Routes · Africa

Vancouver to Senegal: Dakar, Saint-Louis and the Sine-Saloum Delta

Vancouver → Dakar → Saint-Louis → Sine-Saloum

West African coast Best season (general guide): Nov–May

Senegal is one of West Africa's easiest countries to travel in, and this route links its capital, its historic old town in the north and the mangrove delta in the south. From Vancouver you'll connect in Europe or North America on the way to Dakar. After that, the trip is by road. The itinerary spends three nights in Dakar, two nights in Saint-Louis and three nights in Sine-Saloum.

How to pace it: After the connecting flights from Vancouver, plan days one to three in Dakar: first Almadies, then Gorée Island, and finally markets and Renaissance Monument. Next, plan days four and five in Saint-Louis: first road north to Saint-Louis, then old town and Djoudj or the fishing quarter. Next, plan days six to eight in Sine-Saloum: first road south to the delta, then pirogue through the mangroves, and finally village and shell island.

Dakar is energetic and creative: markets, live music, the African Renaissance Monument on its hill and the beaches of the Almadies. The ferry to Gorée Island, with its pastel houses and the House of Slaves, is an important and moving visit. The road north brings you to Saint-Louis, whose colonial buildings, river bridge and fishing quarter recall its past as the capital of French West Africa. The Djoudj bird sanctuary is nearby. Heading south, the Sine-Saloum delta is a slower, gentler place, where boat trips by pirogue wind through mangroves past fishing villages and shell islands.

December to February tends to be the coolest and driest.

French and Wolof are the main languages, so a few French phrases help. Senegal is a mostly Muslim country, so dress modestly away from the beaches.

Senegalese food is one of the region's best: thiéboudienne, fish with rice and vegetables, is the national dish, and yassa chicken with onions and lemon is everywhere. Evenings in Dakar often mean live mbalax music in clubs.

Practical notes: The dry season, roughly November to May, is the usual time to travel. The rainy season from about June to October brings heat, humidity and storms, especially from July to September, and some rural roads become harder to use.

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