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Travel in Africa: Countries, Cities & Things to Do

Countries in Africa

Best attractions in Africa

All attractions in Africa

Attraction

Apartheid Museum

History museumOrmonde

The Apartheid Museum beside Gold Reef City tells the story of the rise and fall of apartheid through film, photographs, documents and a striking race-classified entrance.

Attraction

Aso Rock

Granite monolith and landmarkAsokoro

The granite monolith rising about 400 metres above the city, backdrop to the Presidential Complex, the National Assembly and the Supreme Court in the Three Arms…

Attraction

Bardo National Museum

Archaeology museumLe Bardo

Tunisia's oldest and most important museum, set in a former beylical palace and home to one of the world's great collections of Roman mosaics.

Attraction

Bou Inania Madrasa

Marinid madrasa and mosqueFes el-Bali

A 14th-century Marinid madrasa near Bab Bou Jeloud, built for Sultan Abu Inan Faris and known for its marble courtyard, carved cedar and minaret.

Attraction

Gorée Island

UNESCO World Heritage islandGorée

Small car-free island off Dakar, inscribed by UNESCO in 1978 as a place of memory of the Atlantic slave trade, with museums, forts and colonial-era houses.

Attraction

Hassan II Mosque

MosqueAncienne Médina

Casablanca's great waterfront mosque, inaugurated in 1993 with a 210-metre minaret, and one of the few mosques in Morocco that non-Muslims can enter on a guided…

Best cafés in Africa

All cafés in Africa

Café

Bean There Coffee Company

Fairtrade coffee roaster and café$Milpark

Bean There, founded in 2005 as South Africa's first roaster of Fairtrade certified coffee, serves single-origin African coffees at its café in the 44 Stanley precinct.

Café

Café Clock

Café, cultural centre and cooking school$$Fes el-Bali

A café and cultural space off Tala'a Kebira, home of the camel burger, with a roof terrace, nightly live music and classes in cooking, oud and…

Café

Café des Épices

Café with roof terrace$Medina (Rahba Kedima)

A relaxed café overlooking the medina's spice square, with a roof terrace of low tables and cushions, Moroccan breakfasts, fresh juices and light meals.

Café

Café M’Rabet

Historic coffee house$Medina

Founded in the early seventeenth century and considered the oldest coffee house in Tunisia, a medina café with columns, benches and tea with pine nuts.

Café

Craft Gourmet by Lou Baker

Artisan bakery and breakfast cafe$$$Victoria Island

On the third floor of Mega Plaza in Victoria Island, Craft Gourmet by Lou Baker is an artisan bakery and cafe known for three-day croissants and…

Café

El Fishawy

Traditional coffeehouse$Islamic Cairo

The celebrated coffeehouse of Khan el-Khalili, serving mint tea, Turkish coffee and shisha in a mirrored alley since the late 18th century.

Best hotels in Africa

All hotels in Africa

Hotel

Al Moudira Hotel

Luxury boutique hotel, Relais & Châteaux$$$$West Bank

A palace-style West Bank retreat of domes, courtyards and antiques set in ten hectares of palm groves and gardens, and a member of Relais & Châteaux.

Hotel

Belmond Mount Nelson Hotel

Historic luxury hotel$$$$Gardens

Opened in 1899 below Table Mountain, the pink-painted Belmond Mount Nelson is Cape Town's grande dame, set in nine acres of gardens with two pools and…

Hotel

Eko Hotels & Suites

Large luxury hotel and convention centre$$$$Victoria Island

Opened in 1977 and owned by the Chagoury Group, Eko Hotels & Suites is Lagos's largest hotel complex, with 825 rooms, several restaurants and Nigeria's biggest…

Hotel

Four Seasons Hotel Casablanca

Luxury oceanfront hotel$$$$Ain Diab

An oceanfront luxury hotel on the Corniche, opened in 2015 in a Foster + Partners building, with 184 rooms and suites, a year-round pool and a…

Hotel

Four Seasons Hotel Tunis

Luxury beach resort$$$$Gammarth

A beachfront luxury hotel at Cap Gammarth on the Gulf of Tunis, with sea-view suites, a hammam spa, an outdoor pool and several restaurants and bars.

Hotel

Giraffe Manor

Boutique manor house hotel$$$$Lang'ata

A 1932 manor house in Lang'ata with just 12 rooms, famous for the Rothschild's giraffes that put their heads through the windows at breakfast.

Best nightlife in Africa

All nightlife in Africa

Bar

Bean Bag Jazz Lounge

Live jazz lounge and restaurant$$Morningside

Bean Bag Jazz Lounge in Morningside pairs live jazz from Thursday to Sunday with a restaurant menu and a late-night bar, open daily until 02:00.

Bar

Bubbles O’Learys

Irish pub with beer garden$$Kololo

Long-standing Irish pub on Acacia Avenue in Kololo, fitted with a bar brought from an old pub in Ireland, with a big terrace, live music, quizzes…

Bar

Cairo Jazz Club

Live music club$$$Agouza

Cairo's best-known live music club, open since 2001 in Agouza, with local bands and DJs on stage, cocktails and a food menu most nights.

