Western Sahara - West Africa

It takes a long time to do a grand land trip across West Africa, and it's impossible for me to do so at the moment. So I decided to start the journey in stages, beginning this time with a trip from Mauritania to Guinea.

Apr 13, 2025
Dakhla

Although it's possible to fly directly to Nouakchott, the capital of Mauritania, an increasingly popular way to start a West African overland trip is from Dakhla, the southernmost city in Western Sahara.

Dakhla itself is gaining more attention from all kinds of tourists. Although it is famous for kitesurfing, there are also many activities for non-surfers. I took a private tour to La Dune Blanche (the White Dune) and Source Asmaa (a hot spring) for 700 dirhams (about 70 EUR). It's not that I prefer private tours — I asked several tour operators and guides if there were other groups going to the same places, but they couldn't find any.

The tour went pretty well. You need to cross some water to reach La Dune Blanche (going barefoot is best) and climb over the dune to the other side for the best view. Source Asmaa (an extra 15 dirhams) is not the typical hot spring you usually see. You don't soak in a pool; instead, a man "attacks" you with high-pressure streams of hot spring water, almost like a massage.

Teapot Monument (Dakhla)

Apr 14, 2025
Dakhla to Nouadhibou

There are three pickup locations in central Dakhla between 8 and 9 a.m. for the Supratours bus to the Mauritanian border: two at different Supratours offices and one at the CTM office. The ticket to the border at Guerguerat cost 190 dirhams, and for an additional 100 dirhams, you could buy a ticket to Nouadhibou in Mauritania. I bought the latter, and it turned out to be a wise choice.

After departing Dakhla, the bus made a restaurant stop around 10 a.m. and eventually reached the border at 2:20 p.m. The border has a lunch break and reopens at 3 p.m., which is perfect for grabbing some hot food at the restaurant there.

It’s relatively straightforward to exit Morocco, while entering Mauritania involves visiting several offices for various procedures and checks. Starting January 2025, you must apply for an e-visa in advance, print a copy, and pay the visa fee of 55 EUR at the border. Since I had bought a bus ticket from Dakhla to Nouadhibou, I was transferred to a separate minibus at the border. The minibus driver helped me with all the immigration formalities, guiding me through the necessary room visits. It’s also possible to exchange money and buy a Mauritanian SIM card while you wait (if no one approaches you, just ask around).

It took about an hour to complete all the immigration procedures to enter Mauritania, and we were back on the road. I asked the minibus driver to drop me off at the train station in Nouadhibou. I was lucky — the train was late again. The train from Nouadhibou to Zouérat (passing through Choum) is supposed to leave Nouadhibou around 3 p.m., but it is often delayed, sometimes until around midnight. I arrived at the station at 5 p.m. and was told the train would arrive in 20 minutes. They sold me a ticket for 300 MRU. I was happy that I had "caught" the train. The train actually arrived at 7 p.m. and departed 40 minutes later.

Unlike what some people say online, there are actually waiting benches and food and drinks for sale inside the "train station," and there is a toilet just outside as well.

Boarding the train was totally chaotic. There are two passenger cars attached to the 2–3 km long iron-ore train. When the train stopped, people fought to get on. Apparently, some folks (and women) without tickets tried to board the passenger cars and argued with the train staff checking tickets, blocking the doors for a while. I finally managed to get inside and immediately saw why people were fighting to get in first: each compartment has two long benches — either one person lies down on a bench or three people sit on it. The people who boarded first tended to grab a whole bench to sleep on.

It wasn’t a big deal for me — the bench is quite narrow, and as a light sleeper, I couldn't sleep well anyway. The bench itself is somewhat soft, and sitting on it is relatively comfortable, even though the backrest is wooden. There were five people in my compartment, and I shared a bench with another guy.

The only annoying thing was the large number of flies, but that problem mostly disappeared once the train started moving. At night, I was amazed to see people trying all sorts of ways to find a more comfortable position to sleep, including lying on the floor.

