An expert has revealed the overlooked African country that people should be visiting, and it’s one that you might not have considered before. Sarah Hennessy founded Africa Star Tours in 2015 and has been bringing Brits to various destinations on the continent ever since. When I met her at the recent National Geographic Traveller Food Festival, I picked her brain about where people should head to for the best time in Africa, including the countries that are perhaps a bit overlooked.
For Sarah, Ghana is an overlooked African country with plenty to offer people. Ghana is located in Western Africa, wedged between Togo, Burkina Faso, and the Ivory Coast. With interesting wildlife, gorgeous national parks, and rich history, Ghana has plenty to offer visitors. Sarah explained that it is one of the destinations where she has seen year-on-year growth in visitors from Britain. She explained exactly what the country has to offer and why people walk away with an unforgettable experience after visiting.
She revealed: “I would say the West Africa side of things is picking up. But that’s definitely one of the less-visited areas of Africa, such as Ghana. It is quite easy to get into from the UK, about six or seven hours on a flight.
“West Africa is fantastic for the culture. You’ve got so many different cultures there, various different crafts like bead making and sewing. But West African cuisine is very different to other areas.
“They have beautiful landscapes in the national parks. You can do safaris in Ghana. There is also a lot of history there. The slave trade, for example. You’ll learn a lot about that; colonisation and how the countries have developed significantly since then to be a fantastic destination.”
“You can go to Mole National Park in Ghana. It’s a very different type of safari,” she added. “It’s very much back to basics.
“Ghana is definitely one of the countries that we see increasing year on year.”
As well as Mole National Park, Ghana has a huge amount to offer visitors in terms of nature and culture. Some of the top-rated attractions in the country include Kakum National Park, Wli Waterfalls, Cape Coast Castle, Labadi Beach and the National Museum of Ghana.
In terms of wildlife, you might be lucky enough to see elephants, buffalo, and various antelope species in Ghana, as well as chimpanzees and monkeys.
While travel is considered safe in much of Ghana, the Foreign Office advises against all but essential travel to certain areas. Tourists should avoid the Bawku Municipal area in the Upper East region of Ghana because of civil unrest and unpredictable events that can sometimes involve weapons.
Additionally, the Ministry of the Interior imposed an 8pm to 5am curfew covering Walewale and its surrounding areas in the North East Region this year because of violent attacks that have resulted in deaths.