Bar

Fendika Cultural Center

Azmari music house and cultural centre$$Meskel Square

The city's best-known azmari house and cultural centre, led by dancer Melaku Belay, with nightly traditional music and dance and regular Ethio-jazz nights.

Bar

Jungle at Hotel Sahrai

Lebanese restaurant and cocktail terrace$$$$Dhar El Mehraz

A late-opening Lebanese restaurant and bar at Hotel Sahrai, with wine, cocktails and a terrace on the hill above Fez, open nightly until 2am.

Bar

Karnak Sound and Light Show

Sound and light show$$El-Karnak, East Bank

An evening sound and light show inside Karnak Temple, telling the story of Thebes and its pharaohs with lighting and narration in several languages.

Best restaurants in Africa

All restaurants in Africa

Restaurant

Akemi Revolving Restaurant

Revolving rooftop restaurant$$$City Centre

A revolving restaurant and bar high above Ohio Street in the city centre, known for its views, weekday lunch buffet, Sunday brunch and Friday live music.

Restaurant

Al Fassia Guéliz

Traditional Moroccan$$$Guéliz

A long-established Guéliz restaurant run by an all-female team, serving traditional Moroccan cooking such as pigeon pastilla, tagines and a spread of cooked salads.

Restaurant

Buka

Ghanaian and West African$$Osu

A long-running Osu restaurant cooking traditional Ghanaian and wider West African dishes, from light soup and fufu to jollof and kelewele, in a two-level dining room.

Restaurant

Carnivore

Nyama choma and grilled meat feast$$$Lang'ata

Nairobi's famous meat restaurant on Lang'ata Road, open since 1980, where waiters carve meats roasted on Maasai swords at your table until you lower your flag.

Restaurant

Choose Kigali

Fine dining and art gallery$$$$Kiyovu

A fine dining restaurant inside a hillside art gallery in Kiyovu, with a daily-changing eight-course tasting menu, an a la carte terrace and rotating exhibitions.

Restaurant

Dar El Jeld

Traditional Tunisian$$$Medina

A long-established restaurant in an eighteenth-century medina mansion near the Kasbah, serving classic Tunisian dishes in a candlelit tiled courtyard.

Best things to do in Africa

All things to do in Africa

Thing to do

44 Stanley

Design, shopping and dining precinctMilpark

44 Stanley is a precinct of independent design shops, cafés, restaurants and an art-house cinema set in converted 1930s industrial buildings on the edge of downtown…

Thing to do

Avenue of Sphinxes

Ancient processional avenue and walkEast Bank, Luxor Temple to Karnak

The 2.7-kilometre ancient processional road lined with sphinxes that links Luxor Temple with Karnak, excavated and reopened in 2021 as a walking route.

Thing to do

Forodhani Gardens Night Food Market

Seafront park and evening street food marketForodhani, Stone Town

Seafront park in front of the Old Fort that fills with grills and food stalls after sunset, serving Zanzibar pizza, urojo, seafood skewers and fresh sugarcane…

Thing to do

Golden Mile Beachfront Promenade

Beachfront promenade walkBeachfront

Durban's Golden Mile is a paved beachfront promenade running from the Point and uShaka to Blue Lagoon, lined with beaches, piers, pools and rickshaw pullers.

Thing to do

Île de Ngor

Island and beachesNgor

Small island a few minutes by pirogue from Ngor beach, with small beaches, seafood restaurants and well-known surf breaks on Dakar's northern tip.

Thing to do

Jemaa el-Fnaa

Historic square and night marketMedina

The medina's main square, recognised by UNESCO for its oral heritage, where juice stalls, performers and storytellers give way to open-air food stalls at night.

Best tours & activities in Africa

All tours & activities in Africa

Tour operator

Abeba Tours Ethiopia

City tours and day tripsAddis Ababa

Addis Ababa tour operator founded in 2007 that runs full-day city tours, day trips and short overnight trips from the capital, alongside longer itineraries.

Tour operator

Afri Roots

Cycling, walking and night toursKigamboni

A locally owned operator based in Kigamboni running bicycle and walking tours of everyday Dar es Salaam, a Dar by Night music tour and safaris.

Tour operator

Africa Connection Tours

Tour operator and excursionsDakar Plateau

Dakar travel agency founded in 1996 that runs city tours, excursions to Gorée, Lac Rose and Bandia, and tailor-made circuits across Senegal.

Tour operator

Bellies En-Route

Food tourDowntown

A Cairo food tour company founded in 2016 by two Egyptian women, leading small-group walking tours through Downtown's street food and local eateries.

Tour operator

Casamémoire Heritage Visits

Architectural heritage toursCentre Ville

The Casablanca heritage association founded in 1995 to protect the city's 20th-century architecture, offering guided visits, thematic circuits and the annual Heritage Days.

Tour operator

Chameleon Safaris

Safari and city tour operatorCity Centre

Locally owned Windhoek operator since 1995, running small-group camping and lodge safaris to Sossusvlei and Etosha plus half-day city and township tours.