Skip to: Content
Skip to: Site Navigation
Skip to: Search
FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 27, 2009
| Subscribe to Newser's RSS feeds RSS | Follow Newser on Twitter Twitter


 TRAVEL 
9

Beat the Crowds to Ghana

Share

(Newser) – President Obama's visit has put Ghana in the spotlight and anybody planning to follow in his footsteps should aim to visit while it's still off the beaten track, travel consultants tell Forbes. The West African country surrounded by volatile neighbors has long been considered a peaceful "diamond in the rough." People in the travel biz say it's the overlooked gem of African tourism, although visitor numbers are swiftly rising.

Five-star luxury is in short supply outside the capital, but boosters say its culture, history and natural beauty—as well as its famously hospitable people—more than compensate. "Ghana is the birthplace of slavery and a little rough around the edges," says one travel consultant. "But if you want to be adventurous and have bragging rights saying that you've been there, experience it before the masses."

President Obama and his family tour the Cape Coast Castle, a former slave-trading fort, in Ghana last weekend.
President Obama and his family tour the Cape Coast Castle, a former slave-trading fort, in Ghana last weekend.   (AP Photo/Haraz N. Ghanbari)
This fortress in Cape Coast, Ghana is among the country's many historic sites dating from the days of the trans-Atlantic slave trade.
This fortress in Cape Coast, Ghana is among the country's many historic sites dating from the days of the trans-Atlantic slave trade.   (AP Photo/Clement N'Taye, File)
A sign welcoming President Obama and wife Michelle hangs over a busy neighborhood street in Accra, Ghana last week.
A sign welcoming President Obama and wife Michelle hangs over a busy neighborhood street in Accra, Ghana last week.   (AP Photo/Rebecca Blackwell)
« Prev« Prev | Next »Next » Slideshow

Ghana is the birthplace of slavery and a little rough around the edges. But if you want to be adventurous and have bragging rights saying that you've been there, experience it before the masses. - John Clifford, president of a travel firm

« Prev« Prev | Next »Next » Slideshow
OFF THE GRID
11.24.09
Murdoch and Microsoft: The Mice Are Trying to Roar
11.23.09
Books Are Bad for You
9 comments
VIEWING:
 
IN RESPONSE:
Unaffiliated
Jul 16, 09 9:29 AM CDT
You keep using that word. I don't think it means what you think it means.
Vote up! Vote down!
+1
IN RESPONSE:
Unaffiliated
Jul 16, 09 11:17 AM CDT
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G2y8Sx4B2Sk
Vote up! Vote down!
0
IN RESPONSE:
kokuaguy
Jul 16, 09 1:08 PM CDT
Could you tell me a little about Libertarian Nazi wet dreams please. I just put an email address on my profile.
Vote up! Vote down!
+1
chillout
Jul 16, 09 10:29 AM CDT
How it is a bad thing for liberals or conservatives that a third world country is lifting itself out of poverty through tourism? Reply
Vote up! Vote down!
+1
IN RESPONSE:
chillout
Jul 16, 09 10:30 AM CDT
*is it
Vote up! Vote down!
-1

View all 9 comments »

LEAVE A
COMMENT Comment Policy
Facebook ConnectPost this comment to Facebook?

After connecting you will have the option to post your comment on your Facebook profile.

 

Related Newser Stories

45 Stories

$5M African Leadership Prize Goes to ... Nobody

Committee passes over all three candidates, doesn't award $5M to any

Oct 19, 09 2:43 PM CDT
(Newser) - Nobody has won this year's $5 million Ibrahim Prize for Achievement in African Leadership, the committee responsible for picking a winner announced today. That’s an enormous snub to the people eligible for the award, who include former heads of state Thabo Mbeki of South Africa, Olusegun Obasanjo of Nigeria,... More »

MORE ABOUT:
Africa • Nigeria • South Africa • awards • Thabo Mbeki • Ghana • head of state • Ibrahim Prize for Achievement in African Leadership • Olusegun Obasanjo • John Kufuor

Writer Wrestles With Visit to Long-Necked Thai Tribe

Overcomes angry tour guides, conscience

Aug 23, 09 6:06 PM CDT
(Newser) - Most travel companies refuse to take tourists to Thailand’s Burmese Padaung tribe—whose women wear neck coils that artificially elongate their necks—arguing that the practice is exploitative. But Amit R. Paley, writing for the Washington Post, ultimately found a guide and wrestled down his conscience. "My ability... More »

MORE ABOUT:
travel • Thailand • tourism • women • tribes • Burma • exploitation

(Newser) - Fewer Americans visited Canada last month than at any time since record-keeping began in 1972, as new passport controls and a weak US dollar kept tourists away. One-day car trips dropped 26% from May to June, and US tourists in Canada fell to half their number 5 years ago. The... More »

MORE ABOUT:
travel • tourism • Canada • United States • passport • US-Canadian border • travel restrictions

45 Stories


World  •  Arts & Living 
TwitterFollow @NewserWorld on Twitter

 
Barack Obama • Africa • travel • tourism • Ghana

from our news partners