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| Viewing: 8 day Ghana's Cultural Heritage Celebration |
Package ID: 1964 |
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| 8 day Ghana's Cultural Heritage Celebration |
Formally the Gold Coast, Ghana prides itself on being the first sub Saharan country to gain its independence in 1957. Relive the history and retrace the steps enslaved Africans were forced to endure
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10% discount on this tour commencing 5th September 2009.
Day 1
You arrive on the motherland at Kotoka International Airport Accra, the capital city, Accra is situated on the Gold Coast in the Greater Accra Region of Ghana. It stretches over 4540 square kilometres, and has a coastline spanning 220 kilometres from Kokrobite in the west to Ada in the east. After passing through immigration, you proceed to the conveyor to collect your baggage before heading to customs. We will meet you on the other side, just look out for the our sign as you come out of the terminal building. Please make yourself known to us, and we will take care of you from here and for the duration of your stay. We board our air conditioned vehicle, your mode of transport whilst you are on the motherland and set off for your hotel, which is a short drive from the Airport. Our expert guide, who will accompany you for the duration of the tour will check you in and offer you Akwaaba (Welcome), before briefing you on all aspects of the pilgrimage.
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Day 2
This morning we take a leisurely breakfast before setting off for Teshie to take part in a traditional naming ceremony. Here you will have the chance to experience firsthand a naming ceremony on the continent. We shall be welcomed by Nii (Head of the Clan) who will lead us through the ceremony as performed by the ancestors through history. You will have the chance to adopt your own African name based on the day of the week you were born or numeric order of your siblings.
After the naming ceremony, we start our tour of Accra with a visit to the Kwame Nkrumah Memorial park, the final resting place of Ghana’s founder. The memorial park is set in attractive gardens with an adjoining museum, which contains photos, artefacts and offers an insight into this incredible man’s life. From here we visit Ussher Fort which was a look-out post built by the Dutch in 1649, and was formerly known as Fort Crevecoeur. In 1868 the Dutch sold it to the English when it was renamed after Governor Usher, it has now been converted into a museum of excellence dedicated to Africans who have triumphed in all walks of life. We shall continue our tour of Accra to the Dubois Centre, the final burial place and former home of the prominent African American Pan- Africanist Dr William W. Burghardt Du Bois, who led the Pan-African congress between 1919 and 1927. Dr. W. Burghardt Du Bois was a vocal Anti-Segregationist and prolific speaker and writer. The center now serves as a library and research institute for students, after a wonderful day we return to our hotel with the rest of the evening being free leisure time.
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Day 3
After your breakfast, we head west along the Gold Coast to the Central Region, on our arrival we check into your beautiful beach front hotel, before setting off for the Cape Coast Castle. This UNESCO World Heritage site, which held more enslaved Africans captive than any other in the region’s history, is a thought provoking monument to a harrowing period of the ancestor’s plight. We spend the afternoon on an emotional journey touring this castle, viewing the dungeons and the infamous ‘Door of no Return’.
You return to your beach front hotel for the evening and to prepare to join our brothers and sisters in Cape Coast for the emancipation midnight candlelight procession, which we participate in annually on the 31st July to commemorate the Reverential Night.
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Day 4
This morning after a good breakfast we visit Kakum National Park, guaranteed to be one of the highlights of the trip. Here we shall walk the world famous Kakum canopy walkway unique in this part of the world, it consists of 7 bridges attached to 7 emergent trees, 40 metres above the rainforest floor. The canopy walkway offers outstanding views for miles across this beautiful tropical, Guinea rainforest. There is an excellent visitor’s centre that is extremely informative about the flora and fauna within the park, which includes forest elephant’s leopards and many species of monkey.
We shall stop for lunch at Hans Cottage Botel near Kakum, which is built over a lake containing Nile crocodiles and set in a beautiful location surrounded by tropical Guinea rainforest. It is an excellent place to enjoy lunch before setting of for Elmina. On arrival in Elmina, we visit the castle of St. George, the oldest extent colonial building in Sub-Saharan Africa. Dating from 1482, this castle is steeped in the tragic history of the enslaved African trade era and there is an informative museum inside, which concentrates on local history. From here we visit the African American community that have returned to their roots and settled in Elmina. These are brothers and sisters born in the Diaspora, who have traced their roots back to the motherland over 20 years. The evening is free leisure time to relax and enjoy the surroundings of our beautiful beach front hotel.