Nouadhibou Train Station

Apr 15, 2025
Terjit - Chinguetti

When I was half-asleep, I heard a guy in my compartment saying "Choum." It was 5:25 a.m. (9 hours and 45 minutes after departure). I was relieved that the guy was just saying "Choum" to himself, or I might have missed the stop (based on what people posted online, it takes 10-12 hours to get to Choum from Nouadhibou). I quickly grabbed my things and got off the train, double-checking with other passengers that it was indeed Choum. Two minivans were waiting to take passengers to Adar, charging 300 MRU. Somehow, the minivan left an hour later and arrived in Adar two hours after that.

I was looking for shared taxis to Chinguetti and Terjit, but they weren’t readily available (and even if they were, I might have had to wait a long time). A guy approached me offering a private day trip to Terjit and Chinguetti. After some negotiation, we agreed on 150 EUR for the "tour."

We first headed to the Terjit oasis - they charged 200 MRU to enter the final (and best) section of the oasis. It was nice to see some greenery and natural water in the desert, though the "waterfall" didn’t have much water — at least not at this time of year.

After Terjit, the driver took a shortcut to reach Chinguetti. The road was bumpy but quite scenic. It also passed Myairerh Lookout — a good photo opportunity. As the most popular destination in Mauritania, Chinguetti has its charm, especially the distinctive houses in the old town — many of them are half-buried in the sand. The landmark of Chinguetti, the Chinguetti Mosque, can only be seen and photographed from the outside. Unfortunately, all the libraries were closed, and the exteriors weren’t very impressive. There are sand dunes just outside the town, but they didn’t seem too special to me.

Apr 16, 2025
Nouakchott

I arrived at the minibus office for Nouakchott at 8:00 a.m. and was told that the next bus would depart at 9:00 a.m. I bought a ticket for 500 MRU. The bus actually departed at 10:10 a.m., which wasn’t surprising to me. With only one restaurant stop, the bus arrived in the northeastern suburb of Nouakchott at 4:00 p.m. A helpful passenger on the bus assisted me in getting a shared taxi to the city center (a 20-minute ride). I admired the appropriately named Mosquée Saudique (funded by Saudi Arabia) both inside and out, as well as the tallest building in the city, Al Khaima City Center, before checking into a hotel. I asked the hotel to arrange a taxi to take me to Port de Pêche (a port and fish market with all sorts of fish you can imagine).

Having seen so many fish at Port de Pêche, I felt compelled to have some for dinner and asked the taxi driver to drop me at Yoyo Restaurant — they serve grilled fish with salad and rice for 200 MRU, and the owner speaks good English.

Mosquée Saudique

Apr 17, 2025
Saint-Louis

I started my journey early at 7:00 a.m., hoping to reach Dakar by evening, with a brief stop in Saint-Louis for sightseeing. The trip to Saint-Louis involves taking a shared taxi to Rosso, crossing the river into Senegal, a motorcycle ride to the terminal, and another shared taxi to Saint-Louis. The shared taxi doesn’t go to the old town of Saint-Louis, but the driver can drop you at a roundabout, from where you'll need to take a city taxi to the old town.

I came to Saint-Louis mainly to admire the impressive Faidherbe Bridge. As a UNESCO World Heritage site, the old town itself is also worth exploring, with many French colonial buildings. I also crossed the bridge to the west of the old town to see the WWI Monument.

After a short tour of Saint-Louis, I went to the Dakar Dem Dikk terminal in Saint-Louis, hoping to take the 2:00 p.m. bus to Dakar, but I was told it was full. I was a little disappointed, as the Dakar Dem Dikk bus is considered the best option for traveling between Saint-Louis and Dakar. Fortunately, when I arrived at the gare routière, I found air-conditioned minibuses going to Dakar for 6,500 CFA, including my backpack. I was the last passenger to board, so the seat wasn’t very comfortable. However, the air-conditioning was a relief, as it was extremely hot outside. Plus, I didn’t have to wait for other passengers to fill the bus. It took exactly 5 hours to reach Dakar's large transportation terminal, Gare des Baux Maraîchers. From there, I took a taxi to central Dakar for 3,000 CFA.

WWI Monument

Apr 18, 2025
Dakar

A whole day reserved for Dakar. Since the Maison des Esclaves on Île de Gorée only opens at 10:30 am, I took the 10:00 am ferry to the island, just in time to be among the first visitors of the day, giving me a better chance to observe the Door of No Return (over a century ago, enslaved men and women left through this door to the "New World"). As the crowd arrived, the Door of No Return became nearly blocked by people.

