AFROSOCIALISM DREAMS
FROM THE SAHEL PLAINS
TO THE ATLANTIC SHORES

FEBRUARY 10 ⇾ FEBRUARY 25

In addition to our regular group departures to West Africa, we also offer tailored services for private travel parties and lone wolves alike. Get in touch for more info on our customised West Africa Tours! 

THE ROUTE

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DAY 1 TO DAY 4 • Guinea Bissau

Meet-and-greet at Bissau International Airport, transfer to our hotel of choice in Bissau and introductory briefing about the region, the route, and the few golden rules to abide by while travelling in West Africa.

We’ll spend the first forty-eight hours of our West African odyssey touring the architectural heritage of Guinea Bissau, marvelling at the rich colonial legacy of Bissau Velho, Bolama, and Cacheu.

The splendid and crumbling architecture of urban Guinea Bissau reflects the two main phases of the country’s political and cultural life: the signs of Portuguese domination appear in the shape of moderno-tropical administrative buildings, elegant colonial villas and pastel-coloured churches; whereas the artistic influence from Eastern Bloc are recognisable through the numerous modernist and brutalist concrete structures marking the post-independence cityscape of Bissau, such as the odd-looking Black Fist sculpture, somewhat reminiscent of a Yugoslav spomenik.

The last two days in Guinea Bissau will be devoted to the exploration of the out-of-this-world Bijagos Archipelago, a true lost paradise that has been often mislabelled as the Polynesia of West Africa, when, in fact, the Bijagos still harbour a genuine and charming atmosphere their South Pacific counterpart have long lost to camera-toting cruisers and tacky honeymooners: saltwater hippos, Portuguese architecture, pristine white sand beaches, matriarchal communities, syncretic cults led by enchanting priestesses, nestling turtle, and – above all – almost no tourist around.

Overnights in Bissau.

DAY 5 to DAY 7 • Guinea Conakry

Morning flight to Guinea Conakry via Dakar (depending on the flight schedule, we may also indulge in a short architectural tour of Dakar).

Over the course of the next few days, we will tour the capital Conakry and its outlying satellite towns. The country’s post-independence modernist architecture and socialist monumental heritage will be the main leitmotiv of our visit, but we’ll also give due regard to the few elegant leftovers of the French colonial yoke. During our sojourn in town we’ll also ride the popular Conakry Express, a crowded commuter train that runs through the 30-km-long capital: the best way to experience the real modern life of urban Guinea.

The architectural landscape of Guinea is admittedly less attractive than the one of its Portuguese-speaking neighbour. You can still find some bygone-era gems, discreetly fading away in the oldest parts of the city, such as Kaloum. Since its independence, Guinea’s paysage métropolitain has been enriched by an interesting display of modernist architectures (Palais Mohammed V and the Palais du Peuple), brutalist behemoths (CERESCOR building), and Soviet-style public art such as the marvellous Black Prometheus mosaic and the massive Monument du 22 Novembre.

If time allows, we’ll also take a short boat ride to the Îles de Los, a rather underrated archipelago lying just off Conakry’s shorelines and a great getaway from the congested maelstrom of Guinea’s capital.

Overnights in Conakry.

DAY 8 to DAY 10 • Burkina Faso

Farewell to Guinea and onward flight via Abidjan towards Ouagadougou, the impossible-to-pronounce capital of Burkina Faso.

A two-day architectural sightseeing around and about Ouagadougou awaits us. Our visit will be mainly centred around Burkina Faso’s daring modernist experiments and socialist mementos, but we will also lose ourselves among the scents and the shades of the daily hustle and bustle enlivening the country’s throbbing heart. A de rigueur pilgrimage to the newly-built Sankara’s memorial is, of course, mandatorily included.

Burkina’s modern architecture is best seen in its capital Ouagadougou, which boasts a decent amount of Afro-modernist structures and Soviet-inspired monumental forms. Particularly striking is the contrast between the imposing profile of a few concrete giants from the 70s and the dominant low-rise constructions, where most city dwellers live. Peculiar to Burkina Faso is also a certain architectural and monumental genre, a local splinter of ethnic modernism. Pompous neo-Islamic architecture and discreet colonial vestiges eventually complete the urban picture of this vibrant and captivating West African capital.

Overnights in Ouagadougou.

DAY 11 to DAY 15 • Benin

We’ll leave Ouagadougou and board our morning flight to Cotonou, the largest city of the former People's Republic of Benin, previously known as Dahomey and now simply called Benin.

We’ll base ourselves at the modernist Hotel du Lac in Cotonou and spend four days visiting architectural jewels and bustling markets around and about the country’s main urban areas: Porto Novo, Cotonou, Grand Popo, and, of course, Ouidah.

Highlights of our time in Benin will include splendidly elaborated Afro-Brazilian churches, mosques, basilicas, and private mansions alike, the moving memorials to the slave trade, the afro-modernist BCEAO Headquarters, the stilt villages of Ladji, Ganvié, and Aguégués, the tentacular market alleys of Dantokpa, the eerily atmospheric voodoo temples of Grand Popo and Ouidah, the Soviet vibes at the Place de l'Étoile Rouge, the socialist-realist Martyrs’ Monument, and the brightly-coloured statue of Georgi Dimitrov, the first leader of communist Bulgaria, as well as mouth-watering pork barbecue with in the traditional settlement of Adjarra.

Overnights in Cotonou.

DAY 16 • FAREWELL TO RED AFRICA

After having shared a last West African meal together, we'll take care of your transfer to Cotonou International Airport to catch your homeward flight.

Possible extensions to this itinerary include: Angola and/or the CAR.

End of the tour.

Togo-GHANA ADD-ON | 5 DAYS | 2350 €

Transfer to Accra (Ghana) via Togo, the former German and later French colony of Togoland, a narrow strip of land inhabited by thirty-seven tribal ethnic groups.

Lomé, the capital of Togo, makes for a great architectonic stopover thanks to a fascinating mixture of concrete internationalist buildings from the 70s/80s, post-modernist experiments, contemporary artworks, and traditional West African vibes.

Accra, on the other hand, still boasts a vast afro-modernist heritage of socialist-era edifices, urban spaces, and monuments: during Kwame Nkrumah’s brief but fruitful reign (1960-1966), Ghana developed a strong national construction industry inspired, both in theory and practice, by the Eastern Bloc’s prevailing architectonic trends.

Overnights in Lomé and Accra.

5950 €

INCLUSIONS
Double/twin hotel accommodation (breakfast included), private transport in West Africa (car/minivan), all entrance fees, English-speaking guiding service, 24/7 on-site and remote assistance.

EXCLUSIONS
Single supplement, international flights, main meals (lunches and dinners), extra drinks, visa fees (if required), tips, travel insurance.