The Gambia · Local picks
100+ Places to Visit in The Gambia
These are the places we would point a friend to in The Gambia, from Banjul's markets and the resort coast's beaches to Tanji's fish landing, the Roots sites and the chimp islands upriver. Small businesses change quietly here, so check opening times locally before you set out.
Places to Visit in Banjul
Things to Do
- Arch 22 (Independence Drive)
Climb the landmark arch for sweeping views over the capital, river and mangroves. - Half Die old quarter (Old town)
Wander streets of wooden Krio houses with balconies in the city's oldest neighbourhood. - Banjul to Barra ferry (Banjul ferry terminal)
Cross the wide river mouth with traders, cars and goats for a real slice of daily life. - July 22 Square (City centre)
Banjul's main open square, lively during national celebrations and parades. - Denton Bridge boat trips (Oyster Creek)
The jetty where river cruises and fishing trips into the mangroves and to Kunta Kinteh Island begin. - Six Gun Battery (Marina Parade)
Old colonial cannons facing the sea beside the State House grounds.
Arts and Culture
- National Museum of The Gambia (Independence Drive)
The best introduction to Gambian history, music, crafts and the road to independence. - King Fahad Mosque (Box Bar Road)
One of the country's largest mosques, an elegant landmark on the edge of the city. - St Mary's Anglican Cathedral (Independence Drive)
A modest colonial era cathedral that shows the city's British roots. - Roman Catholic Cathedral of Our Lady of the Assumption (Hagan Street)
A quiet, airy church at the heart of Banjul's Catholic community.
Shopping and Markets
- Albert Market (Russell Street)
The capital's loud, colourful main market for fabric, spices, baskets and crafts.
Nature and Outdoors
- Tanbi Wetland Complex (Banjul mangroves)
Protected mangrove creeks around the capital, rich in herons, kingfishers and waders. - Lamin Lodge (Lamin creek)
A rustic wooden restaurant on stilts in the mangroves, lovely for breakfast and birds.
Events
- Independence Day celebrations (July 22 Square)
Every 18 February the capital marks independence with parades, music and flags.
Stays
- Laico Atlantic Hotel (Marina Parade)
A long established beachfront hotel in the capital with a garden facing the sea.
Restaurants
- Albert Market food stalls (Albert Market)
Plates of benachin, domoda and fresh tapalapa sandwiches where market traders eat.
Places to Visit in Bakau
Nature and Outdoors
- Kachikally Crocodile Pool (Bakau Old Town)
A sacred pool where dozens of Nile crocodiles laze in the sun beside a small museum. - Bakau Botanic Gardens (Cape Point Road)
A peaceful colonial era garden with shady trees, birds and very few visitors. - Cape Point beach (Cape Point)
A sheltered beach at the tip of the coast with some of the best sunsets around.
Shopping and Markets
- Bakau fish market (Bakau beach)
Watch boats land and women sort fish and seafood on the busy beach in the morning. - Bakau Craft Market (Atlantic Road)
A compact craft market for carvings, batik, drums and beads near the cliffs.
Stays
- Ngala Lodge (Atlantic Road, Fajara)
A boutique clifftop lodge known for its gardens, ocean views and fine dining. - Ocean Bay Hotel (Cape Point)
A large beachfront hotel with pools and gardens on the calm Cape Point beach. - African Village Hotel (Atlantic Road)
A simple, friendly hotel on the cliffs with an ocean view terrace.
Restaurants
- Calypso Bar and Restaurant (Cape Point)
A beachside restaurant with seafood, cocktails and a laid back sunset view. - Solomon's Beach Bar (Cape Point beach)
A long running beach shack for grilled fish and drinks with your feet in the sand. - Leybato (Fajara beach)
A relaxed guesthouse bar and restaurant at the foot of the Fajara cliffs. - Clay Oven (Fajara)
A popular Indian restaurant serving tandoori dishes in a leafy garden.
Cafés
- Timbooktoo (Kairaba Avenue, Fajara)
The country's best known bookshop, with a café for coffee and Gambian reading.
Things to Do
- Fajara War Cemetery (Fajara)
A quiet Commonwealth war cemetery honouring soldiers from the Second World War. - Fajara Golf Club (Fajara)
A long established club with a sand green course, unusual and fun to try.
Places to Visit in Kololi
Things to Do
- Senegambia Strip (Kololi)
The coast's liveliest street of restaurants, bars, music and craft stalls. - Kotu sewage ponds birding (Kotu)
Unglamorous but famous among birders for waders, herons and plovers close up.
Nature and Outdoors
- Bijilo Forest Park (Bijilo)
Shady trails where vervet and red colobus monkeys come close, so leave the peanuts at home. - Kololi beach (Kololi)
A long sandy beach with sunbeds and bars in front of the main hotels. - Kotu beach (Kotu)
A wide, family friendly beach with beach bars and easy access from the hotels. - Kotu Creek bird walk (Kotu bridge)
Dawn walks with licensed bird guides around the creek and ponds for kingfishers and waders.