After visiting the Maison des Esclaves, I walked around Île de Gorée and reached Statue of Emancipation at the northern tip of the island. I also paid 3,000 CFA (double the price of the Maison des Esclaves) to enter the IFAN Historical Museum—the fort looks more impressive from the ferry than from inside.

The 12:00 noon ferry back to Dakar was much less crowded. I enjoyed the breeze on a seat on the deck during the 30-minute journey. Unlike Mauritania, which is hotter, the daytime temperature in Dakar is around 25°C and is quite pleasant.

The next couple of sights I planned to visit all required taxis, so I decided to try the two rideshare apps in Dakar: Heetch Passenger and Yango. It turned out that Yango was the clear winner. The Yango app shows the color of the car, which is much more helpful. I tried Heetch Passenger a couple of times, but all attempts failed—either the driver canceled the trip or couldn’t find me. I ended up using Yango for all the trips.

My first stop was the lookout over the Mosque of the Divinity (view from the main road), perhaps the most beautiful mosque in Dakar, located by the sea. Then I took a short taxi ride to the entrance of Phare des Mamelles de Dakar. The restaurant there is only open for dinner, but people can visit the lighthouse for 3,000 CFA during the daytime. They have frequent free shuttles from the entrance to the lighthouse (uphill) and back. It turned out that the visit to the lighthouse is done through a "tour." The talkative guide was very eager to help visitors take various photos. He also speaks English, which was helpful (though he spoke French most of the time during the tour, as all the other 3 people in the group spoke French).

After visiting Phare des Mamelles de Dakar, I walked to the nearby African Renaissance Monument, a landmark of Dakar but also a controversial one. Climbing up gives you a closer look at the monument, but the best view of it is actually from the ground (at the top, you can hardly see the child).

My last sight in Dakar was the so-called "Westernmost Point of Afro-Eurasia." Some people complained online that the fake security guard demanded 2,000 CFA to enter. Somehow, I asked the driver to take me to the road to "Plage de la Pointe des Almadies" on Google Maps, which helped me avoid this hassle. You can also enjoy the nearly empty beach there.

After retrieving my luggage from my hotel in central Dakar, I boarded the modern TER train from the classical Dakar Train Station and got off at the last stop, Diamniadio, about 50 minutes later. It was a mistake to buy the second-class seat, as it was very crowded during Friday afternoon rush hours. From Diamniadio Station, I walked to the main road and boarded a local bus to the transport depot in Diamniadio, from where a shared taxi took me to Sindia.

Westernmost Point of Afro-Eurasia

Apr 19, 2025
Réserve de Bandia

Although West Africa is not as famous for game drives as East and Southern Africa, Réserve de Bandia is worth a visit if you're passing through, thanks to its convenient location near the main road and the airport.

From Sindia, a local bus took me to the entrance of the reserve in less than 10 minutes. Then I walked for less than 10 minutes to the "real entrance," where you buy the tickets. Only 4x4 vehicles are allowed, and most visitors use the park vehicles, which are expensive at 40,000 CFA per vehicle (in addition to the entry fees). The staff were helpful in finding other tourists to share a vehicle with, so I ended up paying much less than I would have for the whole vehicle. The reserve has over 10 types of mammals, most of which I had seen in East Africa more than 10 years ago. However, it was my first time seeing elands, both the endangered western giant eland (native to West Africa) and the common eland (more common in Southern Africa). For a 90-minute game drive with 10+ kinds of mammals, it was a great experience. Best of all, it's totally doable independently with public transportation, allowing you to avoid expensive package tours.

Back on the main road, a European expat (I believe) passed by and gave me a nice ride to the next town, Nguekhokhe, where I took a shared taxi to Mbour. In Mbour, I had lunch at a fast food restaurant (similar to KFC but much less tasty), then took another shared taxi to Kaolack.

Kaolack is a transportation hub with two terminals: shared taxis to Dakar depart from Garage Dakar, while those heading south depart from Garage Nioro. There is a short taxi ride between the two garages. From Garage Nioro, a shared taxi took me to the border town of Keur Ayip, from where I crossed the border into Farafenni in The Gambia.

