Bafoussam
Cameroon · West · 1500 m
Description
Bafoussam is the main town of the western highlands, fifteen hundred metres up in a landscape of volcanic hills, coffee slopes and dense villages. The reason to stop is the chefferies, the compounds of the Bamiléké chiefs that surround it, where a gateway of carved posts opens onto a courtyard and a conical thatched roof rises over the assembly house. Bandjoun has the best known of them together with a museum of masks and beaded thrones. Bamendjou, Bafou and Baham are within an hour. The Sunday markets of the plateau sell arabica, palm wine and cloth. The road onward to Foumban crosses the Noun river into the Bamoun kingdom.
Length of stay
Recommended length of stay: 1 to 3 days (optimal 2 days)
Travel season
Best time to visit: November – February
- Jan
- Feb
- Mar
- Apr
- May
- Jun
- Jul
- Aug
- Sep
- Oct
- Nov
- Dec
Highlights
- Chefferie de Bandjoun and its museum
- Carved gateways and thatched assembly houses
- Chefferie de Bamendjou
- Bamiléké beadwork thrones and masks
- Marché A of Bafoussam
- Coffee estates of the plateau
- Chutes de la Métché(Day trip)
- Chefferie de Baham and its heritage museum
- Palm wine and highland cooking
- Lac Baleng crater lake(Day trip)
- Volcanic hills and terraced farmland