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The Overview: Ghana Beach Guide

Pristine beach in Ghana

Our Complete Ghana Beach Guide

We have now completed our Ghana travel section with our recommendations and beach assessments. Head to our Ghana Travel Guide to give you all the tips and information pieces you need before and during your trip to Ghana or head to the individual beach sections to learn about each destination.

Ghana Beach Scores

On each of the beach destination pages in Ghana, we have included beach scores on specific parametres. If you have been to any of our 7 featured beaches (Kokrobite, Cape Coast, Butre, Busua, Akwidaa, Cape Three Points, or Axim), we invite you to give your own review of your beach experience.

Here are Beachmeter.com’s Beach Review Scores:

 Click on the images to go to the beach page and don’t forget to submit your own beach reviews of these Ghanaian beaches .

Kokrobite Beach Review Scores

Cape Coast Beach Review Scores

 

Butre Beach Review Scores

Busua Beach Review Scores

 

Akwidaa Beach Review Scores

Cape Three Points Beach Review Scores

 

Axim Beach Review Scores

Have you been to any of these Ghanaian beaches? Please help us by submitting your beach review score directly on the destination pages.
 

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 A Beach Holiday in Ghana?

Despite a dip in visitors due to Ebola outbreaks in West Africa (that never reached Ghana), we predict that international tourism numbers will continue to rise in the country. The main reasons for the rise of beach tourism in Ghana are:

  • Great flight connections to Ghana and improving infrastructure
  • The coastline sees an increase in good accommodation options
  • Ghana’s reputation as one of the safest African countries to travel in is spreading
  • Surfers seeking uncrowded line-ups are discovering Ghana as the next thing

Natural Beauty & Cleanliness

Ghana has a stunning coastline filled with pristine beaches, where you really get the feeling that you are in the middle of nowhere. Small fishing villages are dotted along the coastline and you will have ample chance to interact with local residents who are generally very welcoming of tourists. In Ghana, the more people living and visiting the beaches, the more dirty they tend to be. But all along the coastline you can find garbage on beaches, the amount depending on ocean currents and weather. In general, the cleanest beaches are the ones furthest away from cities and towns.

Many beaches have golden to light brown sand and large almond and coconut trees providing shade.

Accessibility

The accessibility of the Ghanaian beaches vary greatly with destination, weather, and means of transportation. The easiest beaches to get to are near larger transportation hubs such as Accra, Cape Coast, and Takoradi. The further you want to go from these hubs, the harder it gets. You may need multiple tro-tro’s, and you have to time it right due to limited departures. Taking a taxi solves this problem, but will result in a much higher bill for you. If you are used to European or North American prices, you will find the rates for taking a taxi rather reasonable.

The further you get from the main transportation hubs, the worse the roads generally get. This is usually not a big problem if the weather is good, but during heavy rains and the rainy seasons, roads can literally wash away and the risk of getting stuck in mud is high. Bear in mind that taxi drivers usually ask for higher prices to go on bad road stretches. This is completely fair, since a trip down some of the rural roads will often damage something on the taxi vehicle.

Family/Child Friendliness

If you are looking to take your family to a controlled and safe resort environment as found in popular charter destinations, forget it! There will be bugs and reptiles around, there will be hectic transportation, the hospitals outside the major hubs are not well-equipped, and everything is a little less organised. In other words, it is like it used to be to travel to foreign countries.

Do not expect high service standards – most staff have never traveled to a foreign country and do not know what kind of needs and habits tourists have. Do not expect hot running water and air-condition, and do not expect restaurants to have everything on their menu.

If you are open to some degree of uncomfortability, you and your family will be rewarded.

Is Swimming in Ghana Dangerous?

Most of the coastline is unprotected, so conditions can be rough. This is great for water sports such as surfing and body boarding, but less child friendly. Be extremely cautious when swimming – accidents happen every year – also to good swimmers who panic in rip-currents. Educate yourself and your family before heading out for a swim. If you are after safe swimming, look for protected coves which you will find in Akwidaa and Axim for example.

Nightlife & Socialising

For nightlife at the beach, the beaches near Accra, Cape Coast, and Busua are your best options. Outside of that, the beach lodges on the coast all have bars with varying degree of activity levels. Many Ghanaians do not go out partying during weekends. They rather use funeral celebrations as their party base. Here entire villages will be dancing and drinking away to the sounds of Ghanaian highlife music pumping out of rusty speakers. As a foreigner, you will often be invited to join in the fun, so if you want to immerse yourself in local culture and meet happy Ghanaians, go to a funeral.

If you are not up for partying, but only seek to meet fellow backpackers and travelers, there will be plenty of options if you go to the popular beach destinations. If you are traveling during the off-season and sometimes on weekdays, it will be a lot more quiet. Some beach resorts go days without a single visitor during the rainy season.

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We hope you enjoyed our Ghana Beach Guide. Don’t forget to give your beach score on the individual beach pages. For more travel and beach info, click the buttons below.

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