Ghana Experience Road Trip (3 weeks)

On your first morning in your new surroundings you will wake up to healthy breakfast, and once everyone is ready you will head off on a special tour of Accra. You will travel in a range of different types of transport to show you how to get around in the city, and you will learn about the history of Ghana with a visit to the Kwame Nkruma Museum – a memorial park dedicated to the First President of Ghana. Try your hand at bartering with the locals at the Ghana Craft Market and also the Makola Market, a traditional African market – a great place to get some souvenirs and treats for your family and friends. In the evening you will have the opportunity to explore the diverse nightlife that Accra has to offer, from traditional African bars and sports bars to modern, upmarket nightclubs. This diversity means that there is something for everybody!

Ghana is renowned for being a chilled out, relaxed nation, so take the time to adapt this lifestyle and spend the morning relaxing at the beautiful beach or by a nearby pool. The afternoon is also free for you to carry on getting to know your fellow travellers, and the locals, so just relax and enjoy a cold drink at a local bar. In the evening you will be treated to a traditional ‘Welcome Meal’ in Osu, and then head back to the Teshie accommodation (maybe via a few bars) to get a good sleep before starting on volunteer placements the following day.

Today is your first day of your community volunteering placement. You will have the choice of teaching the local kids at the underprivileged children centre, or having some fun with the kids, playing games or acting as their climbing frame. For the sport lovers amongst us there will be the opportunity for you to coach the sport of your choice to kids from the local schools or communities. The afternoon will give you the chance to experience more of the culture and tradition that makes Ghana so exciting, with an authentic African drumming and dance lesson. Put on your dancing shoes and become one with the beat of the drum.

Wake up to the second day of your community volunteer placement, and decide which placement you would like to take part in. After your extremely rewarding placement experience, in the afternoon we will arrange for you to have a lesson from a wood carver so you can try your hand at crafting an African figurine (Elephants and Giraffes are always popular, but you can choose to carve whatever takes your fancy). Not only is great fun to find out who out of your group is a real master crafter, it is a chance for you to express yourself and to take home a really unique memento from you Ghanaian adventure.

This will be your third morning on your community volunteer placement, with only two more days of volunteering remaining, be sure to make the most of this worthwhile opportunity, and help out in the area that best suits your personality and abilities. This afternoon will see you and your group take on the challenge of mastering the intricacies of the local dialects. Ga and Twi are the two widely spoken Ghanaian languages, and the locals love it when you speak to them in their mother tongue, so our experience language teachers will show you the basics to get you started.

This is your penultimate day on your community volunteer placement, so have some good fun with the kids in the morning before getting the teeth into some real African cuisine in the afternoon. We will give you an unmissable opportunity to test your skills in the kitchen as our resident Ghanaian chef will show you some tricks of the trade as you attempt to create a culinary masterpiece, African style. When you have finished with your creation everyone can sit down to a traditional Ghanaian feast.

This is your final day at your community volunteer placement, so this is the time to say farewell to the kids you have been helping and getting to know for the past 5 days. Volunteer work is an incredibly humbling experience, and bound to be something that you will never forget, as you will make some great friends with the kids and the dedicated local staff who give up so much for the lives of the kids they work with.

In the afternoon you are in for a real artistic treat. Let your creativity and originality shine through as you will have an exclusive lesson from a professional artist who lives and works in Accra. Under his expert guidance and with a few useful tips and pointers, you will produce a traditional piece of African art that is unique to you. Take it home and show your friends and family, as this will act as a lasting reminder of the amazing journey you took in Ghana.

After your fun filled first week in Accra has ended, your real African adventure can really begin. From Accra you will travel down the south coast to the original capital of Britain’s colonial empire, Cape Coast. Cape Coast has so much to offer, with beaches that stretch for miles, rainforests teaming with wildlife, and is a centre of Ghana’s traumatic history.

After a couple of hours journey down the coast from Accra, your first day in Cape Coast will be spend relaxing by the hotel pool, on the amazing palm-fringed beaches, or take a trip to the local crocodile island restaurant. With crocodiles surrounding you as you eat, you will feel closer to nature than ever before. Be sure to rest up today, as you have a lot of activities ahead of you on your national park trek tomorrow.

This will involve you taking a trek through the rainforest in Kakum National Park. With an experienced guide leading the way, you will learn how tradition Africans lived off the land, and used specific trees for medicinal purposes, and the importance of these to the African culture. Following your rainforest trek, you will then put your nerve to the test and take on the Kakum canopy walk. 40m up in the rainforest treetop, walking on planks only 1ft wide, expect some butterflies in your stomach and a few wobbly knee moments.

