Accra, Cape Coast and Kumasi, West Africa
Itinerary
DAY 1 – USA/ACCRA – Depart the USA for Accra, Ghana. Time to be announced.
DAY 2 – ACCRA – Arrive in Accra Airport and you will be met by our local representative and transfer to your hotel. Later you will have a brief orientation and then enjoy a welcome dinner at your hotel. Overnight: Golden Tulip. D
DAY 3 – ACCRA – Shortly after breakfast you will begin your tour with a visit University of Legon and hear lectures on “History on Slave Trade in Ghana” . Later you will have lunch at a local restaurant. Thereafter go on a conducted tour of the University campus. You can visit the University bookshop and the Institute of African Studies. Interact with students and faculty. You will continue to Accra Shopping Mall which is the first shopping centre in Ghana, which offers an exciting concept of one stop shopping. This would present a unique opportunity to experience shopping, leisure, entertainment, fashion, dining and healthcare in a style and on a scale never experienced in Ghana before. Enjoy the rest of the evening at your leisure. Overnight: Golden Tulip. B/L
DAY 4– ACCRA/CAPE COAST – Enjoy an early breakfast you will check out of your hotel and depart Accra for the Central Region. Drive along the coast through several fishing villages and coconut-lined beaches. Arrive and visit the Kakum National Park. Go on a morning walk of the ‘Kuntan Trail” with its countless trees with medicinal properties. For the young at heart experience, the “Canopy Walkway” suspended 100 feet from the forest ground for a panoramic view of the flora and fauna of the remaining vestiges of the rainforest. Later enjoy lunch at a seaside restaurant. Continue after lunch to visit Cape Coast Castle which was originally started by the Swedes in 1652. It served as the headquarters and seat of the British colonial government until 1877. Go on a comprehensive tour of the Castle, the Slave Dungeons and the West African Heritage Museum. Your guide will lead you to slave quarters and Negotiation Hall where our ancestors were bargained and sold. Late noon you will check into your hotel and spend the rest of the evening on your own. Overnight: Coconut Grove Beach/ Elmina Beach Resorts, Elmina. B/L
DAY 5 – CAPE COAST – Depart after breakfast for a visit to the University of Cape Coast. Here you will here lectures on “Introduction to African Traditional and Contemporary Culture”. After lunch go on a conducted tour of the University of Cape Coast to interact with Students and faculty. Shortly after explore the township of Elmina. This was Ghana’s first point of contact with the European explorers. The houses tell the centuries-long close collaboration of the town with European trading nations especially the Dutch. You may hear typical Dutch names such as Van Dyke, Vanderpuye, Viala, Bartels and Vroom as a result of the intermarriages between the Dutch and local people. Dinner at One Africa Restaurant. Overnight: Coconut Grove Beach Resort. B/D
DAY 6 – CAPE COAST/KUMASI – Enjoy an early breakfast and then check out of your hotel. Depart after breakfast to visit the Elmina Castle built by the Portuguese in 1482 for a comprehensive guided tour. This national monument is actually the first structure built by Europeans in sub Saharan Africa. Continue to Kumasi in the Ashanti Region. Drive through many scenic villages and charming towns. Note the changes from coastal shrubs to forest belt. Enroute stop to visit Assin Manso to visit the burial Site of the remains of the two ancestors exhumed from New York’s Wall Street and Jamaica Kingston (Samuel Carson from New York & Crystal from Jamaica) and re-interred on the Emancipation Day 1998. Visit the “Enslaved African River”. Arrive in Kumasi and have lunch at a local restaurant. Check-in into your hotel and enjoy the rest of the evening at your leisure. Overnight: Kumasi. B/L
DAY 7 – Depart shortly after breakfast for a city tour of Kumasi visiting the Manhyia Palace – residence of the Ashanti King and Palace Museum National Cultural Centre, Prempeh II Jubilee Museum, the famous Okomfo Anokye Sword and the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology, drive past the School of Art and Sculpture and the Kumasi Central Market – the largest open-air market in West Africa. Lunch will be at a local restaurant.
