Île de Gorée Day Trip

Île de Gorée sits just 20 minutes by ferry off Dakar, and the whole island is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The centrepiece is the Maison des Esclaves, a sobering memorial to the transatlantic slave trade and its Door of No Return — but there's far more to a visit than the museum. This guided day trip of four to five hours includes the ferry tickets, museum entry and a local guide who brings the history and the island to life, run in English or French for small groups of two to fifteen. Beyond the Maison des Esclaves, you'll wander Gorée's car-free streets of bougainvillea-draped colonial houses, its small beach and the clifftop fort, with time for lunch at a courtyard restaurant. It's an easy, deeply memorable half-day, and for many travellers the single most affecting thing they do in Senegal.