Inside Ghana

Article By: iafrica.com

There’s more to travel than seeing a city from the back of a bus, or grabbing some franchised fast food. It’s about exploring and experiencing all that a destination has to offer. Throw away your map and get lost in a strange city. Find a restaurant filled with locals and savour a meal you can’t pronounce. It’s not about where you travel, it’s about how you travel.

British Airways understands this, and proudly presents The Insider’s Guide: a celebration of those special moments, wonderful memories and great stories that happen when you step off the beaten track, see the world through different eyes or go off in search of a little adventure. Enjoy the journey.

David Woolfson jets into the capital of Ghana and discovers the best way to do business in Accra…

Where was your last overseas trip?
Ghana; to Accra and surrounding areas

Why did you choose to travel there?
As an ex- British colony (Gold Coast) you’re sure of a soft landing; many things are familiar and English is the main language. What is strange though is that they drive on the right side of the road, like the French. There are good prospects for business as they have a growing oil industry as well as mining prospects for gold and other minerals. As such they have a large ex-pat community.

Where did you stay along the way, and why?
During the week I changed Hotels three times.

First was the Protea Accra; a relatively new hotel with large rooms and nicely furnished, but quite far from the beach and city centre. Also limited in that they only have one restaurant. The second hotel was Labadi Beach; brilliant location and excellent food, but for a 4/5-star the rooms were very run-down. But I noticed the mock-ups in the lobby, and it seems they are upgrading.

The last hotel was Golden Tulip Accra, which definitely had the best buzz and atmosphere, with a pool area, choice of restaurants and casino. Again though, the rooms were tired and need a make-over. Both the Golden Tulip and Labadi have a very good business centre.

Your favourite meal during your time away?
We had a number of good meals. Captain Cook was excellent for seafood and had great fresh fish; red snapper, sole, prawns. But the most tasty was at a Lebanese restaurant that offered traditional meze, shashlik, shish kebabs, humus,pita bread and fresh chilli — which Ghanians are fond of! Monsoon is another trendy restaurant with a sushi bar, late-night Dizzy Gillespie drinking venue and stylish seafood section.

Did you find any ‘hidden secrets’ during your travels…
Not really as we were working but the night life is interesting — very American, lots of jazz venues and strong Caribbean influences with Reggae etc.

Try the local West African food if you are brave, like Grass Cutter (boiled cane rat), Fufu ,Banku , Joloff.

Elmina Castle is worth visiting to learn about the history of the slave trade. It’s further up Cape Coast on the road to the Ivory Coast. It’s a pleasant drive to the Volta Region; the lake is relaxing and has nice picnic areas, but the drive is 2.5 hours.

Your best travel tip for others planning a visit there?
Drink only mineral water — ‘Voltic’. Take sunglasses; the glare is hectic! And definitely take anti-malaria tablets.

Meet any interesting locals?
People are very friendly; quite business-oriented, although accept they do things their way and don’t try to change them.

What’s the best way to get around?
Generally, a hired car and driver. Local transport is pretty cheap and nasty, with crowded hot and sweaty mini-buses.