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Day 5
After an early morning breakfast, we set off for the Ashanti Region and Kumasi its capital and home to the King of the Asanteman. En route, we will make an emotional stop at Assin Manso, an important town along the enslaved African trade routes. The town is surrounded by the Ndonkor Nsuo (enslaved African River). This Town is where enslaved Africans where separated into groups according to age, sex and fitness. They were bathed here, before being shackled ready for the 32 mile march to the Cape Coast castle dungeon for shipment to the Americas. In 1998 a symbolic gesture was made when the bodies of two ancestors Samuel Carson from New York, U.S.A and Crystal from Kingston, Jamaica were returned to Cape Coast Castle and symbolically passed back through the “Door of no Return” before being transported to Assin Manso for re-internment. After visiting their graves, we continue our journey to Kumasi through Obuasi Township. Here we have the opportunity to view the Ashanti Gold Field Mining Company, now known as Anglo Gold Ashanti. After lunch, we continue our journey to Kumasi which will take approximately 40 minutes. We check into our hotel before heading to the Manhiya Palace home to the Asantehene King of the powerful Ashanti Empire. We enjoy a fascinating tour through the legacies of the Asanteman Kingdom, before returning to our hotel.
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Day 6
After a good night’s rest and a wonderful breakfast, we start our tour of Kumasi by heading towards Kejetia market. Found in the heart of the city, Kejetia is the largest outdoor market in the whole of West Africa. It offers a wonderful opportunity to experience everyday life for the people in this great city, the market is a labyrinth of stalls, nestled closely together and a hive of activity. Some stall holders sleep here in the evening as trade rarely stops. I am sure we will pick up some bargain souvenirs during our time here. From Kejetia market, we continue to the cultural center which has an excellent craft market, and also houses the Prempeh II Jubilee Museum that offers an informative overview of the Ashanti’s history.
We stop for lunch at one of the nearby restaurants, before setting off for Bonwire, famous in the Ashanti Region for producing some of Ghana’s finest Kente cloths. Many designs of cloth are woven here and some are exclusive only to this region. We mix with the local people learning about the history behind the many designs. As we walk through the village, we witness highly skilled young and old brothers (sisters do not weave traditionally) weaving outside their homes. The machines that the weavers use have not changed for centuries, during our time here we have the opportunity to buy excellent quality cloth at very reasonable prices. After our wonderful cultural morning in Bonwire, we shall visit a near by coco farm. Ghana is the world’s second largest producer of coco, and many families rely solely on the income they receive from farming it. We learn the process of producing quality coco from the locals in this small community before continuing our tour of the Ashanti Region with a trip to Ntunso. Found a short distance from the coco farm, the village of Ntunso is famous in the Ashanti Region for being the birth place of the Adinkra cloth. Adinkra pre-dates Kente and the symbols used to adorn cloths all have meanings. We have the opportunity to produce our own strip of Adinkra cloth with meanings of personal significance during our time in the village, before an evening of free leisure time, enjoying our meal around the pool of our hotel.
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Day 7
This morning we take a leisurely breakfast before setting off for Accra, en route visiting Boti falls (seasonal) near Koforidua. This is a beautiful waterfall and a good place to refresh ourselves and stretch our legs during our journey. A short distance from Boti falls is a small village where traditional glass beads have been made for generations. Here we will meet Comfort and her family to learn about the skilled process which spans centuries. This is an excellent opportunity to buy traditional beads at the lowest prices in Ghana. After lunch, we continue our journey stopping at the Aburi Botanical gardens which are set in a beautiful location and were founded in 1890. The gardens are home to a wide variety of indigenous and exotic flora and offer outstanding views of Accra. After our walk around the garden, we take a short trip to Aburi craft village, famous in the region for its wonderful wood carvings, which are sold at very reasonable prices. We arrive in Accra in the early evening, check into our hotel and enjoy our surroundings.
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Day 8
The day is at your leisure, you can relax at your hotel or spend the day buying more souvenirs. In the early evening we enjoy our final family meal together, remembering the time and places just passed before us. We then transfer you to catch your flight after an unforgettable 8 day homecoming experience with your new family,.
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International flights not included
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