Tour Itinerary
Day One
Arrive in Senegal – Dakar
On arrival in Senegal you will transfer to your Dakar hotel (Hotel Djollof or similar). Depending on your time of arrival, you will visit the Mamelles lighthouse for a panoramic view of the nearby island of Dakar, and to discover the mosque of Ouakam.
Day Two
Dakar – Thiès – Saint-Louis
You depart Dakar after breakfast and head for Saint-Louis by road.
The first stop is at Thiès; you go through this airy city with its shady streets in which there is the central market. Many buildings of the colonial era indicate the former importance of this "railroad city". You will make a stop at the basketry market.
Taking the road towards Saint-Louis, you arrive via the famous Faidherbe Bridge in this ancient, colonial, capital, classified as a Unesco World Heritage Site. You will take your meal in a restaurant specialising in Saint-Louisienne dishes on a terrace overlooking the Senegal River with an impressive view of the Faidherbe Bridge.
In the afternoon you will do a tour of the island and the fishermen quarter in a horse-drawn carriage with a Saint-Louisienne guide who will impress you with his historical knowledge. This visit finishes with refreshments at the Hotel Post.
You continue on to Domaine de Bango, a large family-built, colonial hotel by the Senegal River. The Bango Ranch has comfortable rooms (air-conditioning, private bathroom), which are scattered around a tropical garden and a very beautiful swimming pool. Dinner is served in the dining room or on the terrace.
A night is spent in this haven of peace.
Day Three
Lake Guiers – Richard-Toll – Saint-Louis
You’ll spend the morning travelling along sahélien tracks that border Lake Guiers, a fresh water reservoir. You will discover the bush, traditional Peul villages and numerous herds of animals around the water holes as well as see agricultural areas with several thousand hectares of sugar cane.
You will stop to enjoy a picnic in the shade of the acacia trees beside the lake taking time to reminisce on the sights you have seen and the local way of life.
You continue with your visit to Richard-Toll to see the ‘folly’ built by Baron Roger and then return to Saint-Louis by road at the end of the day.
Dinner and spend the night at Domaine de Bango.
Day Four
Djoudj Park or Langue de Barbarie
You have the choice between visiting two national parks:
- Djoudj Park (December to April). You depart early in a 4x4 to explore by pirogue the third largest ornithological reserve in the world and discover numerous species of migratory birds (ducks, herons, pelicans, spoonbills…) and reptiles (lizards and crocodiles). You return to the ranch for lunch and spend the afternoon relaxing around the pool.
- Langue de Barbarie (all year). You set off for the Gandiol lighthouse and embark on a pirogue to go down the river towards the old river mouth to cross over to the Langue de Barbarie National Park. You will discover the island of birds where numerous species nest. You will lunch is in a campsite on the Langue de Barbarie between the river and the ocean, before taking the road back to Dakar in the middle of the afternoon.
PLEASE NOTE THAT THE ITINERARY MAY VARY SLIGHTLY DEPENDING ON WEATHER, TIME OF YEAR ETC.
