked fine after that.

Apps enzo

Money

CFA Franc: 1000 = €1.50. ATMs are mainly found in Bissau. Not all ATMs are operational or accept (foreign) credit cards. We missed a few times in the centre of Bissau and were eventually able to withdraw money at the airport. Always withdraw more than enough money (at least CFA 200,000/€300). Unfortunately, you cannot withdraw this amount in one go, so that will cost you more commission. Nothing you can do about it!

We withdrew money with a Visa card. I advise everyone who goes to West Africa to take a Visa card with them or buy one. A Mastercard has also been accepted for a while now. You won’t get far with your bank card.

In some expensive hotels you can pay with a credit card as well as at the Spar shop. Everything else is cash. Orange Mobile Money is also possible, but I didn’t use it.

Bissau;

The capital of this country has about 1 million inhabitants. It is one of the smallest capitals in Africa. When we arrived on a Sunday it was completely deserted, but the next day it was a bit busier, although still very quiet compared to other large African cities. There are a lot of blue and white taxis driving around, they are exclusively Mercedes cars, often very old, but there are also some newer ones. Quite strange in such a poor country.

As in most African cities there is also little to see and do here. There is an old city that is largely deserted, but still nice to walk through and you see a lot of old colonial buildings from the Portuguese period that are often dilapidated but that also has its charm. The National Museum is closed indefinitely.

In short; after one day you have seen it all here.

Hotels:

Accommodation is quite expensive in Bissau. Some hotels can be booked online; minimum € 100 per night.

There are a number of hotels that cannot be booked online and are cheaper, such as hotel Kalliste (from €65; with a well-known terrace) and hotel Imperio, around €80, also with a well-known terrace.

A good alternative to the Pensao Creola we visited seems to be Casa Casheu.

Price = €30 per night; source: i overlander )

We stayed overnight in two places in Guinea Bissau:

Pensao Creola *** in Bissau;

Is very centrally located near embassies and government buildings. The owner is Marcel, a Swiss, in his sixties, who is married to a Bissauer. He speaks fluent English, French, German and Portuguese. That is very useful because you can get the necessary information, because the practical information that you can find on the internet is very limited. It is a villa with a garden in which there are two outbuildings with rooms.

Do not expect luxury, it is quite basic. A plus is that there is a kitchen that you can use for a small fee. The use of the refrigerator, which is quite full by the way, is free.

Breakfast is no problem because the Spar supermarket is a 5-minute walk away (very expensive though!) and Hotel Imperio is a 10-minute walk away.

Marcel can be contacted via WhatsApp regarding making a reservation:

+245 96 660 3636 ,  +245 95 637 8439 , +245 96 927 1717

E-Mail: marcelkuehne12@gmail.com

CFA 35,000 / €38 for a small double room with shower and toilet, without breakfast. No air conditioning but a large fan.

Room; small and quite stuffy. It is clean. The large fan works reasonably well. The bed is OK **

Sanitary facilities are cramped, but shower works well. ***

Location; Top, close to almost everything. Quiet neighborhood. ****

Atmosphere; very diverse guests come to stay here; interns, backpackers, us. ****

Price/quality *** Despite the negative points, in my opinion one of the best options in Bissau..

Restaurants:

Hotel Imperia ***; covered terrace, breakfast; 2x omelette, 2x cappuccino + 1 cup of espresso = €12

Padeira Africa ****;

Excellent Portuguese food; 2x main course + 4 x 0.4 liter beer = €34. Beer price = €1.50 for 0.4 liter.

Papa Loco ***;

Small outdoor terrace on a fairly busy street; fast food-like interior inside; expensive

Lebanese owner; lunch for two; €16.50; Two main courses and 1 dessert + water €36

Terrace:

Hotel Kalliste; 1 Coca Cola €1.15

How to get there?

By plane. Bissau’s small airport has only a few connections; to Dakar, Casablanca, Cape Verde, Lisbon and Abidjan.

By road via Ziguinchor in Senegal (which is what we did) or via Guinea at Buruntuma or Gandembel, N3 towards Conakry.

How do you get around the city?

With the blue Mercedes taxi from 500CFA (0.75) or just walk.

Excursies vanuit Bissau:

Met OV naar Hotel Indumar in Quinhamel;

SEE ALSO BLOG GUINEA BISSAU OF PIK INFO!

