Fishing canoes silhouetted on the sea at Busua as the sun sets over the water

Ghana, one house at a time.

Private journeys through Ghana, planned around people

House 01 · Our way

Planned the way a good game of oware is played

In Ghana an oware board turns up wherever people wait: on a bench in Kumasi's Kejetia market, outside a barber's kiosk in Jamestown, under a shea tree in a northern compound. It has two rows of six houses and forty-eight seeds, and it rewards the player who counts ahead and keeps the conversation going.

We plan a journey through Ghana the same way: one house at a time, with an eye on where the seeds will land. A morning inside the castle at Elmina needs an afternoon that lets you sit with it. A Sunday at Manhyia, when the Asantehene receives his chiefs at Akwasidae, decides the shape of the week around it. The road north to Mole is long, so we break it at a weavers' town or a waterfall, not a fuel station. (to verify)

Read our story

Aerial view of Akosombo on a peninsula in the Volta, with forested hills rising behind the town

Cannons on the whitewashed ramparts of Cape Coast Castle, looking along the beach and the surf towards the town

House 02 · The coast

Time in the castle, and time after it

Cape Coast and Elmina castles held captive Africans before the Atlantic crossing. We visit with a Ghanaian historian, tell you plainly what the tour involves, and put the two castles on different days.

Most people want time alone afterwards, so we leave the afternoon empty. That is not a gap in the plan. It is the plan.

Visiting the castles

House 03 · The court and the makers

Sunday at the palace, Monday at the loom

Every 42 days the Asantehene sits in state at Manhyia Palace in Kumasi for Akwasidae. If your dates allow, we build the week around it, with a guide beside you who explains the protocol.

The next day, the makers: kente weavers at Bonwire, adinkra stampers at Ntonso, carvers at Ahwiaa, and Kejetia market with a trader as your guide. (to verify)

Akwasidae at Manhyia See the court calendar

A wide view over the crowded stalls, umbrellas and tin roofs of a Kumasi market, with buildings rising behind

Ten things we plan whole trips around

The heritage route

1/10Cape Coast and Elmina castles with a Ghanaian historian, the ancestral river at Assin Manso, and, for those who want the whole story, Salaga, Pikworo and the walls of Gwollu in the north.
Akwasidae at Manhyia

2/10A Sunday at the Asante court, when the Asantehene sits in state at Manhyia Palace to receive chiefs and the public, with a guide who explains the protocol.
The makers' circuit

3/10A day or two among the craft towns around Kumasi: kente weavers at Bonwire, adinkra stamping at Ntonso, woodcarvers at Ahwiaa, and Kejetia market with a trader as guide.
Accra, galleries and highlife

4/10A walk through Jamestown, time in contemporary galleries, the figurative coffin workshops of Teshie, and a night of live highlife. In August, Chale Wote fills the streets.
Walking with elephants at Mole

5/10Morning and afternoon walks with an armed ranger among the elephants of Mole National Park, and a stop at Larabanga's mud mosque on the way.
Kakum at first light

6/10The canopy walkway at opening time, before the groups, with a birding guide; optional forest walks for specialists.
The Volta highlands

7/10A green, walkable week east of the lake: the forest walk to Wli Falls, the climb up Afadjato, the mona monkeys of Tafi Atome, and a day on Lake Volta.
Illustration

The painted houses of Sirigu

8/10A night at the women's cooperative guesthouse in Sirigu, among houses painted in red, black and white earth; the basket weavers of Bolgatanga; and the crocodile ponds at Paga.
The western shore

9/10A slow week on the coast towards Côte d'Ivoire: Busua's bay, the forts at Axim and Beyin, a canoe to the stilt village of Nzulezu, and the wet forest of Ankasa.
Beads and cocoa

10/10An easy loop north of Accra: a Krobo bead workshop, a cocoa farm on the Akuapem Ridge where Ghana's cocoa story starts, and the botanical gardens at Aburi.

Twelve houses, from the coast to the far north

An oware board has two rows of six houses. Ghana, as we plan it, has twelve regions. Choose one to start, or sow several and let us put them in order.

