If you have been wondering where to visit this Christmas, here are a few recommendations for you.Kwame Nkrumah Memorial Park
Located in downtown Accra, Ghana, and currently the most visited tourist site, the Kwame Nkrumah Memorial Park and Mausoleum is the final resting place of Ghana’s first President and Africanist. The park has a museum that hosts rare artefacts related to Ghana’s independence. The tours at the park provide visitors with an in-depth history of the Sub-Saharan struggle for independence.The mausoleum houses the mortal remains of Dr. Kwame Nkrumah and his wife Fathia Nkrumah. It is meant to represent an upside-down sword, which in Akan culture is a symbol of peace. The mausoleum is clad from top to bottom with Italian marble, with a black star at its apex symbolizing unity.
The interior of the Mausoleum boasts marble flooring and a mini mastaba-looking marble grave marker surrounded by river-washed rocks. Facilities at the museum include a Presidential Library, a Refurbished Mausoleum, a mini-amphitheater, a restaurant, an audio-visual fountain, a gift shop, and a reception, among others.
Treasure Island
Treasure Island is a private island resort in its remarkable natural environment situated near the estuary of the Atlantic Ocean & Volta River. It is built with eco-friendly materials that blend seamlessly into the over-water bungalows, creating a sophisticated and intimate ambiance where guests feel truly at home.
The Island has guest rooms, a 12D Cinema, a Game Room, Horseback Riding, Camel Riding, and many other exciting offers. They also offer the ultimate escape just moments away from the thrill and excitement of the island.
Kakum National Park
Opened on Earth Day in 1995, the canopy walkway is a swinging bridge consisting of seven separate bridges that extend a length of over 330 meters and rest over 30 meters above the forest floor.
Across over 1,000 feet of walkway, the bridges look as though they are constructed like traditional rope bridges made from the materials of the forest. However, the sturdy spans are made of wire rope, aluminium, and wooden planks, and even have safety netting to keep people from plummeting off the trail.
Located in the thick tropical jungle of Kakum National Park, the canopy walk was designed by a pair of Canadian engineers and five Ghanaians. The park has a restaurant, a recreational centre, and a place to discover artefacts.
Independence Square
In Independence Square are large stands with a total seating capacity of 30,000 surrounding the edges of the square. The square boasts three monuments that encapsulate the fight for independence and liberation. These monuments include the Independence Arch to the south of the square, backdropped by the Gulf of Guinea. On the opposite side of the square but facing the arch is the Memorial of the Unknown Soldier, which honors the Ghanaian soldiers who fell fighting for their country.
Just to the north of the main square is a roundabout, in the center of which stands the Black Star Gate, an imposing monument topped by the Black Star of Africa, the five-pointed star that symbolizes Africa in general and Ghana in particular. The monument bears the large inscription “AD 1957” and “Freedom and Justice” and the Liberation Day Monument. Independence Square is one of the largest city squares in the world.
Aburi Botanical Gardens
Aburi, a forty-five-minute drive from Accra, is located on the Akwapim-Togo Range of Ghana. The Aburi Botanical Gardens are located in this peaceful environment with its mountainous area as one of the finest destinations to enjoy a cool breeze. Its total land area is about one hundred and sixty (160) acres with only three (3) acres developed. The rest of the land was used as a botanical reserve.
Papaye Recreational Village
The Papaye Recreational Village at Aburi in the Eastern Region is an ecotourism relaxation and event centre.
The Papaye Recreational Village, which is located on a 130-acre site, has facilities such as a playing ground, zoo, restrooms, swimming pools, landscaping, an outdoor auditorium, castle-like fences, and gates, trees within their natural habitat, parking space, a green serene environment, and a museum, among others.
The facility also has a garden of medicinal plants, friendly animals, a sporting complex, and a restaurant. The architecture of the entrance gateway is distinctively traditional while using contemporary materials combined with advanced technologies.
Nzulezu
At the coast at the far western side of Ghana, near the border with Côte d’Ivoire, is a village that is unique in all of Ghana. Nzulezu is a village that has been built on stilts above a lagoon. It is essentially one long pier, called Main Street by the locals, with buildings constructed on both sides. One side of the ‘street’ has living quarters while the other side has businesses, the school, a community centre, and other commercial ventures. The village of Nzulezu is about a 7-hour drive west of Accra. If you are staying at one of the beaches in the Western Region, such as Busua or Axim, the visit to Nzulezu can easily be done as a day trip. However, you cannot afford to come to Ghana without visiting Nzulezu.
Big Blue Beach Resort
The Big Blue Resort and Spa is one of Ghana’s beach resorts for locals and expats. The resort is tucked away in a quiet part of Nyanyanor Village on the coast of the Central Region, about 52 kilometres (one hour) from Accra. Situated in a variety of lush greenery and coconut trees, the exclusive big blue resort and spa gently overlooks the Atlantic Ocean.
Cape Coast Castle
The Cape Coast Castle is a European-built fortress situated on the central coastline of Ghana. The Castle was built when the trans-Atlantic slave trade was at its peak. The dungeon can take a thousand men, separated from 300 women at a particular time. The slaves were held in the castle for a minimum of two weeks and a maximum of three months, depending on the availability of the British ships to take the cargo away.
Mount Afadja
Mount Afadja, known as Afadjato by the Ewe people of Ghana, is Ghana’s highest peak. The mountain is located in the Volta Region, near the border with Togo, close to the villages of Liati Wote and Gbledi Gbogame in the Afadjato South District and Hohoe Municipality, respectively.