Western Giant Elands at Réserve de Bandia

Apr 20, 2025
Wassu - Kuntaur - Janjanbureh

In the early morning, I boarded a very old minibus to Wassu. It departed at 8:00 am and arrived in Wassu around 10:30 am (with a change of bus in Nyanga Bantang).

From the main road in Wassu, it's only a 10-minute walk to the Wassu Stone Circles, a UNESCO World Heritage site. They charge 200 GMD now. I must admit that these 1,500+ year-old stone circles are truly amazing.

Back on the main road in Wassu, I hired a motorcycle taxi to take me to Kairoh Garden in Kuntaur. They organize boat trips to Baboon Island and suggested I depart at 3:30 pm to be sure of seeing chimpanzees (as it's around feeding time). Luckily, they found another customer, so I was able to share the cost (they charge by boat).

The boat trip lasted for two hours, and we did see several chimpanzees—both in the trees and on the ground. We also saw various birds along the Gambia River.

In the early evening, I reached the town of Janjanbureh (formerly known as Georgetown, just across the river from Lamin Koto, 21 km southeast of Wassu). Immediately after getting off the boat, I saw the Slave House (now closed), a reminder of the Trans-Atlantic Slave Trade from a few hundred years ago. About 50 meters to the south, the Freedom Tree is equally impressive.

A Chimpanzee on Baboon Island

Apr 21, 2025
Serrekunda - Banjul

The Gambia Tourism and Hospitality Institute in Janjanbureh, where I stayed (they do offer accommodation), helped me reserve a seat on the GTSC express bus to Serrekunda. This air-conditioned bus is the most comfortable and fastest option to travel from Janjanbureh to Serrekunda. It still took 5 and a half hours to reach the intersection to Senegambia, where I planned to stay. From the intersection, I took two shared taxis to reach Senegambia. I chose to stay in this area because it's within walking distance to Bijilo Forest Park.

Bijilo Forest Park charges 300 GMD for non-residents. I took a loop inside the park. It was a pleasant walk, but the monkeys I saw were mostly near the entrance. The park is home to both Red Colobus and Green Vervet monkeys.

After seeing the monkeys, I visited the capital city of Banjul. Although the Banjul-Serrekunda area is not particularly large, traveling from one place to another usually involves multiple shared taxis. They are dirt cheap, and locals are helpful with directions. In Banjul, I got off at Arch 22, a landmark of the city. They charge 200 GMD to climb the building, but since the arch itself isn't very tall, I skipped the climb and saved 200 GMD. I then walked about 30 minutes to Albert Market, hoping to find some fruit juice as it was hot. I didn't find any, but I had my first yassa at a local restaurant nearby.

Arch 22

Apr 22, 2025
Cap Skirring

A transit day from The Gambia to Casamance in southern Senegal. It's possible to take shared taxis from Senegambia to Serrekunda Market, then another shared taxi to Brikama, and yet another shared taxi to the Senegalese border town of Sileti. Since I still had some GMD left, I decided to take a private taxi directly to Sileti, and it turned out to be a good decision.

In Sileti, I was told that shared taxis and buses were unavailable due to a driver strike. I needed to get to Ziguinchor (a 2-3 hour journey) to obtain my visa for Guinea-Bissau, and then head on to Cap Skirring. Many people were waiting at the garage, hoping a car would eventually show up. A taxi driver approached me and offered a ridiculous price (70,000 CFA) to Ziguinchor. In the meantime, I met three people from Guinea-Bissau, who were on their way to Bissau. With their help, we first shared a vehicle with other people to the nearby town of Diouloukou (500 CFA), then a local bus to Bignona (1,000 CFA). In Bignona, we were told there was no public transport to Ziguinchor due to the driver strike. The three Guinea-Bissau folks and I managed to share a taxi to Ziguinchor for 3,000 CFA each.

It was very hot in the afternoon in Ziguinchor (about 41°C). I walked to the Guinea-Bissau consulate to get my visa. I waited 15 minutes in the air-conditioned room and left with my visa (25,000 CFA). I then walked to an ATM to withdraw some CFA and had my first foie sandwich at a local restaurant for a late lunch.

