Why You Should Put Ghana On Your Travel List

Akwaaba!

Akwaaba was the first word from many Ghanaians, which means welcome in Twi, one of the most widely spoken languages in Ghana. We were welcomed in such a warm loving way by many. Smiles were exchanged and many courtesies were given providing us with a sense of comfort. Therefore, confirming why Ghana was placed on my travel list.

Osu is where it is!

We were told by many, that Osu was the place to be in Accra. Hence, we followed directions and made this our first destination. Osu is located about twenty minutes away from Kotoka International airport. There you can find the famous I Love Accra sign and many venues for food and local bars located on Oxford Street.

We are an adventurous group and choose to plan our own trips, but we switched things up a bit and linked up with Prince from Olives Travel & Tour for a couple of days. As suggested, before leaving the airport we converted our USDs to Ghanaian Cedis. Globetrotting tip: use your phone or an app for the most recent conversion rate. We utilized their airport transportation to our lodging and was provided with a much-needed referral. Getting our hair done! When you are in Ghana, why not get your hair braided and boy was that a fire experience! We were taken to Tidy Em in Kotababi which is usually about 15 minutes away, but we got a taste of Accra traffic, pushing our arrival time to about 30 minutes. If you did not click the fire link above yet, please click it now for a quick laugh. The next day we got to do a little shopping at the Makola Market, which is the Accra’s biggest open market. There you can take pictures in front of the beautiful Kente cloths or buy fish to fry up for dinner. The best part about linking up with Prince was when we, two nurses who love babies, got to spend time with some cuties at Princess Marie Louise Children’s Hospital. I fell in love with the most adorable baby with a caramel complexion and blonde hair.

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Lodging

We stayed at the cutest Airbnb in Osu for most of our stay and walked to Frankie’s Donut place on a regular basis due to their amazing pastries. On your visa application, you need to specify where you will be staying in the country. I quickly looked up some hotels and Urbano Hotel won. A Nathalie error occurred and I forgot to cancel the booking in a timely fashion. Therefore, we spent a few days there and lucked out, because that is where the famous I Love Accra sign is located. If you have not already, check out my previous post When Africa Stole my Heart, where I discuss country requirements, flights, lodging, transportation and more.

Nightlife

It was my birthday, therefore we had to party. Our dancing spots included Carbon, Bloom bar, Plot 7 and Twist. We even had an interesting drink at The Republic Bar and Grill made with Alomo Bitters. While we were with Prince from Olives Travel & Tour we witnessed and joined in on choreographed dancing at Afrikiko. Head over to Labadi Beach for beach life, night parties, food and more. My birthday dinner was held at Sky Bar 25 and what a beautiful scene to bring in my 32nd! I had one of the best drinks specially made for me, the birthday girl, and even had rap made in my honor!

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Grubbing in Ghana

If you are in the mood for some really good fried chicken, then Papaye is your next destination. A little inside joke for our group, is that the name in Haitian-Creole means to not pay, but to clear the air we did pay lol. Some traditional food that you must try includes Fufu, Banku, and Ghanaian jollof. You can find these and many more right on Oxford Street in Osu. If you are bold, then you may begin a debate on which country has the best jollof, Ghana vs Nigeria.

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Ghanaian Wedding

Immerse yourself in the culture! This paid off for us because we met a few locals who were kind enough to invite us to a Ghanaian Wedding!! Their only request was to dress in white and thank God we each packed something white. We were treated as if we were part of the family including eating well and joining the festivities. Can I say bucket list item, checked!

Next Stop: Kumasi

I will not toot my own horn, but many times I was referred to as an Ashanti Princess. With that being said I had to visit the Ashanti Kingdom at Manhyia Palace which is in Kumasi. Globetrotting tip: As an added bonus of seeing the Asante King plan your visit while they celebrate Akwasidae, which is held nine times per year on Sundays. It was about a 5-hour bus ride from Accra and we had a blast! The bus fare was about 45 cedis, which at that time was less than $10. We hopped onto STC, ate a Ghanaian breakfast from the bus crew, watched African movies and slept. We stayed one night at the beautiful Golden Tulip, which provided us breathtaking views of Kumasi.

While you are in Kumasi, you must visit a Kente weaving village to wrap up your experience. We were able to visit Bonwire Kente Village and was given the opportunity to weave Kente and learn about the history of Adkinara cloth. Check out my video on my Instagram page Globetrotting RN to compare my weaving to those of the professionals.

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Final Stop: Cape Coast

I love to see what I may or may not have learned in history class. This made Cape Coast a must see during my visit. From Kumasi, we boarded VIP and this was about a 2-3 hour bus ride. Once you arrive in Cape Coast, you definitely feel a difference within yourself and the atmosphere. This was an experience that I will never forget. It was the last place that many of my ancestors saw before leaving their homeland of Africa. We arrived pretty late into Cape Coast, but luckily we were still able to check into Oasis Beach Resort. We woke up a few hours later and headed off to Elmina Castle. I suggest using one of their tour guides because the provided insight was much appreciated. Since our time management was not on point, we caught a quick glimpse of Cape Coast Castle. Therefore, I suggest maybe spending at least two days in Cape Coast to enjoy it best.

It is usually about a 2-3 hour bus ride back to Accra and boy oh boy did we drop the ball. We began looking for the bus options that we utilized for our earlier trips too late in the day. As a result, we became locals and ended up riding the Tro Tro back to Osu.

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Why Ghana will ALWAYS be on my travel list

Our ten days in Ghana was truly a rewarding experience. The kindness of the community is beyond words. If you can fit Ghana into your travel plans, this year would be a perfect year. Ghana is celebrating the Year of Return, which marks 400 years since many were taken. I cannot wait to book my ticket! Are you adding Ghana to your travel list?

All you need to know is that it’s possible

– Wolf