Ghana
Ghana has a rich cultural heritage and great food. Along the coast, visit Accra and the Cape Coast. Accra, the capital, is a busy and lively city. You can spend the day at museums, national monuments, and eating your way through delicious Ghanian food. The Cape Coast has several castles that supported trading in the 1800s, and later were used for the trans-Atlantic slave trade. Elmina Castle is one of the most famous. In northern Ghana, visit Mole National Park, Ghana’s largest wildlife refuge.
English is the official language in Ghana, so you’ll have no trouble getting around.
Top 3 Things to Do in Ghana
- Walk through the “Door of No Return” at the Cape Coast Castle—the door by which slaves left Ghana to walk onto ships bound for the Americas.
- Visit Jamestown in Accra—a historically working-class fisherman community that now hosts a vibrant art scene with plenty of street art. Look out for the Jamestown Lighthouse
- Eat the local food—Ghanian food is excellent and has plenty of veg options. My favorite dish is Red Red: a black-eyed pea stew with plenty of flavors. Another favorite is jollof rice. Be careful who you ask has the best jollof rice in West Africa. It’s bound to start an argument.
How long to spend in Ghana
I recommend spending at least 4 days in Ghana. Spend a day in Accra and then head out to Cape Coast to visit the castles that were used for the trans-Atlantic slave trade. Plan another couple of days in the north of the country for wildlife sightings.
Getting to Ghana
Bring your yellow fever vaccination card. Visitors from the African Union can get a visa on arrival.
Please visit a Ghanian embassy to get your visa at least 2 weeks in advance of your trip. Visa costs should be around $60.
By Air
Fly directly into Kotoka International Airport.
By Land
It is possible (and relatively easy) to travel by land between Ghana and Togo. We did this in November 2019. There are buses that operate between Lomé and Accra. The bus trip took about 4-5 hours You should check with your lodgings in Togo about getting to Ghana for the most up-to-date information.
Getting Around in Ghana
Ghana has a lot of transportation options. You can use uber, taxis, and minibusses in Accra and other large cities. Take a minibus, a chartered bus, or private transportation to get to other cities. In November 2019, we used minibusses to get between Accra and Elmina.
When to Visit
Visit Ghana in the dry season: October- March. You still may encounter some rain but it’s sporadic. Temperatures vary between 22 ° C and 34 ° C.
Money
Ghana uses Ghanian Cedi (GH₵). It is pronounced, “see-dee.”
Credit cards are widely accepted in larger cities, and even smaller towns have ATMs. That being said it is recommended to always carry cash for smaller transactions.
Safety
We felt safe walking around Accra. Just like anywhere else you go, you should be alert for petty criminals in crowded areas.
BEWARE of scammers: I hate to admit this, but we were completely scammed by a (pretty infamous) criminal who claimed he needed cash for insulin after he was “robbed”. The whole thing was sketchy and later we googled him, and he turns out to scam tourists in a similar way: claiming robbery, injury, and medical attention. While it was happening we were really confused if it was real or not, but he has multiple people corroborate his story (taxi driver, pharmacist…). We felt super stupid afterward. I still feel dumb. Later we googled our incident and there was a running google doc of all the crimes he had committed. I only mention it because the level of scamming was so so high and there are documents on how this particular man gets tourists.
Watch where you swim: I urge you to scope out the water quality situation before jumping into the water. Look for open pipes heading near where you plan to get in the water… and open defecators. We planned to swim in Elmina but there were just too many instances of open defecation (directly into the ocean) that made it look extremely unsanitary. You can easily get infections from untreated wastewater (and waste in water…). To be on the safe side, plan to stay in accommodations that also have a pool. (I wish we did).
