Tour Overview
From the streets of Accra, to Kumasi’s rich culture, to the historic Cape Coast and the lush landscapes of Ivory Coast, this tour promises to be an epic journey. Explore the stunning natural wonders, engage with local communities, and immerse yourself in the rich cultural heritage of West Africa. With expert guides, comfortable accommodations, and carefully curated experiences, you'll get the most out of your trip. Not forgetting the Social iImpact you would have on these communities as you travel.
Day 1- Accra
Arrival
Upon arrival at the airport, a ZayVoyage by SARI Representative will pick you up at the Kotoka International Airport and drop you off at your hotel. The guide will assist you with check-in, take you through your itinerary, and answer any questions regarding your stay in Ghana.
Overnight Stay in Accra
Day 2 - Kumasi
Bonwire Kente Weaving Village & Ntonso Adinkra Craft Village
After breakfast, you will leave Accra for Kumasi, the land of cultural heritage and immersion.
You will detour en route to visit the Bonwire Kente Weaving Village. This village is the home of kente production in the Ashanti Region. You will be among experienced weavers who make different designs, colours, and variations of kente clothes suitable for various occasions. You will get to try your hand at the loom and attempt to weave some kente strips.
From there, you will continue to the Ntonso Adinkra Craft Village. Artisans curate different symbols that represent principles, beliefs, and attributes of life, put together as Adinkra symbols. These symbols are carved and used as designs and prints on the local kente fabrics or plain clothes. These designs are worn to special occasions and are currently used for contemporary cultural expressions.
Overnight Stay in Kumasi
Day 3 - Kumasi
Kumasi City Tour
From the hotel, you will take a drive through the famous Kejetia Market, the Largest open market in West Africa
Your first stop is the Manhyia Palace Museum, the historical building where kings have ruled and heritages have been preserved. A walk through this palace will give you a vivid understanding of the hierarchy of chieftaincy, the kings who have ruled the Ashanti Kingdom, and how the Asantes have fought to keep the kingdom alive and together. Feel a part of the Asante people and reflect on their struggles.
Next, you will visit the Prempeh II Jubilee Museum, in the Centre for Arts and National Culture. Located at the centre of business in Kumasi, the museum is a building that has been set up to pass on the heritage of the Asantes through artifacts, pictures, and demonstrations. This projects the legacies of the King, Prempeh II, his struggles and contributions in building the Asante kingdom.
Your final stop for the day is the Okomfo Anokye Sword Site, where the immovable sword planted by the high priest of Asante, Okomfo Anokye, can be found. This sword is said to be the reason for a unified Ashanti Kingdom. Once removed, the Kingdom is allegedly bound to collapse or fall apart. The sword has been in its place for centuries, and every attempt to take it out has proven futile.
Overnight Stay in Kumasi
Day4 - Cape Coast
Assin Manso Slave River Site & Cape Coast Castle
After breakfast this morning, you will drive from Kumasi to Cape Coast
En route, you will make a significant stop at the Assin Manso Slave River Site, an important part of the history of slavery. This is where the slaves took their last bath after their long journey, shaved their beards, and were made to look presentable and ready for sale. They were branded based on who they belonged to before they were dispatched to the castles and awaited shipment. This was a very emotional and spiritual journey especially for those in the diaspora
From there, your next visit is to the Cape Coast Castle, the youngest of the three slave castles in Ghana, yet the most significant in the history of slavery. It was built at the peak of slavery to accommodate more slaves who were taken through the door of no return to the “new world”. This is a very significant site in the Emancipation Day celebration, as the remains of two descendants of our ancestors who were taken through the door of no return were brought back symbolically through that door of no return. This is to signify the welcome of all diasporans to Ghana and the continent of Africa on behalf of our ancestors who did not get the chance to.
You will have the rest of the day to engage in some Wellness Activity of your choice. You can have some beach relaxation, spa and massage sessions, yoga sessions, read a book or any other activity you consider wellness.