Restaurants
Cafés
- Gaya Art Café (Kololi)
A creative café and gallery with healthy food, local art and a calm garden. - Senegambia Strip juice stalls (Senegambia Strip)
Fresh baobab, wonjo and ginger juices made the Gambian way.
Shopping and Markets
- Senegambia Craft Market (Senegambia Strip)
Stalls of masks, drums, jewellery and fabric right by the hotels.
Stays
- Senegambia Beach Hotel (Kololi)
A big beachfront hotel with lush gardens where vultures and monkeys visit. - Kairaba Beach Hotel (Kololi)
A long established resort hotel with gardens running down to the beach. - Coco Ocean Resort and Spa (Bijilo)
A Moroccan styled resort with pools and spa beside Bijilo beach. - Bakotu Hotel (Kotu)
A modest garden hotel by Kotu Creek, much loved by birdwatchers. - Kombo Beach Hotel (Kotu)
A large, easygoing beach hotel popular with families.
Bars and Nightlife
- Kololi Beach Club (Kololi)
A beachfront spot for drinks, sunsets and an easy evening by the sea. - Senegambia Strip live music bars (Senegambia Strip)
Bars along the strip play reggae, mbalax and Afrobeats into the night. - Kotu beach bars (Kotu beach)
Simple shacks for a cold drink and grilled fish at sundown.
Events
- Koriteh in the Kombos (Across the coast)
The end of Ramadan brings new clothes, family feasts and joyful visiting on every street. - Tobaski (Across the coast)
The Gambia's biggest festival, when families share ram feasts and dress in their finest.
Places to Visit in Serrekunda
Shopping and Markets
- Serrekunda Market (Serrekunda town)
The country's biggest and busiest market, a maze of fabric, food and everyday goods. - Kairaba Avenue shops (Kairaba Avenue)
The main commercial road for supermarkets, fabric shops, banks and cafés. - Brikama Craft Market (Brikama)
The woodcarvers' market where you can watch carvings being made by hand.
Arts and Culture
- Serrekunda batik factories (Serrekunda)
Small workshops where you can watch batik being dyed and buy fabric at the source. - Kora music in Brikama (Brikama)
Brikama is famous for its griot families and kora players, keepers of Mandinka music.
Restaurants
- Afra grills at Westfield (Westfield junction)
Smoky roadside grills serving afra, spiced grilled meat with onions, late into the night. - Chop shops of Serrekunda (Serrekunda)
Small local eateries serving domoda, superkanja and benachin at lunchtime. - Tapalapa breakfast stalls (Across Serrekunda)
Crusty tapalapa bread filled with beans or egg, the classic Gambian breakfast.
Things to Do
- Westfield junction (Westfield)
The roaring hub of urban Gambia, full of minibuses, traders and street food.
Nature and Outdoors
- Abuko Nature Reserve (Abuko)
A small forest reserve with trails, hides, monkeys and hundreds of bird species. - Makasutu Culture Forest (Near Brikama)
A forest and mangrove reserve with pirogue rides, walks and cultural performances.
Cafés
- Ataya at street corners (Across Serrekunda)
Join locals for strong, sweet green tea brewed slowly in three rounds.
Stays
- Lemonfish Art Hotel (Kerr Serign)
A small art hotel with a gallery feel, gardens and a quiet location near the coast.
Places to Visit in Tanji
Things to Do
- Tanji fish landing (Tanji beach)
Painted pirogues ride the surf to land their catch in one of West Africa's great sights. - Tanji fish smokehouses (Tanji beach)
See bonga fish smoked in traditional ovens behind the beach. - Ghana Town (Near Brufut)
A fishing village founded by Ghanaian fishermen, with boats and smokehouses on the beach. - Kartong Allahein River (Kartong)
Quiet walks along the border river and wetlands at the end of the coast road.
Nature and Outdoors
- Tanji River Bird Reserve (Tanji)
Dunes, lagoons and woodland protecting hundreds of bird species and the Bijol Islands. - Bijol Islands (Off Tanji)
Protected islets where terns and gulls breed, seen on guided boat trips in season. - Brufut Woods (Brufut)
A community woodland famous with birders for owls and nightjars. - Sanyang beach (Sanyang)
A wide, palm fringed beach with grilled fish shacks and plenty of space. - Gunjur beach (Gunjur)
A long, quiet beach with its own busy fish landing. - Kartong Bird Observatory (Kartong)
A ringing station and wetlands that make Kartong a birding hotspot. - Gambia Reptile Farm (Kartong)
Learn about snakes, lizards and tortoises at this small educational farm.
Arts and Culture
- Tanje Village Museum (Tanji)
A small open air museum of traditional compounds, crafts and medicinal plants.
Restaurants
- Sanyang beach fish grills (Sanyang beach)
Grilled fish and chips served under the palms at simple beach bars.
