Foumban
The royal town of the Bamoun in Cameroon's western highlands, with a sultan's palace from 1917, a new museum built in the shape of the kingdom's emblem and a street of craftsmen between them.
- Arrival
- Douala International · DLA
- To the town
- About 230 km north-east of Douala in a straight line
- Private jets
- Clear in at Douala, then the airfield near Koutaba by day
- Best time
- November to February
The city
A kingdom with its own script.
Foumban has been the seat of the Bamoun kings for some six centuries, and the dynasty still reigns; its ruler has carried the title of sultan since the late nineteenth century. One of them, Ibrahim Njoya, devised the Bamum script and an invented language, Shümom.
In April 2024 the Musée des Rois Bamoun opened, a building of 5,000 square metres shaped as the royal emblem: a spider, two bells and a snake with a head at each end. More than 12,500 pieces are inside it. The town lies north-east of Bafoussam, and the dry months run from November to February.
- The Sultan's Palace Completed in 1917, with a museum of royal robes, weapons, masks, jewellery and thrones covered in beads.
- Musée des Rois Bamoun Opened in 2024 in a building modelled on the Bamoun emblem, with thrones, arms, instruments and regalia.
- Rue des Artisans The street from the palace to the Musée des Arts et des Traditions Bamoun, where sculptors, weavers, basket makers and embroiderers work.
Arriving
By Douala, then inland.
Douala is the international gateway, about 230 kilometres south-west of Foumban as the crow flies. Closer to town, an airfield at Nkounja near Koutaba, 19 kilometres away, has a runway of about 2,100 metres.
- Lagos 1 h 25
- Accra 1 h 55
- Madrid 5 h 40
- Frankfurt 6 h 40 long-range jet
- Dubai 7 h 00 long-range jet
When to go
November to February.
Highland weather, with afternoons in the mid-twenties all year. The rains start in March and peak in September and October; from November to February the sky clears, and December and January get little more than ten millimetres. Figures are from Bafoussam, the nearest town with published normals.
- 27° J 12
- 27° F 34
- 27° M 97
- 26° A 172
- 25° M 190
- 24° J 192
- 23° J 229
- 23° A 221
- 23° S 300
- 24° O 295
- 25° N 64
- 26° D 11
Flying to Foumban?
Choose how you arrive.
A Business or First Class seat on a scheduled airline, or an aircraft of your own. Tell us the date and how many are travelling, and we reply with one final price, our margin included.