Overnight Stay in Cape Coast
Day 5 - Western Region
Boat Ride, Nzulezu Village & Social Impact Activities
From Cape Coast, you will drive your way to the Western Region
You will be visiting the Nzulezu Village on stilts. Before you get to the village, you will cruise on a local boat ride on the Amazuri River to Nzulezu. You will be taken through their history and how they found themselves on water. Through a walking tour of the village, you will learn how their houses are built and maintained, their school and how they are managed, and about their religious life as well.
You will have some community engagement at Nzulezu and engage in some Social Impact Activities for the community. This is a way of giving back, encouraging and empowering them to be more and do more for themselves.
Overnight stay in the Western Region
Day 6 - Abidjan
Arrival in Abidjan, Hotel Relaxation & Wellness Activity
This morning after breakfast, you will drive from the Western Region to Abidjan, Ivory Coast
Upon arrival in Abidjan, the guide will assist you with check in. You will have the rest of the day to relax at the hotel, read a book, take a walk around the hotel, visit the beach, have a massage/ spa session, or engage in any wellness activity or experience you like.
Overnight Stay in Abidjan
Day 7 - Abidjan
Chocolate Making & Street Food Tour
This morning, you will have the Chocolate Making experience in Abidjan. As one of the leading producers of cocoa in the world, this is an experience you will not want to miss while in Cote D’Ivoire . You will be involved in making chocolate bars in different shapes and sizes, and take them along with you.
From there, you will hit the streets of Abidjan to have a taste of some of the famous street foods they are known for. You will try foods like attieke, alloco, choukouya, poulet piquet, banana braise, pain brochette among many other delicious and attractive street food options.
Overnight stay in Abidjan
Day 8 - Yamoussoukro
Traditional Dance and Weaving Experience & Cathedral Notre Dame de la Paix
This morning, you will drive from Abidjan to Yamoussoukro
You will first engage yourself in some traditional dance experience. You would learn to play the traditional drums while you learn some traditional dance moves from professional performers.
After, you would stop at the small weaving villages like Bomizambo and Siakere, and have the traditional weavers experience. You would learn how to make the famous traditional Baoule cloth, which is not only a valuable craft work but a significant cultural symbol. In the Baoule culture, the art of making the Baoule traditional cloth has been reserved exclusively to the males.
You will make a final stop at the Cathédrale Notre Dame de la Paix, the biggest/highest basilica in the world, also known as the Basilica of Our Lady of Peace of Yamoussoukro. It was completed in 1990 and can host about 18,000 people/worshippers. The architectural design of the church is a very fascinating site to behold.
You will drive from Yamoussoukro back to Abidjan
Overnight Stay in Abidjan
Day 9 - Abidjan
Assinie - Bassam
You will experience a three hour Boat ride on the biggest lagoon of the country, the Ebrie Lagoon exploring the mangroves and appreciating the small islands found on the lagoon. This boat ride will take you to the Old Town across the lagoon to learn about the colonial history of Ivory Coast and their struggle for independence.
You will finally get to have some time for beach relaxation at the beach town in Grand Bassam.
Overnight Stay in Abidjan
DAY 10 -15
Day 10 - Abidjan
Arts Market Visit & Costume Museum
On this day, you will visit the Arts Market in Abidjan. This is to look through and purchase some arts and crafts inspired by Africa and the local people to take as souvenirs back home. You will get some already-made African dresses, shirts, wood-works and carvings, paintings, traditional fashion accessories, some Baoule traditional fabrics, among many other things. The sellers will be persuasive in their bid to get you to look at the wares since there are various stalls with similar items.
