Gabon
Gabon, located on the west coast of Central Africa, is a worthy destination for off-the-beaten-path travelers. It’s an (expensive) hidden gem of a country, with enough destinations to keep you occupied for 1 week or more. Gabon is home to lush forests, beaches, and diverse wildlife—including the notable forest elephant.
With its natural beauty and biodiversity, Gabon is an ideal destination for nature lovers and adventure seekers alike.
We visited Gabon for 5 days, right after Sao Tome and Principe, as part of our honeymoon! Five days were definitely not enough time to explore Gabon and on our last day, we regretted not spending more time.
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Airport Tips
Upon arrival, you must show your yellow fever vaccination card (so remember to bring it!). Then you’ll be told by security to sit on the blue chairs.
Next, airport staff will take your passport; don’t fight it. Just wait and be kind until your turn is called. The staff needs to check your visa if you got it in advance in their system and take a photocopy of your passport.
We got asked a lot of questions about who we were staying with, why we were there, as well as the addresses and full names of accommodation hosts. Keep a printout of your reservation and your host’s (or travel company’s) number.
There is no wifi in the airport so be sure you have whatever you need downloaded or printed.
Visas
There are evisa counters for those who manage to get evisa. We submitted evisa requests and they were automatically canceled. Mine was canceled after 3 weeks but Wilhelm’s was canceled after just a day.
We were told that the evisa system rarely works and it is best to go to your closest embassy. We got our visas at the embassy in Pretoria and it took 5 days to get them once we submitted all the paperwork in person.
Sim cards
It’s worth it to wait for a sim card at the Airtel counter. I bought a 10 GB sim card for Wilhelm and me to share data. Although one lodge wasn’t even close to any sort of mobile signal, our other hostel didn’t have wifi.
Cash
Cash is king. We found it impossible to do bank transfers to Gabon for our hotels. Wilhelm’s South African and Swedish banks both didn’t allow it and my US bank had a $1,000 minimum! Take out cash from the bank right next to Paul’s at the airport.
For restaurants and shopping in Libreville, many take credit cards but it’s good to also carry some cash. Additionally, Visa cards are more commonly accepted in comparison to Mastercards (and only a few take American Express).
Language
Unless you have a private tour with a dedicated guide in your language, you will need to know some basic French to get by in Gabon. We encountered very few English speakers throughout the trip. We got lucky with one of our lodges as one of the co-owners was American and translated some of the tours into English but that was super rare.
Getting Around
Libreville
While in Libreville, it is easy to flag down a taxi. Most taxis are shared but you can say “une cours,” and you can pay them enough to take you directly to your destination. We typically paid around 3,000 CFA per stop between different destinations in town.
Taxies don’t really slow down and have a conversation with you. They roll by slowly and you are expected to yell out your destination and the price. On our first couple of rides, I would ask the driver how much and he would turn around and tell me it’s up to me to decide. I’d say budget around 3,000 for a 10-minute ride and add or subtract based on that.
Private transfer
Rather than deal with public transport, you can organize private guide services with reliable companies in Gabon. On our first transfer to get from Libreville to Lambaréné, we used 241 Tours. 241 Tours came recommended by both our lodge and in the Bradt guidebook.
You can contact 241 Tours on WhatsApp at +24174035229. We paid via cash.
Here at the Equator Mark, our private driver from 241 Tours stopped to take our picture.
Buy a Guidebook
I highly recommend you buy the Bradt guidebook to help you get by in Gabon. It was so helpful for us as there actually isn’t a lot of information on traveling in Gabon on the internet. Make sure you buy the latest edition (which was #2 in 2023).
The cell phone numbers included (that we used) were all active and it made us feel more aware of where and what was available rather than relying on Google Maps, which you can’t really do in Gabon.
Gabon Guides
Bugs and Malaria
Bring A LOT of bug spray or wipes like these from OFF. The OFF wipes are my favorite as I rarely check in a bag— I need something that’ll make it through security. I usually budget 2-3 wipes per day to totally avoid bugs.
Otherwise, make sure you stop first thing at a pharmacy and buy some spray. You will need it. The mosquitos are intense, and malaria is present in Gabon. Take malaria pills, or whatever is advised by your doctor. You can buy Malaria antibiotics over the counter in Gabon too. We were advised by a local to buy some pills before we leave Gabon, “just in case.” We didn’t end up doing that but it’s an option.
Due to our back-to-back travel, I’m not sure if this happened in Gabon or Sao Tome, but I did get a tick bite and eventually tick bite fever (probably around 7 days after the tick bite). Just be careful. My tick had fallen off so I never saw the body, instead, I thought it was a mosquito bite until it was too late. The ticks here don’t carry Lyme disease but I can tell you—tick bite fever is not fun. I think my problem was that because it was raining a lot, I was wearing sandals instead of closed hiking shoes. I got the tick on my foot. If I was wearing proper shoes every day, I likely wouldn’t have been bit. Learn from my mistake.