When I walked to the garage in Ziguinchor, I was told there would be no public transport to Cap Skirring due to the driver strike. A local guy helped me get a private taxi for 25,000 CFA.

Cap Skirring is a few degrees cooler than Ziguinchor, but you can still feel the heat in the afternoon. When the sun sets, it becomes much cooler (and even a little bit chilly). Cap Skirring is said to have the best beach in West Africa. It's definitely better than the beaches in Serrekunda that I checked out the previous day. Other than the long beach, there isn't much to do in the town of Cap Skirring itself.

Cap Skirring Beach

Apr 23, 2025
Carabane - Varela

I booked a half-day private tour from my accommodation to visit Carabane Island by boat. A taxi picked me up at 8 a.m. and drove me to Yembakana, where I boarded a boat. The one-hour boat ride was quite pleasant, with mangrove forests and birds along the way. When we arrived in Carabane, the military asked for my nationality. The boat driver then took me on a one-hour tour around the island, where we saw a church, a school, a ruin, a cemetery, and finally walked back along a beautiful but almost empty beach. On the way back to Yembakana, we stopped at Elinkine to see some enclosed crocodiles and a fish processing site. Interestingly, the military at Elinkine not only asked for my nationality but also wanted to see my passport!

The tour lasted 5 hours and cost 40,000 CFA (excluding the 8,000 CFA taxi fare). I asked the taxi driver to drop me at the Kabrousse roundabout, where a motorcycle truck took me to the border village of Boudediet for 300 CFA.

The remote border crossing between Senegal and Guinea-Bissau at Boudediet is a legal crossing. The soldiers on the Senegalese side checked my passport but did not stamp it. There was no one on the Guinea-Bissau side to check documents. I then took a motorcycle to Varela for 3,000 CFA and checked into Hotel Rural Avó Anisa.

The small beach near Hotel Rural Avó Anisa is natural and beautiful. I saw one Westerner and many local children swimming or playing there. As I don’t swim, I just sat on the beach and read. There was no shade, but I didn’t find it too hot, as there was a nice breeze.

Carabane is full of history

Apr 24, 2025
Bissau

The bus from Varela to São Domingos departs at 2 a.m., which feels quite uncivilized to me. The hotel arranged a motorcycle to take me to São Domingos after breakfast. The ride took about two hours on a bumpy road. Upon arriving in São Domingos, I had my passport stamped at the police station at the border, then went to the port hoping to find a boat to Cacheu. There was actually a public boat to Cacheu departing at 5 p.m. for only 2,500 CFA (it doesn't run every day), but that was too late for me. I then tried to negotiate a private boat hire to Cacheu, but it was unsuccessful. A guy first quoted a high price of 70,000 CFA. After negation, he agreed on 50,000 CFA but increased to 60,000 CFA later. At some point, he also said there was no diesel and asked me to wait while he coordinated (I later learned he was a 'helper' and the actual driver would pay him a small commission for getting the business). I eventually gave up and decided to go to the bus station to catch a bus to Bissau.

It wasn't easy either. At the bus station, I was told to buy a ticket at the ticket office first. It was total chaos at the ticket office. There was no line, and everyone was pushing to get to the window. When I finally got to the window, I was told to just get on a bus. Frustrated, I insisted on buying a ticket. The guy finally sold me one.

Then, there was a long wait. Thank goodness the bus finally departed. The roads in Guinea-Bissau are much worse— even paved roads have many potholes. The bus finally arrived in Bissau 4.5 hours later.

Before dark, I had a quick look at some of the main sights in Bissau: Praça do Império, Fort São José da Amura, and the Portuguese colonial houses in the old town. The colonial buildings looked better than I expected, and I felt the houses were larger than those in the old town of Saint-Louis, Senegal.

An Iconic Yellow & Blue Minibus in Guinea-Bissau

Apr 25, 2025
Bissau to Boke

I got up before dawn and took a taxi to Paragem Central, Bissau's main transportation hub. I told the bus driver I wanted to go to Gandembel, and he helped me locate a vehicle. I thought that vehicle was going directly to Gandembel, but it actually terminated at Bambadinca 4 hours later. There was another bus going to Quebo (near Gandembel), but it didn’t seem likely to depart soon. So, I hired a taxi at a steep rate of 70,000 CFA to take me to Gandembel. It arrived two hours later.