Your next visit is to the Costume Museum located in Grand Bassam in Ivory Coast. Initially built as a palace in 1892, it was converted into a museum 1981 by the first president of Ivory Coast, Felix Houphouet Boigny. It takes you back in time through the different costumes used in different eras of Ivory Coast history; from the attires worn by the chiefs and kings of Korhogo to the fashion and social costumes of those eras. This African arts museum not only gives you the idea of fashionable attire overtime but also other artifacts, sculptures and paintings.
Drive Back from Abidjan to the Western Region
Day 11 - Cape Coast
Hotel Relaxation & Wellness Activity
You will depart this morning from the Western Region to the Central Region
Upon arrival at Cape Coast, as part of our social impact initiative, you will engage the Cape Coast School for the Deaf and Blind. You will give out donations and talk with the students to motivate them and make them feel included and seen in society.
Ater, you will have the rest of the day at the hotel to engage in some wellness activities like spa and massage sessions, yoga sessions, reading a book and having a moment to yourself.
Drive Back from the Western Region to Cape Coast
Day 12 - Cape Coast
Elmina Castle & Kakum National Park
You will head for Accra from Cape Coast on this day after breakfast.
Before you leave, you will first visit the Elmina Castle, the oldest European building below the Sahara, built in 1482 by the Portuguese. This slave dungeon was initially built as a warehouse to store trade goods that were bartered between the Europeans and Africans. These warehouses were later converted to dungeons to keep slaves when the attention was shifted from the trade of goods to human trade. This is where it all started.
You will first visit the Kakum National Park, the second largest national park in Ghana, home to various plant and animal species. Here, you will take about a 20-minute hike through the national park towards the Canopy walkway constructed in 1995 by 2 Canadians and 6 Ghanaians. You will take a 350-meter-long walk on a suspension bridge, 11 to 40 meters above the ground. You will see the forest from above and appreciate nature amid chirping birds and some butterflies.
Drive back to Accra
Overnight Stay in Accra
Day 13 - Accra
Accra City Tour
After breakfast, you will have a late morning pickup to start an Accra city tour
Your next stop is the Kwame Nkrumah Memorial Park, where the first president of Ghana, Osagye Dr. Kwame Nkrumah stood to declare the independence of Ghana. The site has a museum which houses his personal belongings; from the items he used while in School, gifts he received, items he used during his presidency, and some books he authored. The site also houses the mausoleum where he and his wife were buried.
You will make a stop at the Arts and Crafts Market to purchase some Ghanaian-made and inspired arts and crafts to take as souvenirs back home. You will get some already-made African dresses, shirts, wood-works and carvings, paintings, traditional fashion accessories, some Ashanti Kente and Northern Smock fabrics, among many other things. The sellers will be persuasive in their bid to get you to look at the wares since there are various stalls with similar items.
Your final visit will be the Independence Square, also known as the Black Star Square. It is a vast area built for national gatherings in 1961 by Dr. Kwame Nkrumah, the first president of Ghana, that can host about 30,000 people. It has other monuments like the Independence Arc, the Monument of Liberation, and the Independence Gate. This site is bordered by the ocean, Accra Sports Stadium, and the Osu/Christiansborg Castle.
You would finally visit the Fantasy Coffin making site. Funerals in Ghana, aside being a solemn moment for family and friends, are a time for celebration of the deceased's life spent on earth. Coffins at this site are made in accordance to what job the deceased did and what they loved most. The shoe maker can have a shoe coffin while the fisherman can have a fish or boat like coffin and so on. This is an interesting craftsmanship reflected in the culture of the Ghanaian people.
Overnight in Accra
Day 14 - Accra
Hotel Relaxation & Wellness Activity
You will have this day to relax at the hotel, read a book, take a walk around the hotel, visit the beach, have a massage/ spa session, or engage in any wellness activity or experience you like.
Overnight Stay in Accra
Day 15 - Accra
Departure
This is the day for your final departure from the shores of Ghana back home.
Depending on your time of departure, you will have some time for last-minute shopping and packing. Our guide will be at your hotel to pick you up for the Kotoka International Airport for your final departure.