Excursions from Bissau:

By public transport to Hotel Indumar in Quinhamel;

A fun do-it-yourself excursion with public transport to the beautifully situated Hotel Indumar in the mangrove area. The hotel cannot be booked online and there is also no app. Just make an old-fashioned local call; the owner speaks French (and a little English).

Take a group taxi across the street from the guesthouse to the Rotunda at the airport (see first map/ red circle/ second map white circle). Costs 1000 CFA (€1.50 p.p.). From the indicated location the buses leave for Quinhamel. Costs CFA 1000 pp + luggage 500 pp, total 3000 (€4.50). Get off at the indicated spot – white star (use your navigation on Google Maps and say “STOP” at the right time! Say very clearly that you have to go to Indumar (and not to Mar Azul – that is a bit further). Walk into the path on the other side of the road and with a fifteen minute walk you are at Indumar! (white circle)

Hotel Indumar. >> RECOMMENDED

€54, including breakfast.

Room **** spacious large bright room with excellent bed. Air conditioning works well

Sanitary *** Shower OK

Location ***** beautifully situated in mangrove area on a side arm of a river with tides.

Restaurant ***** delicious fish and seafood dishes; fish dish, 2 persons with 1 liter of fruit juice around €30 total.

Downside; on Saturday (afternoon) and Sunday (afternoon) day trippers come from Bissau and the speaker is on.

Price / quality ratio *****

What can you do here?

First of all, enjoy nature from the terrace, the river with tides and sunset sun

You can swim wonderfully in the salt water at high tide, but be careful with the bottom. Especially during the transition to low tide, the mud can develop considerable suction. I lost my scuba shoes because of it!

You can also take a canoe on the tributary.

You can walk around in the immediate vicinity of the hotel. You can also walk to the village of Quinhamel along a road with beautiful tall trees. Finally, you can go to Ondame, the end of the road from Bissau, but transport there is limited and you may have to wait a while.

There are also possibilities with a boat on the main river at high tide, but I have not investigated that further.

From Bissau to Indumar by Public Transport

Bisagos Islands

The ferry from Consulmar sails on Friday afternoon (sometimes in the morning) to Bubaque, and back on Sunday afternoon. The sailing time is 3 to 4 hours. So you only have one and a half days on Bubaque and you also have to cross the island from the harbour to the beautiful beaches on the other side of the island. Very short. As a foreigner you pay twice as much; €25 one way per person.

Alternative;

Friday there and a week later Sunday back; you will then be on that island for ten days.

Or arrange a private boat via Consulmar but that is (very) expensive and then it is no longer a backpacker trip…

The same applies to the other islands.

Also interesting to visit in Guinea Bissau:

Varela

At Sao Domingo (directly across the border with Senegal) you can take a collective taxi to Varela. Takes two hours on a rough road. We had also planned a visit but due to problems with Anne-Marie’s e-visa for Guinea (Conakry) we skipped it.

Varela is the only place in Guinea Bissau located directly on the Atlantic Ocean and has a beautiful sandy beach. For more information see for example this blog. Price level Guinea Bissau

Price level;

Taxi to border from Zinguinchor 20,000 (€30)

Moto Taxi (two) border to GR Sao Domingo 10,000 (€15) together

Taxi Brousse to Bissau 2500 (€4) pp

Simcard 10 gb 10,000

Restaurant Padeira Africa €34 2x main course and 4 beers 0.4 liter

Nb beer is €1.50 for 0.4 liter

Breakfast: 2x omelette 2 cappuccino and 1 small cup of coffee €12

Pensao Creole 23000 = €35 per night (no breakfast)

Taxi Bissau, longer ride 3000 (€4.50)

Short ride 500 pp (0.75)

Cafe Imperia, omelette simple 2000 (€3.00)

Papa Loco Lebanese Luch 11000 €16.50

Terras Kaliste 2x cola 1500 Cfa= €1.15 per glass

How to Quinhamel. Departure rotunda at airport minibus.

minibus to Quinhamel 5000 together, should actually be 1000 pp + luggage.

Indum Mar

Overnight stay 35k €54. Including breakfast

Meals from €9.00

1 liter baobab juice €5.00

Bill Indumar: 59k (€90) rounded off with tip 70k.