Continue your tour after lunch with a visit to the Ashanti craft villages to explore the talent and skills of the local craftsmen using simple tools and traditional technology to produce breathtaking artifacts and designs from which you may choose souvenirs for friends and family back home. Visit Ahwiaa – the woodcarver’s village specializing in woodcarving such as the Ashanti stools, fertility dolls and walking sticks. Ntonso – noted for its indigenous artist whose expertise lies in the Adinkra textual printing using traditional symbols that express the spiritual, moral, political and socio- cultural philosophies of the Akan people. You will have an opportunity to create your own designs and Bonwire for the famous Kente cloth. Overnight: Kumasi B/L
DAY 8 – After breakfast you will check out of your hotel and depart Kumasi for Accra. Drive past several scenic villages and charming towns through the evergreen forests.Enroute stop to visit the home of Queen Mother Yaa Asantewaa at Ejisu Besease. Yaa Asantewaa, the female Asante War General who led the Asantes to fight the British in 1900. Visit Ashanti Traditional Building and Shrine at Ejisu Besease. Lunch enroute(on own account)Arrive in Accra and check in to your hotel. Rest of day free to relax or for personal activities. Dinner at your hotel. Overnight: Golden Tulip B/D
DAY 9 – KUMASI/ACCRA – Depart after breakfast for a full day city tour of Accra visiting the Kwame Nkrumah Mausoleum and Park, final resting place of Dr. Kwame Nkrumah, the first President of Ghana. The Mausoleum has been visited by many world dignitaries. Continue to the National Museum of History and Ethnography. This Museum houses a varied collection of Ghanaian artifacts. Drive past the Independence Arch and Black Star Square – Accra’s ceremonial grounds. View from a distance the Christiansborg Castle which was the official residence of the President of Ghana. Enjoy lunch at a local restaurant and then your last stop for your tour will be at the Arts and Crafts market where you may try out your bargaining skills on the local vendors. Spend the rest of day at your leisure. Overnight: Golden Tulip B/L
DAY 9 – ACCRA/USA – Enjoy your morning at leisure. You will check out of your hotel at noon and transfer to airport for your departure. (Times to be announced.) B
Inclusions
- 4 Nights at Golden Tulip/Novotel on bed & breakfast basis
- 2 Nights at hotel in Kumasi on Bed & Breakfast basis
- 2 Nights at Coconut Grove Beach/ Elmina Beach Resorts in Elmina on Bed & Breakfast basis
- Overland Transportation via air-conditioned Vehicle
- Meals as Outlined in Itinerary. B = Breakfast, L = Lunch, D = Dinner (Beverage Extra)
- Tours and Entrance Fees to Tour Sites as Outlined in Itinerary
- English Speaking Professional Tour Guide
- Hotel and Restaurant Taxes
- 1% tourism development levy
Exclusions
- Insurance – We can assist with travel insurance! Exclusions
- Tips and gratuities to guides, drivers Items of personal nature such as laundry, telephone bills, room services drinks, and alcoholic beverages and airport taxes.
Cost – Call for pricing
All rates will be based on double. Land only, based on double occupancy. Air will be priced separately. We will advise best air price from your home city. Frequent flyer can be credited and seat assignments should be requested at the time of booking.
Deposit/ Payments – Deposit of $350.00 is due by February 20, 2018. Payment should be sent to Xodus International Group, LLC – Attention Donna McKeithan, 5810 Kingstowne Center Drive, #207, Alexandria, VA 22315. We accept checks, money orders, cashier checks and all major credit cards except American Express. Refer to tour number #XIGGHA0522 on all correspondence.
Booking Procedures – Participants can visit our website to register at www.xodusint.com. Please see the registration button from the home page. Registering online will help a great deal as we are finalizing your reservations.
Please note: Transportation, lodging, meals, entertainment and other services are sold on a partially refundable basis depending upon the date, in relation to the departure date, should such services are canceled. In order to protect your deposit, please obtain travelers insurance. Speak to your XIG representative for international insurance information. Rates, schedule times & fuel surcharges are determined by the government and are subject to change without notice and will be determined at the time tickets are issued.
Register here: http://xodusint.com/contact/registration-form/
Best time to visit – January, February, March and September thru December