Albert Market

In Banjul, the best place to go shopping is Albert Market. If you enter via the main entrance you'll pass stalls stacked with shimmering fabrics, hair extensions, shoes, household and electrical wares and just about everything else you can imagine. Keep going and you'll reach the myriad colours and flavours of the fruit and vegetable market. Beyond here is the area usually called the Craft Market, with stalls selling tourist-tempting souvenirs.

Give yourself a good couple of hours to wander around - long enough to take in all the sights, smells and sounds, and get your haggling skills up to scratch. There are several drinks stalls and chop shops in the market to pacify shopped-out bellies. Albert Market is never a calm spot, but if you want to avoid the rush hour come early in the morning or late in the afternoon.