Banjul
The small capital of The Gambia, on an island where the river meets the Atlantic, with the beach hotels of the coast a short drive west.
- Arrival
- Banjul International · BJL
- To the city
- About 15 km from the airport
- Private jets
- 3,600 m runway, open around the clock
- Best time
- November to May
The city
A capital at the river mouth.
Banjul is a compact place for a capital. Markets and government offices share a narrow island at the mouth of the Gambia River. Arch 22, 37 metres tall, stands for the July 22nd Revolution, and from the top the whole town is laid out below you.
The dry months, from November to May, are the time to come; March to May grow hot. Most visitors sleep out on the Atlantic coast at Fajara, Kololi or Bijilo and come into town for the Albert Market and the National Museum. On the way, Bakau has the crocodile pool of Kachikally, a sacred place for some five hundred years.
- Arch 22 The 37-metre monument to the July 22nd Revolution, climbed by stairs for the view.
- Albert Market A daily market for cloth, crafts, food and souvenirs, at modest prices.
- Kachikally crocodile pool In Bakau on the road out of town, where women have come for centuries to pray for a child.
Arriving
Yundum, inland from the capital.
Banjul International, still called Yundum by many, is the country's only commercial airport, about 15 km from the city. Its 3,600-metre runway was once on NASA's list of emergency landing sites for the Space Shuttle.
- Dakar 35 min
- Abidjan 2 h 30
- Milan 5 h 50
- Frankfurt 6 h 20 long-range jet
- São Paulo 7 h 05 long-range jet
When to go
November to May.
From November to May it barely rains. Afternoons sit in the low thirties and peak at 35 °C in March and April. The rains run from June to October, heaviest in August at around 380 mm, and the sea is warmest then too, at 28 to 29 °C.
- 32° J 1 21°
- 34° F 1 21°
- 35° M 0 21°
- 35° A 0 22°
- 34° M 5 24°
- 33° J 71 26°
- 32° J 232 28°
- 31° A 380 28°
- 31° S 276 28°
- 32° O 88 29°
- 33° N 5 27°
- 32° D 1 24°
Where to stay
Out on the Atlantic shore.
Shown for information. We have no arrangement with any of these hotels.
- Coco Ocean Resort & Spa Built as a resort of about 98 suites, with beach villas, penthouses and a spa that works with aloe and plant essences.
- Ngala Lodge Suites on the clifftop at Fajara, the nearest of these hotels to the capital.
-
Kairaba Beach Hotel On the beach at Kololi, with a spa and health club, and Casa Fernando, the Kingfisher and the Shikra among its seven bars and restaurants.
Where to dine
Two tables on the coast.
No MICHELIN Guide covers The Gambia. Saffran is the fine-dining room of Coco Ocean; Ngala Lodge’s clifftop restaurant is the best rated of the country’s top-priced tables on Tripadvisor.
- Saffran Signature restaurant, Coco Ocean Resort & Spa Moroccan, international Coco Ocean, Bijilo, about 17 km from Banjul
- Ngala Lodge Restaurant Rated 4.5 on Tripadvisor International, seafood $$$$ Ngala Lodge, Fajara, about 13 km from Banjul
Flying to Banjul?
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.