Tourism in Sierra Leone

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The Tourism in Sierra Leone is currently playing (as of April 2017) a subordinate economic role. History tourism and dark tourism in particular are seen as great opportunities for Sierra Leone.

After the end of the 10-year civil war in 2002, the tourism sector developed into one of the five most important branches of the economy and was an important source of foreign currency. Many of the old hotels are no longer in operation, but new ones have developed, including international chains for the first time. Overall, Sierra Leone is still a destination almost untouched by tourism. The country is also known as the Caribbean of Africa .

The umbrella organization for tourism in Sierra Leone is the state National Tourist Board .

statistics

Before the civil war, Sierra Leone was an insider tip for tourists and was mainly visited by French tourists (around 30,000 a year). There were some large international standard hotels in Freetown, as well as some luxury lodges and accommodations along the Freetown Peninsula .

The number of tourists in 2008 was around 4,000, the number of all incoming people around 35,000. In 2010, 38,615 people traveled to Sierra Leone, 7,728 of them tourists. 537 of all travelers came from Germany. In 2012 the total number of tourists fell to 5,328. In 2013, Sierra Leone was visited by a total of 75,560 travelers.

According to the World Tourism Organization (UNWTO), Sierra Leone was the third least visited country in Africa in 2015 . In 2016, Sierra Leone was the fastest growing tourism market in the world with around 74,400 visitors.

As of 2020 there are 459 accommodation establishments nationwide, 56 percent of which are registered with the Tourism Council. In the same year, the National Tourism Census 2020 was an extensive statistical survey on tourism.

Arrival and transport

Almost all travelers enter Sierra Leone via Freetown / Lungi International Airport near Freetown or via the port of Freetown. The port is the third largest natural harbor in the world and was approached again by a large cruise ship ( Hamburg ) for the first time at the end of 2013 .

Lungi International Airport ( IATA code FNA) is on the opposite side of the Sierra Leone River . Transfers are possible by ferry (45 minutes), hovercraft (20 minutes), helicopter (10 minutes) and bus (4 hours). Regular scheduled flight connections from Europe are currently offered from Brussels or London.

A new international airport 60 kilometers east of Freetown was planned. however, it was abandoned in 2018.

Freetown is a great place to walk and explore the city. An off-road vehicle (with driver) is necessary for an "up country" tour. Since the completion of the Peninsula Road, popular beaches such as River No. 2 Beach can also be reached by car. Taxis run in Freetown (there are no taxi signs, but the official ones can be recognized by their yellow or red color with red or yellow doors and fenders). Minibuses, so-called "Poda Poda" run everywhere, but are in poor condition and totally overloaded. Air-conditioned intercity buses run from the Freetown bus station to various other cities in the country.

Freetown

View of Freetown from Tower Hill

Worth seeing

One of the most famous tourist spots is the world famous Cotton Tree ("cotton tree"). The giant tree now stands in the center of Freetown and has been there since at least 1787. The small Sierra Leone National Museum is also located here , the only one in the whole country. Well worth a visit. The numerous markets are also worth seeing, for tourists in particular the covered Big Market in the center of the city.

Architecturally interesting are also the building of the Supreme Court, the so-called "Portuguese stairs", various churches such as St. John's Maroon (from 1829), St. George's Cathedral (1828), Foulah Town Mosque (1830) and the Roman Catholic Sacred Heart Cathedral as well as the gate to the Old Kings Yard and the three historic cannons on the city limits.

Also worth seeing is the Railway Museum in Cline Town with the largest and heaviest narrow-gauge locomotive ever built.

Lumley Beach in Freetown

The clean, white, sandy beaches, are out at Easter and Christmas, the Lumley Beach almost deserted. Lumley Beach, right in Freetown, is a popular stop. The tourist information and some popular beach cafes are also located here.

For entertainment and leisure, the various restaurants and cafes on Lumley Beach, two casinos, an entertainment complex, golf course and water sports as well as fishing, boat and diving tours are available.

Accommodations

After the end of the civil war, a few new accommodations - especially in Freetown - have been established. Few of them meet European standards. The first hotels of international hotel chains opened in 2015 , including the Hilton Cape Sierra Freetown and the Radisson Blu Mammy Yoko .

There are also clean, simple and functional accommodations on Banana Islands (Banana Island Chalets) and in the Tacugama Chimpanzee Sanctuary at the gates of Freetown, as well as very simple tented camps in the Outamba Kilimi National Park and on Tiwai Island in the Moa River .

Restaurants / food

There are a few restaurants in Freetown. Freshly caught lobster and other seafood is available almost everywhere at extremely affordable prices. In addition to fish dishes, local West African cuisine (potato leaves, cassava etc.), Chinese and Lebanese cuisine are offered.

Around Freetown

River No. 2 Beach, Freetown Peninsula

Hinterland and cities

More cities and local tourist attractions can be found in the list of cities in Sierra Leone .

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Sierra Leone seeks to move into 'slave tourism'. BBC, June 28, 2012.
  2. ↑ Tourism Bulletin 2010, Statistics Sierra Leone ( Memento of November 13, 2010 in the Internet Archive )
  3. ↑ 2010 Tourism Statistics, National Tourist Board of Sierra Leone ( Memento of the original from March 5, 2016 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. , accessed July 15, 2011. @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / www.welcometosierraleone.sl
  4. ^ National Tourist Board reports positive growth on Non-resident Visitor / Tourist Arrivals for 2012. National Tourist Board , accessed January 12, 2013.
  5. ↑ 2013 Tourism Statistics. National Tourist Board of Sierra Leone ( Memento of the original from March 4, 2016 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. , accessed February 20, 2014. @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / www.ntb.sl
  6. ↑ Countries where tourism is growing (and dropping) the fastest: The top six. Traveler, June 30, 2017.
  7. ↑ IPC Set To Receive MS Hamburg Cruiseship On The 25th December 2013 At Queen Elizabeth II Quay. Sierra Leone National Tourist Board, November 27, 2013 ( Memento of the original from February 25, 2014 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. , accessed February 20, 2014. @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / www.welcometosierraleone.sl
  8. ^ Sierra Leone Flight Schedule. VisitSierraLeone.org ( Memento of the original from September 8, 2016 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link has been inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. , accessed February 5, 2013. @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / www.visitsierraleone.org
  9. ↑ Hilton Worldwide Signs Deal For First Hotel in Sierra Leone. Hilton Worldwide, August 30, 2011 ; accessed February 20, 2014.
  10. ^ Official website of the Radisson Blu Mammy Yoko , accessed on February 20, 2014.