Places in Senegal
Senegal is a scenic and cultural mix of stunning coastlines, lush mangrove-lined creeks and grand colonial architecture.
Senegal is 20 times larger than Gambia, and boasts a great deal more scenic and cultural variety – though beaches, predictably, do form the raison d’être of the national tourist industry.
Dakar ranks among the most vibrant and compelling of African capitals, and its lively markets and nightlife provide a wonderful introduction to contemporary Senegalese culture. Facing the capital, but totally different in mood, Ile de Gorée is a sleepy former colonial outpost whose shape has changed little since the 19th century.
Heading north, all the way to the Mauritanian border, the former capital of Saint-Louis, set on a small island in the Senegal River Mouth, comes across as the perfect hybrid between Dakar and Gorée. Steeped in history and studded with grand colonial architectural relics, Saint-Louis also has a lively restaurant scene and nightlife that place it squarely in the 21st century.
By contrast, the Senegal River Route explores an area steeped in traditional culture, ranging from the curvaceous adobe architecture of Matam and Ile à Morfil to the harsh swathes of semi-desert inhabited by colourfully robed Tukulor herders around Bakel.
The country’s main tourist hub is the Petite Côte, the string of beach resorts that runs along the short sandy stretch of coastline southward from Dakar to Joal via Saly Portugal and Mbour. Further south, the labyrinthine Siné-Saloum Delta, a wilderness of mangrove-lined creeks at the mouth of the Siné and Saloum rivers, is particularly popular with game fishermen and birdwatchers.
The Central Interior has a haunting quality to its vast baobab-studded plains, and the holy city of Touba and ancient stone circles near Kaolack are worthwhile goals for adventurous travellers. Even more untamed in spirit, Southeast Senegal is dominated by Niokolo-Koba, the country’s largest national park, and it’s also an important centre of traditional animist cultures.
Finally, the lush Casamance – all but isolated from the rest of the country by Gambia – is practically a destination in its own right, with its rich Diola culture, lovely traditional villages, and some of the finest beaches anywhere in West Africa.