Greater Accra

Accra
Central Region

Cape Coast & Elmina
Central Region

Kakum & the Central forests
Ashanti Region

Kumasi & Ashanti
Illustration Volta highlands

Volta & Oti Regions

Volta highlands
Eastern Region

Lake Volta & Akosombo
Five routes to start from

From a first ten days on the coast and at court to the whole board, south to north. Every one is there to be changed.
See the routes
Greater Accra

Ada & the Volta estuary
Eastern Region

Akuapem Ridge & Krobo
Western Region

Western coast
Savannah Region

Mole & the Savannah Region
Northern Region

Tamale & the Northern Region
Illustration Upper East & Upper West

Upper East & Upper West Regions

Upper East & Upper West

When to go, region by region

The dry season, roughly November to March, is the most reliable. Choose a month to see what each part of the country is doing.

January. Peak season. Harmattan haze in the north and often on the coast; cool nights in the north.

February. Still dry and busy. Haze lifts later in the month in the south; the north heats up.

March. Hot everywhere, very hot in the north. Good for Mole's elephants, which gather at the water.

April. The south's rains begin. The far north is at its hottest before its own rains.

May. Rains in the south and forest; green and humid. Fewer visitors, lower demand.

June. The heaviest rains on the coast. Some trails close; the Volta falls are building.

July. Rains continue, with cooler, cloudier days on the coast. Emancipation Day and Panafest season around the end of the month in some years.

August. A drier lull on the coast. Chale Wote in Accra, Homowo season among the Ga. Rains at their height in the north.

September. Short rains in the south; the north still wet. Cape Coast's Fetu Afahye early in the month.

October. Short rains easing in the south. The falls in the Volta highlands are full.

November. The dry season starts. Green landscapes, clear air, good walking everywhere.

December. Dry, festive and busy, especially around Christmas, when many in the diaspora travel. Book early.

Typical weather by region and month
Region	Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec
South coast	Harmattan	Harmattan	Hot	Rains	Rains	Rains	Rains	Lull	Short rains	Short rains	Dry	Dry
Forest belt & Volta	Harmattan	Harmattan	Dry	Rains	Rains	Rains	Rains	Lull	Short rains	Short rains	Dry	Harmattan
North	Harmattan	Harmattan	Hot	Hot	Rains	Rains	Rains	Rains	Rains	Rains	Dry	Harmattan

Dry: Dry and warm. The most reliable travelling weather.
Harmattan: Dry, with dust haze blown from the Sahara. Cooler nights, softer light, poorer views; flights in the north can be delayed.
Hot: Dry and very hot, especially in the north, where afternoons can pass 40°C.
Rains: The main rains. Heavy downpours, usually in the afternoon or overnight; some roads and trails are muddy.
Short rains: The south's shorter second rainy season: showers rather than days of rain.
Lull: A drier, cooler break between the south's two rainy seasons.

Broad patterns, not forecasts. (to verify) More on when to go

What we can promise, in numbers

12regions we plan, from Accra to the Upper West
10experiences we build trips around
42days between one Akwasidae Sunday and the next (to verify)
0prices on this site: every trip is quoted for you

Questions people ask first

When is the best time to visit Ghana?

The dry season, roughly November to March, is the most reliable time to travel. From about December to February the harmattan wind brings dust haze from the Sahara, which softens the light and can delay flights in the north. The main rains fall from about April in the south and May in the north. See our season board for each region.

Do I need a visa?

Most visitors need a visa. Ghana launched an online e-Visa service for tourist and business visas on 25 May 2026. Some African and Caribbean nationals instead need a free electronic travel authorisation (ETA), and ECOWAS citizens keep their existing arrangements. Fees and processing times are set out on the official portal; we do not publish them here because they change. Apply through the official portal only.

What does a castle visit involve?

A guided tour of one to two hours on foot, including the dungeons, which are dark and close, and the Door of No Return. Guides speak plainly about what happened there. You can step out at any time. We leave the afternoon free afterwards. Our guide to visiting the castles covers it in detail.

What are the hotels like?

Honestly: Accra has polished hotels and some lovely guesthouses. Outside Accra, the best rooms are comfortable rather than lavish, and in some places, such as Sirigu, simple. We tell you the standard of every room before you book. See stays.

All questions