3x dinner + juice = average €30 each time

Papa Loco €36. 2x for 1x main 1x dessert + water

TRAVEL BLOG CONTINUED

The flight from Bissau to Dakar with Air Senegal is beautiful because we fly with a relatively small plane that always flies at a lower altitude. You can follow the coastline very nicely and see the mouths of the many rivers.

•30 Januari 2023•25°

Ended up in our hotel last night. Room is ok. Shower hose is broken but yes, it’s Africa. Our hotel has no service whatsoever, no breakfast, polluted swimming pool and is located in a kind of slum. A large fence closes off the site from the rest. It is a very hectic third world city. Not pleasant, but we already knew that from 5 years ago. Scammed by the laundromat, a glass of fresh juice €5, yes in one of the poorest countries in the world… Delete 4 zeros in the prizes and round up; Then you have the amount in € . So get out! Tomorrow we will start our route through the mountainous interior of Guinea to Liberia. Back to our hotel was quite a tour. There are only collect taxis that drive a certain route. We had to change trains and then ended up in traffic chaos that cannot be described. In the end, someone offered to take us to our hard-to-find hotel for 90,000 francs = €9 with his wrecked car.😐🫤

Conakry;

Wat to see, What to do?

A typical large African city with more than 3 million inhabitants. I read an
article somewhere in which the expectation was expressed that Conakry will be
one of the largest cities in the world by 2100. Who knows..

Five years ago we also visited this chaotic city as the starting point of
our Guinea/Sierra Leone trip. We also visited the excellent point,  called Kaloum
and the actual center. > see chapter Guinea). This time we had booked the
cheapest hotel to book online; the Zambezi Inn for around €50. Moreover, this
hotel was quite close to the airport and close to the exit road to the outside.
It was quite a downer; This hotel is located in a slum-like area enclosed by a
large wall. There is no service whatsoever, no breakfast, no restaurant, you
can’t get a bottle of water yet. The accompanying swimming pool is heavily
polluted. Immediately regret that we had booked two nights. But yes.. The room
itself was fine.

The next day we had the plan to go to the ile de Los in the afternoon,
thought we would use the morning hours for some necessary things like Laundry
and SIM card. It turned out a little differently: due to the enormous traffic
chaos, it takes a lot of time to move around the city with a (collectible)
taxi. Everything is stuck. Around noon we decided to abandon our plan to go to
the island of Kassa (the fastest accessible island from Conakry). Just to get
to the harbor we might have to stand in a traffic jam for an hour in the
sweltering heat and exhaust fumes and then have to go back to the place where
we had dropped off our dirty laundry.

What is there to see;

The enormous traffic chaos and daily life in this large West African city.

National Museum; Not visited because of the enormous traffic chaos, you read
very different reviews about it.

There is nothing special to see….

TIPS

What is there to see;

The enormous traffic chaos and daily life in this large West African city.

National Museum; Not visited because of the enormous traffic chaos, you read very different reviews about it.

There is nothing special to see..

.. If you are in Kaloum, the actual “center” then you have a terrace at hotel Mlys which is very rare in this city to take a breather.

Pension Palmiers, *** where we stayed 5 years ago is the best affordable choice with prices around €80. Lebanese owner. Hotel Zambezi Inn is not recommended.

Restaurant Obama is a must, located on a pier in the water. In Kaloum there are a number of Lebanese restaurants that you should only visit if you are already in the area!

For SIM cards (Orange) and a supermarket you have to go to the Prima Center. There are also some restaurants there.

Moving around in the city is done with the help of (collectible) taxis. Tuk Tuks also run in some neighborhoods.

There are also moto taxis, but they are fought by the government.

What should we perhaps have visited again?

We skipped the island of Kassa, part of Iles de Lo because we wanted to get out of Conakry as soon as possible

There are three main islands: Tamara (Fortoba), Kassa and Roume. Île de Corail, Île Blanche, Île Cabris, Île Poulet, Îlot Cabri and Îlot de la Bouteille are smaller islands in the south. Of all the islands, only Kassa and Roume are designed for tourists. On Île Tamara, the outer island of Îles de Los, there is an old lighthouse. This small tower is built on a large boulder so that the light can still be clearly seen from afar. The most beautiful sandy beach can be found on Île de Roume. Kassa also has a beautiful sandy beach