In Gandembel, there were no motorbike drivers competing for business, as described in some online posts (this may have been because I arrived in the afternoon). I actually had to ask villagers to arrange a motorbike to take me to Boke for a steep 20,000 CFA.

The motorbike trip to Boke wasn't as bad as I expected. The Guinea-Bissau immigration officer was doing his job under a big tree, and he gave me an exit stamp without any issues. Then, there were five checkpoints on the Guinean side. They checked my passport, printed Guinean visa, and yellow fever certificate. At the second checkpoint, the officer asked for 2,500 CFA (obviously a bribe), but I didn’t pay. The third checkpoint (about 20 minutes after crossing a river) actually stamped my passport. The motorbike driver drove very fast, and it took less than 3 hours to reach Boke. I asked the driver to stop at an ATM to get some GNF, then checked into Complexe Hôtelier Filao.

Complexe Hôtelier Filao is considered one of the best hotels in Boke. The good thing about this hotel is that the manager speaks English, and it's less than a 10-minute walk to Gare Routière (shared taxis to Conakry). However, there were a few issues: dinner was delayed (they had to ask the lady to come to the restaurant to cook), the electricity was cut off for about an hour in the evening (apparently they didn't have a generator), and there were cockroaches in the room.

Ferrying the Motorbike Across the River

Apr 26, 2025
Conakry

The included breakfast at Complexe Hôtelier Filao was also delayed (again, they had to ask the lady to come to the restaurant to prepare it). Apparently, she grabbed some bread from the market and made an omelette for me. After breakfast, I walked to Gare Routière and took a shared taxi to Conakry for 100,000 GNF. I only waited 10 minutes for the taxi to depart (they likely need 10 people), but the journey took 6.5 hours. About halfway, we passed a series of streams, which were quite scenic.

I was dropped off in Conakry at a location not marked by Google Maps as Gare Routière or anything like that. Luckily, a local yellow shared taxi passed by and took me to Grande Mosquée for 6,000 GNF.

If I had arrived in Conakry earlier, I might have tried to hire a boat to Îles de Los. Since it was almost 4 p.m., I decided to just check out a few "sights" in Conakry: namely Grande Mosquée, the Botanical Garden, and Monument du 22 Novembre. The short walk inside the Botanical Garden was nice.

Around dusk, I grabbed a shared taxi to take me to the airport for 5,000 GNF, completing the two-week overland trip through northwestern West Africa. However, the ending was not so "happy," as almost everyone at the airport (uniformed staff checking documents, security personnel, and even the restroom attendants) wanted money. I didn’t pay any of them, but it was super annoying. I guess that's one of the reasons Guinea sees very few tourists.

Grande Mosquée

Apr 27, 2025
Casablanca

Since I had a layover of almost 10 hours in Casablanca, I decided to head into town and join a guided tour of the Hassan II Mosque, the city’s top attraction. Ten years ago, I passed through Casablanca and only managed to see it from the outside. It seems the one-hour guided tours are offered in five European languages. While the interior of the mosque was grand, it didn’t particularly surprise me—perhaps because I had visited the magnificent Imam Ali Holy Shrine in Najaf, Iraq just last year. That said, the guide did share some useful information with the group. After the tour, I enjoyed a pleasant walk through the Medina (old city), entering through the west gate and exiting from the south gate.

Hassan II Mosque

Overview

My first overland trip to mainland West Africa was a success. The Dakhla to Conakry overland journey was a great adventure, involving buses, trains, minibuses, shared taxis, boats, motorcycles and occasionally private taxis. There are numerous checkpoints in Mauritania, so having about 3-5 passport copies a day is a good idea. It's worth visiting Chinguetti, the ancient city in the desert. Both Senegal and The Gambia are relatively easy to visit, with well-established facilities for tourists. While West Africa is not particularly famous for wildlife, you can easily see western giant elands at Réserve de Bandia near Dakar and chimpanzees at River Gambia National Park in The Gambia. Roads in Guinea-Bissau are quite poor, though I enjoyed the beach and the garden at my hotel in Varela. Lastly, the motorbike ride into Guinea was an experience in itself, and the journey continuing to Conakry was far from boring.