Souviners to buy in Gabon
The most important souvenir to buy in Gabon is chocolate! You’ll find Gabon’s most famous chocolate at Les Chocolats Gabonais de Julie. It’s so so good. We bought two boxes of flavored chocolate and several slabs as well. Julie sells her chocolates at her shop in Libreville or you can buy the chocolates at the airport once you pass immigration. We opted to buy some at the shop in town but saved the fancy chocolate purchase for the airport so that we didn’t accidentally melt it during the day.
Les Chocolats Gabonais de Julie
Masks are still used in Gabon in traditional ceremonies. There are several sizes and styles. We purchased a mask for around USD 30 at the artisan market in Libreville. I think it’s a unique souvenir that actually has roots in the country.
We bought the red and turquoise mask in the picture.
Finally, if you are a jewelry lover you should set aside a budget for some of the gold and silver mask jewelry found at the artisan market. I wish these vendors took credit cards because I would have bought something. I’ve never seen work like this before.
Some interesting facts about Gabon
Gabon is one of the oddest destinations to visit. It’s expensive without that much infrastructure. It relies heavily on oil and people still follow traditional ways of life. I was intrigued by many things we came across in Gabon and thought you would be too! Here are some of my google finds from questions I had.
Why is Gabon so expensive?
You’ll notice that everything is expensive in Gabon. Gabon’s economy is heavily dependent on its oil industry, contributing to a strong currency and high standard of living, which drives up prices for goods and services. Additionally, the country has limited infrastructure, which raises the cost of transportation and other basic necessities. Someone also told me that Gabon doesn’t manufacture anything because it doesn’t have to; it can easily import from other countries but there are still high import taxes on items.
Wildlife in Gabon
Gabon is home to rich and diverse wildlife that you should take the time to see. Although we didn’t have the time, I highly recommend you add in one of the national parks to your Gabon trip. You will very likely need a guided tour to be able to access the national park.
The top three national parks are:
- Loango National Park
- Lope National Park
- Ivindo National Park
Gabon’s forest elephants are native to the country’s dense rainforests. These elephants are smaller in size and have rounder ears compared to the African elephants we are more used to seeing.
Primates are also found in Gabon. It’s possible to see gorillas and chimpanzees. Loango National Park and the Ivindo National Park are the two main parks where it’s likely to see these animals.
National Park vs Protected Land
You’ll likely hear that Gabon is 80% protected forests and be amazed! Sure this is true but as we learned protected land doesn’t mean that it’s a national park. While we were in Gabon, we saw a lot of logging activity and we questioned how this could be if all the land is protected…
In Gabon, protected land refers to areas designated for conservation and management for their ecological, cultural, or scientific value. This designation provides varying levels of protection and management, depending on the specific designation and the management plan in place. But what this really means is that on protected land, the government can do whatever they want. Some of this land is used for logging. The tree trunks are humongous and you’ll likely see some once you drive out of Libreville.
On the other hand, national parks are a specific type of protected land, where the primary focus is on the conservation and preservation of the natural resources and biodiversity of the area. National parks have higher levels of protection and management than protected land. The national parks are typically where the eco-tourism and scientific research occurs in the country.
The Bwiti Ceremony and Iboga
While at the National Museum of the Arts in Libreville, we learned about the Bwiti Ceremony. The ceremony centers around the use of the Iboga plant, which contains the psychoactive substance ibogaine. The plant is considered sacred in the Bwiti tradition and is used in spiritual practices, healing, and personal growth.
During the ceremony, participants consume the Iboga plant, usually in the form of a bitter-tasting root bark, and then enter a meditative state that can last for several hours or even days. The ceremony is led by a Bwiti elder, who guides the participants through a series of songs, dances, and rituals that are intended to help them connect with the spiritual world and gain insight into their lives.
The Bwiti Iboga ceremony is often described as a transformative experience, with participants reporting profound spiritual insights, emotional healing, and a renewed sense of purpose and direction in life. We met several locals throughout our trip in Gabon who said they used the plant to “visit” their ancestors to talk to them.
Our guide from 241 Tours told us that it is possible to take a tour to visit how the plant is used. I’d suggest getting in touch with them directly to inquire. Additionally, Westerners have also been traveling recently to Gabon to take part in these ceremonies.
We are not that adventurous, but we did get a sprinkle of iboga in one of our cocktails at Restaurant Mystic Bantu in Libreville. Just a small amount of the power has an effect similar to caffeine… Wilhelm was up much later than normal because of this, haha.