Stays
- Footsteps Eco Lodge (Gunjur)
A solar powered eco lodge with round houses, a pool and gardens. - Sandele Eco Retreat (Kartong)
A beautifully built eco retreat by the beach near the Senegal border.
Places to Visit in Janjanbureh
Nature and Outdoors
- River Gambia National Park (Near Janjanbureh)
Boat trips past the Baboon Islands to see chimpanzees, hippos and river birds. - Kiang West National Park (Near Tendaba)
Woodland, mangroves and creeks with warthogs, monkeys and excellent birds. - Bao Bolong Wetland Reserve (North bank)
A huge protected wetland of mangroves and creeks explored by boat from Tendaba. - Hippo spotting on the river (Around Janjanbureh)
Boatmen know where hippo families gather in the river channels. - Basse Santa Su riverside (Basse)
The busy trading town at the far east of the country, a true end of the road.
Arts and Culture
- Wassu Stone Circles (Wassu)
Ancient burial stones that are part of the UNESCO Stone Circles of Senegambia. - Farafenni lumo (Farafenni)
A weekly market where traders from across the region gather.
Things to Do
- Janjanbureh slave house (Janjanbureh)
A small building linked to the history of the slave trade on MacCarthy Island. - Freedom Tree (Janjanbureh)
A riverside tree associated by local tradition with freedom for enslaved people. - Pirogue crossings (Janjanbureh riverside)
Small boats link the island to the banks, a simple and memorable ride. - Kuntaur river trips (Kuntaur)
The village closest to the chimp islands, where many boat trips begin.
Shopping and Markets
- Janjanbureh market (Janjanbureh)
A small market for fruit, fabric and everyday life upriver.
Stays
- Janjanbureh Camp (Janjanbureh)
A riverside camp with simple huts, a classic base upriver. - Tendaba Camp (Tendaba)
A long running riverside camp and base for creek trips and Kiang West.
Events
- Kankurang masquerade (Upriver villages)
The Mandinka Kankurang figure appears during initiation seasons, a UNESCO recognised tradition.
Places to Visit in Juffureh
Arts and Culture
- Kunta Kinteh Island (River Gambia)
The UNESCO listed island fort at the heart of the slave trade story. - Albreda slavery museum (Albreda)
A museum on the river slave trade, the Middle Passage and abolition. - Fort Bullen (Barra)
A colonial fort at the river mouth built to stop slave ships after abolition.
Things to Do
- Juffureh village (Juffureh)
The home of the Kinte family, made famous by Roots. - Freedom Flagpole (Albreda)
A symbolic flagpole at Albreda tied to stories of freedom.
Nature and Outdoors
- Jinack Island (Niumi National Park)
A remote island of beaches and dunes on the Senegal border.
More to Explore
We are still checking these with fresh sources, so confirm opening times before you go.
- International Roots Festival (Banjul and Juffureh, Banjul)
A diaspora homecoming festival of music, dance and heritage held in some years. - Banjul Craft Market (Near Albert Market, Banjul)
Woodcarvings, batik and jewellery from local makers, best with patient, friendly bargaining. - Safari Garden Hotel (Fajara, Bakau)
A small garden hotel with a pool, popular with travellers who like a quieter base. - Butcher's Shop (Kololi, Kololi)
Grilled meats and Moroccan touches in one of the coast's well known restaurants. - Paradise Beach horse rides (Kololi beach, Kololi)
Gentle horse rides along the sand offered by local stables at the quieter ends of the beach. - Wrestling at Serrekunda arena (Serrekunda, Serrekunda)
Traditional Gambian wrestling with drummers and crowds, a big weekend event in season. - Mandina River Lodge (Makasutu, Serrekunda)
Floating and jungle lodges deep in the Makasutu forest, a special place to stay. - Sukuta wrestling and markets (Sukuta, Serrekunda)
A busy town between the coast and Brikama with markets and local life. - Kerr Serign art studios (Kerr Serign, Serrekunda)
Local artists and galleries in a growing creative neighbourhood near the coast. - Westfield nightlife (Westfield, Serrekunda)
Local bars and clubs where Gambians go out at weekends, best with local friends. - Kenye Kenye Jamango (Gunjur, Tanji)
A sacred forest site near Gunjur, visited respectfully with a local guide. - Kartong Festival (Kartong, Tanji)
A village festival of music, dance and culture that brings the south coast to life. - Boboi Beach Lodge (Gunjur, Tanji)
Simple beach cabins by the sea for travellers who want peace and nature. - Sheraton Gambia Hotel Resort and Spa (Brufut Heights, Tanji)
A large clifftop resort with pools above the quiet Brufut beach. - Paradise Beach (Sanyang, Tanji)
A relaxed beach bar spot at Sanyang for a lazy day by the sea. - Baobolong Camp (Janjanbureh, Janjanbureh)
Simple lodging in the town, handy for boat trips and walks. - Chimpanzee Rehabilitation Project Camp (River Gambia National Park, Janjanbureh)
A small eco camp linked to the chimp project, with boat trips included.