10 Day Senegal and Gambia Tour
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DAY 1                      ARRIVAL IN DAKAR
Arrival, meeting and transfer to your hotel.  Orientation meeting and welcome dinner.  Dinner and overnight at hotel in Dakar

Lodging:Hotel in Dakar ( 3 star)

Meals: D

DAY 2                      GOREE ISLAND

This morning, after breakfast, your guide meets you for an emotional and haunting experience at a full day tour to Goree Island, the departure point of millions headed for slavery in the Americas. A twenty minute ferry ride takes you to the once turbulent historical site. Now tranquil, Goree is a UNESCO World Heritage, which used to be a slaving station and was one of the first French settlements on the continent. The island has many clusters of pink colonial style houses, calm streets and a small beach.  You have time to explore and visit the Museum Maison des Eclaves (Slaves’ House). Continue on a stroll up to the castle for a spectacular view of the Island and beyond. From here proceed for a visit to the Town Square and the Marima Ba Girls’ Secondary School; then on to the Historical Museum. Lunch on your own at a beach front restaurant featuring Senegalese food.

On returning to Dakar you will visit the University of Dakar where the Senegalese students will host the group for an in-depth visit of the campus including lecture halls and an opportunity to interact with students. Enjoy a leisurely evening. Dinner and overnight in Dakar. 

DAY 3                     CITY TOUR OF DAKAR

Breakfast at your hotel. Depart for a sightseeing tour of Dakar. Tour the Independence Square, where you discover the old colonial buildings and the new African inspired architecture. From here, continue on through one of Dakar’s best markets the Kernel Market with its colourful flowers, fruits, fabrics, clothing and souvenirs. Then move on to the main government buildings: the Palais PrésidentieL (Presidential Palace), a white building surrounded by luscious gardens; the Chamber of Commerce; and the Cornice with the Anse Bernard Beach. From here drive through the Soweto Square to see the National Assembly and the main museum, Institut Fondemental d’Afrique Noir (IFAN),which houses an amazing collection of masks, statues and musical instruments from West Africa. Then drive to the Cathedral and the National Theatre. Pass through Sandaga Market, the city’s main fruit and fabrics market. Continue to the Grand Mosque and the Dakar University. From here you visit the well-known craftsmen village of Soumedioune, where high quality goods in many mediums may be admired or purchased. Lunch on your own at a local restaurant. Dinner and overnight in Dakar.

DAY 4             THE GAMBIA / BANJUL CITY TOUR
Enjoy breakfast at your hotel.  Check out and depart by road to The Gambia.  Arrive and check into your hotel.  Afternoon city tour of Banjul, including the National Museum of the Gambia, the Albert market, the old town, and the craft market where you can shop for artifacts.  Overnight at hotel in Banjul.

DAY 5             JUFFURE VILLAGE
After breakfast depart for a visit to the mythic village of Alex Haley’s ancestral home Juffure.  This small village became famous in the 1970s following the television adaptation of the bestselling book, "Roots", written by the African-American author Alex Haley, a descendant of Kunta Kinteh. Alex who as a young boy, first learned of his African ancestor, Kunta Kinte, by listening to the family stories of his maternal grandparents while spending his summers in Henning, Tennessee. According to family history, Kunta Kinte landed with other Gambian Africans in "Naplis" (Annapolis, Maryland) where he was sold into slavery. Also visit the tranquil village of Albreda where you will witness the ruins of the 'factory' - a fortified slaving station built by the French in the late 17th century. You will also have the opportunity to shop for some of the finest batik in Gambia and visit a small museum with a basic but striking exhibition about the history of slavery in the Gambia River. Overnight at hotel in Banjul.

DAY 6              BANJUL - DAKAR
Breakfast at your hotel. Depart for a morning tour on the Gambia River visiting the bird sanctuaries and some native villages in the creeks of the river. Visit the Mandingo villages near the border with southern Senegal. You will be shown what a naming ceremony consists of and socialize with the people.  Cross the border to Return to Senegal. Overnight at hotel in Dakar.

