Itinerary for 6-7 days in Ghana

Myself and a friend are flying to Accra from London in July in order to watch a football match in Kumasi. We don't want to just see Accra and Kumasi as this will probably be the only time we visit Ghana. Our provisional itinerary is:

July 7: Arrive in Accra early evening, stay in Accra
July 8: day/night in Accra
July 9: morning bus/tro-tro to Hohoe in Volta region (via a change at Ho). Evening/night in Hohoe
July 10: early morning visit to Agumatsu (Wli) falls. Afternoon journey from Hohoe to Koforidua (not sure of exact route at this stage). Arrive evening and stay in Koforidua.
July 11: morning bus to Kumasi. Rest of day/night in Kumasi
July 12: more time in Kumasi, football match in evening, stay in Kumasi
July 13: direct bus back to Accra, fly back to London in evening

This does seem like a very busy itinerary, but from what I've read all the journeys we want to do are 3-5hrs - and we're happy to have so much time on the road. The reliability/timing of buses and tro-tros might be a problem though. What are people's experiences of booking a personal driver/tour guide for a trip like this? Would it be ridiculously expensive compared to public transport?

Apparently less than 5% of tourists visit the eastern Volta region - hence the reason why we want to go there. But are we stretching ourselves too much? Is there an equally rewarding place to spend a day or two between Accra and Kumasi that isn't so far off that route? Are the Agamatsu falls worth the journey?

All advice gratefully received

Thanks
Harry

Hi Harry.

There is a reason that less than 5% of tourists visit the eastern Volta region. I have been there, and I really don't have anything negative to say. But with only a week in Ghana there are so many places that I would rather see.

Again, the waterfalls are somewhat scenic, but there are better places to see waterfalls. (The US is known as the land of waterfalls, so perhaps it takes more to impress me. Don't get me wrong, places like Victoria Falls are still must sees.)

Kumasi is one of my favorite cities anywhere in Africa, and I would give it another day. A day in Accra is fine to rest up (if necessary), but I would not focus any sightseeing there. Instead I would head up the coast to visit the slave forts at Elmina and Cape Coast. You could also make a stop at the Kakum Reserve and explore the forest.

Hope this helps,

BB

Big Bri's right: the Volta region is nice enough, but nothing so special that I'd go all the way to Africa to spend time there. (The bead market in Korfidua, if that's what you're planning, is pretty remarkable, though.) You might do better following the standard triangular route: from Accra to Cape Coast or Elmina, north to Kumasi, then back to Accra. Or reverse the journey. That way you've seen a few of the places in Ghana that you won't see anywhere else in the world.

Although if you've recently been to Ilha de Mozambique you might not find Cape Coast so remarkable either...but saying so aloud is not considered good form.

Hope that helps.

Mark

Big Bri's right: the Volta region is nice enough, but nothing so special that I'd go all the way to Africa to spend time there. (The bead market in Koforidua, if that's what you're planning, is pretty remarkable, though.) You might do better following the standard triangular route: from Accra to Cape Coast or Elmina, north to Kumasi, then back to Accra. Or reverse the journey. That way you've seen a few of the places in Ghana that you won't see anywhere else in the world.

Although if you've recently been to Ilha de Mozambique you might not find Cape Coast so remarkable either...but saying so aloud is not considered good form.

Hope that helps.

Mark

Edit to add: Oops, sorry about the double post. I was just trying to correct my initial misspelling of "Koforidua."

I agree with the other two posts. You have such a short time and in my opinion it would be sad not to see either Elmina or Cape Coast Castles. Beacause time is so short, if you can afford your own transport, I think you would get a lot more out of the trip. Car hire with driver is expensive ( even more so if you self drive which is very hard to arrange anyway) The cheapest would be to hire a taxi for the entire trip. You would have to bargain hard, but you should get one for about Ghana Cedis 50 per day with you paying the petrol and looking after the driver. If you do this I suggest that on your first day in Accra you will probably take several taxis while looking around and hopefully you will find one with a reasonable vehicle and who you like. I have in the past travelled all over Ghana in this way.

Thank you very much for your replies - it's quite telling that you are all effectively saying the same thing. Because of this, we've decided to follow the more touristy route of Cape Coast/Kakum/Elmina for 2-3 days and then up to Kumasi.

We've got a guide book, and a month of research still to do, but if anyone has any must-dos or must-sees (or must-eats!) in Accra/Cape Coast/Elmina/Kakum or Kumasi - please let me know

Thanks again
Harry