The Gambia THE SPIRIT OF WEST AFRICA
Beaches,
culture, wildlife and excellent cuisine are all on offer in this tiny African destination, says Roger St. Pierre
B
illing itself as ‘Africa’s Sunshine Coast’, the former British colony of The Gambia is one of that
continent’s smallest country, but one of the most interesting. It teems with wildlife, has
a developing tourist-friendly infrastructure, very low crime rates and easy-going locals put out the warmest of welcome mats. A long, narrow, low-lying country, containing vast swamps and jungle and completely surrounded by
Senegal apart from the coastal strip, The English-speaking The Gambia spreads for several hundred miles along both banks of the languid Gambia River, which spills out into the Atlantic Ocean, where the country has a short but stunningly beautiful coastline, with red cliffs, golden sands and, yes, swaying palms.
This is where most tourism activity is centred,
with a range of quality spa and boutique properties as well as low-cost accommodation, but an increasingly popular choice is to spend at least part of the vacation up-country where quality lodges and expert guides offer safaris whose wildlife attractions include monkeys and baboons, hippos, crocodiles and a vast array of birds. It’s a good destination for long
weekend breaks as well as for more extended 10- and 11-night holidays and availability is currently good. One of the biggest selling points of The Gambia is that the country exists on the same time zone as the UK – meaning no jetlag to combat after the relatively short six-hour fl ight. There are also no visa requirements. The Gambia has a year-round
visitor window. The average daily temperature is 32ºC and there’s almost no rainfall from November to June. High humidity from July to October is punctuated by short but spectacular rainstorms.
Food is of a high quality and besides local cuisine and good Italian and French restaurants there are all the usual pizza and burger fast- food offerings. There are also bars, nightclubs and other distractions. A trip to the colourful local markets is a must and it’s a real experience when the vividly-painted fi shing boats come in through the white surf of the Atlantic breakers to land their morning’s catch. The country’s population comes in around 1.7million, with a third of the people living below the poverty line – but poverty is not in your face. The country’s tourism industry
kicked off in 1965 – the year of independence from Britain – with the arrival of a party of 300 curious Swedish visitors. Since then, numbers
Clockwise from left: Mandina Lodges, Makasutu; friendly locals; Jungle
Lodge interior; crocodile. Opposite page: a sunset stroll from Ngala Lodge and the view at South Gambia Beach
40 October 2012 •
www.sellinglonghaul.com
selling tip “The Gambia is a great
winter sun destination and throughout the UK’s winter and spring there is no rain there”
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