Gorée Island
Senegal · Dakar · 5 m
Description
Gorée is a small island twenty minutes by ferry from Dakar, held in turn by the Portuguese, Dutch, English and French and now a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The House of Slaves with its Door of No Return is the reason most visitors come, and it has become the principal place of memory for the Atlantic slave trade, visited by heads of state from around the world. No cars run on the island. Ochre and pink colonial houses with bougainvillea line narrow sand streets, and the Castel fort and its cannon look out over the Atlantic from the southern end.
Length of stay
Recommended length of stay: 1 to 2 days (optimal 1 day)
Travel season
Best time to visit: November – March
- Jan
- Feb
- Mar
- Apr
- May
- Jun
- Jul
- Aug
- Sep
- Oct
- Nov
- Dec
Highlights
- House of Slaves & Door of No Return
- Gorée Island (UNESCO)
- Castel du Gorée & cannon
- Colonial streets & bougainvillea houses
- Historical Museum of Senegal
- Gorée artists' studios & sand paintings
- Women's Museum Henriette Bathily
- Gorée beach & swimming
- Saint Charles Borromée Church
- Ferry crossing from Dakar
Getting there
- Nearest airports:
- DSS
- Seaport:
- Reachable by ship or ferry