Private Abidjan City and Grand Bassam Tour

Abidjan highlights: Adjamé, the cathedral and the Plateau Mosque

The day starts in the heart of Abidjan. Adjamé market, the largest open market in Ivory Coast, is a maze of stalls selling wax-print fabrics, produce, spices and everyday goods, and walking through it with your guide is the best introduction to the energy of the city. Next comes St. Paul's Cathedral on the Plateau, a bold modern church consecrated in 1985, with a slanting cable-held tower and views over the lagoon.

Close by, the Plateau Mosque blends contemporary design with traditional Islamic motifs and is admired by worshippers and visitors alike. Together these stops show you modern Abidjan, the economic capital of the country, in a short morning, and your private guide adapts the time at each place to your interests.

The lagoon ferry from the Plateau to Treichville

Abidjan is built around the Ébrié Lagoon, and one of the best ways to understand the city is from the water. On this tour you take one of the passenger ferries that link the districts, crossing from the Plateau to Treichville in about 30 minutes, just as many residents do every day on their commute.

From the deck you get a fine view back to the skyline of the Plateau, the bridges spanning the lagoon and the busy port. It is a simple, local experience that many visitors miss, and a relaxed break before the drive to Grand-Bassam. Your driver meets you on the other side to continue the day.

National Museum of Costume, Grand-Bassam

About an hour's drive east of Abidjan, Grand-Bassam was the first capital of the French colony of Côte d'Ivoire at the end of the nineteenth century, before an epidemic led to the capital being moved. The National Museum of Costume is housed in the former governor's palace, an elegant colonial building with wide verandas.

Inside, the collection presents the traditional clothing, headdresses and ornaments of the many peoples of Ivory Coast, along with models of villages and old photographs. Your guide explains the meaning of each outfit and how dress marks age, status and ceremony. The visit takes about an hour and is one of the main reasons for a Grand Bassam tour.

The historic quarter and Maison Ganamet

The old colonial district of Grand-Bassam, known as the Quartier France, was listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2012. Its quiet streets are lined with old administrative buildings, trading houses and residences with balconies and verandas, many weathered by sea air, set between the lagoon and the ocean. A stroll here feels like stepping back a century.

One of the most photographed sights is the ruin of Maison Ganamet, an old house where a large tree has grown through the walls, nature slowly reclaiming the structure. Your guide also shows you the royal palace of Grand-Bassam. Is Grand-Bassam worth visiting from Abidjan? For history, architecture and a calmer pace, it is the best day trip from the city.

Lunch and the beach at Grand-Bassam

Grand-Bassam is also known for its long Atlantic beach, lined with palm trees and small restaurants, where people from Abidjan come to relax at weekends. Lunch is included on this tour, giving you time to taste local flavours such as grilled fish, attiéké made from cassava and fried plantain, before a short walk on the sand.

The ocean here has strong waves and currents, so swimming is not advised, but the beach is perfect for photos and a breath of sea air. After this last stop, your driver takes you back to Abidjan, about an hour away, and drops you at your pickup point in the late afternoon, after a day that shows two very different faces of Ivory Coast.