DAY7              DAKAR / ST LOUIS
After breakfast check out of your hotel for a 4 hour drive (166 miles) to Saint Louis.  St Louis, once Senegal's capital, is another French fortified settlement from the days of slave trading. With its name given by the French in honor of their king at the time (Louis XIV), Saint Louis is the oldest city to be created by Europeans on the western coast of Africa. Today, Saint Louis is considered both the intellectual capital of Sénégal and the capital of good taste. The island is also classified in the patrimony of humanity by UNESCO.

Arrive in Saint Louis in time for lunch at a local restaurant,  After lunch visit the University of Gaston Berger and interact with students.  After visiting the University Gaston Berger you are transferred to your Hotel de la Poste from where you will depart for a memorable city Tour in horse drawn carriage.  This evening you are met by your guide and group for dinner at a local restaurant over looking the Senegalese the river.  Dinner and overnight at in St. Louis.

DAY 8                     ST. LOUIS - DAKAR   

After breakfast. Check out for a guided tour to the Oiseaux du Djoudj National Park, north east of Saint Louis. This park provides a range of wetland habitats which prove very popular with migrating birds, many of which have just crossed the Sahara. You will be thrilled by the sight of thousands of Pelican perched on rocks over looking the wetlands. A wide range of wildlife also inhabits the park, which was added to the list of World Heritage Sites in Danger in 2000 due to the introduction of the invasive giant Salvinia plant, which threatens to choke out the park's native vegetation.  From here proceed back to Saint Louis for Lunch at a Local restaurant.  After lunch depart for the return trip to Dakar.  Dinner and overnight at hotel in  Pink Lake.

DAY 9                                                          PINK LAKE/ CAYAR/ DAKAR

After breakfast, depart Dakar for your full day tour to the mysterious Pink Lake. 

Explore this incredible rose colored body of water known as Pink Lake, ('Lac Rose' in French, 'Retba' in Wolof). Take some time to swim in its shallow, warm waters, surrounded by white foam without any fear of drowning. You float!! Everything floats on it, because of its very high salinity. During the week, men and mostly women are busy crushing the bottom of the lake, which consists of a thick crust of salt that they gather to sell. The lake is surrounded by sand dunes, a baobab forest and traditional villages with thatch-roofed huts, and it is located in the middle of the 'garden belt' outside Dakar, which produces huge quantities flowers and vegetables for domestic consumption and export. Men farm the gardens, but women control the sale at all level, except the export. The lake is particularly spectacular at dawn and dusk. Feldspar deposits reflecting the sunlight through the salty waters produce the unique vibrant pink color. The lake is the remains of a fossil sea that once occupied all of Senegal. For a long time, the local Wolof villagers thought that it was a haunted place at night. However, they never seriously thought about moving, because the salt extracted from the lake is a vital source of income. Women are the salters, men the wholesalers and transporters.

After visiting the lake you will lunch at a nearby resort located on the beach. Here you will have an opportunity to relax by the pool, take a ride along the beach on a camel or go for a ride on the beach in a Doon buggy. These activities are optional and can be purchased at the resort.

After lunch proceed to the Cayar Village, a fishing community along the Atlantic coastline, where donkey drawn buggies are the most common form of transportation. You arrive in time for the spectacular return of the local fishermen from the high sea where they have spent the night. They bring tons of fish, shrimp, and lobsters in their brightly-colored painted dugout pirogues (canoes). At this point, the beach is alive with buyers, families, and children. It is a colorful spectacle not to be missed.

Return to the Dakar late afternoon and have the rest of the evening at leisure. Dinner and overnight in Dakar

DAY 10                                DAKAR AT LEISURE

Breakfast is served in your hotel.  Enjoy a free day in preparation for your departure home.  Farewell dinner at seafront restaurant. Transfer to the airport for your flight back home.