Will be slightly less physically demanding, but be prepared for a cultural and historical awakening. Ghana’s south coast is home to the oldest slave castles in Africa which can be found in Elmina, and today you will be visiting this great structure and others in the area. The awe-inspiring tours and shocking historical accounts of the turbulent years before Ghana’s independence, will really get you thinking. The amazing sea views from the castle walls will give you time to reflect on the infatuating truths about Ghana’s past.

On day 12 you will be heading East, inland towards the beautiful Volta region of the country, which is home to the largest man-made lake in Africa, the colossal Lake Volta. Your place of refuge for the next two days will be the town of Wli Agorviefe, an amazing place which is the tallest waterfalls in West Africa, the upper and lower Wli falls. To get you in the mood for a bit more adventure, you will trek to the upper falls, and take in the outstanding views and magnificent scenery, before heading down to the lower falls for possibly the most exhilarating swim you will have ever had the pleasure of experiencing.

Keep your adventurist cap on for day 13 as you will be scaling Ghana’s highest mountain peak, Mount Afadjato, measuring at 885m above sea level, so prepare yourself for some great views of the surrounding areas, casting your gaze over the Volta region for miles around with views of Lake Volta and the natural beauty of the surrounding area which is rich with wildlife and vegetation. A cracking way to start the day, the round trip, ascending and descending, takes approx. 2 hours, but do not fear if you are not super fit, as on this relaxing ascent nobody gets left behind.

Today you will spend the day getting up close with the local residents of the monkey sanctuary in Baobeng-Fiena. Just a short drive west of Wli Agorviefe, in the central region of the country, you will find yourself getting a really personal experience with the monkeys. This is a great opportunity to interact with these mischievous creatures, and also get some amazing photos. Don’t be surprised if you get a cheeky monkey or two climb on you, as they are certainly not shy. The sanctuary is also surrounded by lush rainforest, so whilst trekking, keep your eye out for some more local inhabitants.

Following your monkey adventure day, you will head off on Day 15 out to Ghana’s second largest city, Kumasi. Kumasi is well renowned for its huge market, so take the day to explore the amazing stalls, and work on your bartering skills to see if you can snap up some bargains. This is a great opportunity to pick up some souvenirs for the friends and family back at home, and maybe put your new found Ga and Twi skills to the test and try bartering in the local language. Relax and enjoy this amazing city, and after you have found all the African trinkets you want, just chill out in a one of the local bars or restaurants, as prices in Kumasi are much cheaper than in Accra.

The next stage of your African adventure is a trip to Mole National Park, Ghana’s largest wildlife reserve. Your home for the next 3 days will be in Larabanga in the heart of Mole, so be prepared for a real wildlife extravaganza. The national park is home to over 90 species of mammal, and countless numbers of bird species. This is a real treat for the animal lovers amongst us, as you will be taken on a game drives through the park to giving you the chance to get close to many animals such as elephants, hippos, warthogs, bushbacks and baboons. Mole is truly an amazing place full of some of Ghana’s rarest animals, so is certainly not to be missed.

The final day of your wild adventure in the Mole region will include an intriguing day trip to Paga, to meet the residents of the Paga Crocodile Pool. I hope you are feeling brave, as this will be a chance for you to get about as close to a crocodile as possible. Get your cameras at the ready as this a photo opportunity that you cannot miss out on. After an astonishing day with the crocodiles you will stop in the small town of Tamale for one night to relax before the long journey back down south.

The penultimate day of your authentic African adventure has arrived. Although you will spend much of the day travelling from the northern regions down to your final destination on the south coast, Kokobrite, this is a chance to reflect on your Ghana experience, the great friends you have made, and the amazing sights you have seen. Take in the beauty of the country as you follow the roads south through traditional rural villages and incredible scenery, there will also be a few stops along the way to stretch your legs and grab a bite to eat.

The journey may be long, but the destination at the popular Kokobrite beach resort is well worth the wait, and will certainly not disappoint. This is the most popular beach resort in Ghana, and other travellers and locals alike come from miles around to experience the amazing nightlife, gorgeous beach and traditional Ghanaian food. Spend the rest of the day relaxing, exploring or swimming on the beach, then end your Ghana Experience in style with a traditional Ghanaian beach party. Make sure you bring those dancing and drumming skills you learned back in Accra!

The Ghana Experience has now come to an end. After a final relaxing morning at Kokobrite beach, you and the group will head back to your accommodation in Teshie, where your journey began. Be sure to book your return flights for after 7:00pm, to allow for any delays, and our in-country team will help you arrange your return airport transfer.