Ghana

Understand

thumb|View of Fort St Jago over [[Elmina from Elmina Slave Castle]]

Ghana means "Warrior King" and the name of the country is derived from the ancient Ghana Empire.

Get in

thumb|375px|A map showing the visa requirements of Ghana

See

thumb|Elmina slave castle, a UNESCO World Heritage Site

Eat

thumb|Fufu with palm nut soup, snail and tilapia Traditional food is fun to try and easy to enjoy. Fufu, the most widely served traditional dish, consists of pounded balls of yam, plantain, or cassava served with a variety of soups and meat or fish stews. Soups are typically made of groundnuts, palm nut, okra and other vegetables. Banku is a fermented corn version of the dish typically eaten with grilled tilapia fish or okra soup.

Rice dishes are also typical, but not considered a "real" meal by many Ghanaians, males especially. Jollof rice is a dish as varied as its chef, but generally consists of white rice cooked with vegetables, meat pieces, spices in a tomato based sauce. Waakye is a mix of beans and rice, typically served with gari, a powder of ground cassava. Often rice dishes are served with shredded lettuce, cucumber and tomatoes on the side with a dollop of Heinz salad cream or mayonnaise. Such meals are extremely cheap from street vendors and cost GH₵1.50-2.50.

Plantains, yams, and sweet potatoes are prepared in various ways and serve as small snacks. Kelewele, a spiced fried plantain snack, is especially delicious. Fresh fruits such as pineapple, mango, papaya, coconut, oranges, and bananas are delightful when in season and come when applicable by the bag for as little as 10 cents.

A great African meal in a restaurant can cost GH₵3-7. For instance, a lobster and shrimp dinner can cost GH₵6. There are also a number of Western and Chinese style restaurants availa…

Drink

thumb|183x183px|Club beer In Accra's expat visited bars, a beer will cost GH₵5-10. Fruit juices GH₵7.00, water GH₵5.00-8.50. Star and Club are two of the more popular beers served. For a more interesting and rewarding experience, visit a "spot," a bar signified by the blue and white stripes on the outside of the building. They are cheaper and you will undoubtedly be able to meet some local Ghanaians and hear the newest hip-life songs.

A soft drink such as Coke, Alvaro, Fanta, 7UP (called "minerals" by locals) are widely available for GH₵0.70.

The bottles that minerals or beer is served to you in are owned by the bottling company: if you do not return it to the seller, they stand to lose GH₵0.50 — more than you most likely paid for the drink. If you are not going to consume the drink at the "spot" or at the roadside stand, make sure you let the seller know. Often, you will be asked for a deposit which will be returned upon the return of the bottle. There are also traditional drinks like "pito", asaana, burkina, and bisarrp drink (sobolo).

Sleep

There are many wonderful places to stay in Ghana. There are many options including lavish hotels or more rustic places to stay. Cheap, decent hotel rooms can run as low as GH₵300. A better room can go as low as GH₵100. For high-end hotels, prices are higher than a comparable hotel in the USA.

For longer stays (a few months) it is possible to rent a house. Houses for rent are advertised in local newspapers and also in those places frequented by expats - Koala supermarket, Ryan's Irish pub, etc.

Stay safe

The standard emergency number for police, fire and ambulance is 112.

Ghana is a very safe, stable country with relatively low crime levels compared to other West African countries. Take sensible precautions but be assured it is quite safe.

Male homosexuality is illegal. While prosecutions are rare, there is widespread targeting and extortion of vulnerable people and anyone suspected to be gay or queer. Female homosexuality is legal. In 2021, Ghanaian police charged a group of LGBT activists with "unlawful assembly" and for "advocating LGBTQ activities", which is not illegal.

Cases have also been reported of people snatching mobile phones in the streets. Avoid using your mobile phone out in the open.

Accidental gas tanker explosions, including occurrences in heavily populated residential & industrial areas throughout the country, have been a recurring problem, with eight such cases in 2015–2017.

Stay healthy

Chloroquine-resistant malaria is widespread and you must take sufficient malaria protection including mosquito avoidance, mosquito repellants, and chemical prophylaxis. Yellow fever vaccination is required for entry into the country.

Get vaccinations against hepatitis A & B, cholera and typhoid fever if you are planning to travel within the country.

There is a very high risk of meningitis in the northern third of Ghana which is a part of the Meningitis belt of Africa. This applies especially during the dry windy periods from December to June. A polysaccharide vaccine is available for Meningitis types A, C, Y and W135.

Although the AIDS/HIV rate is lower than other sub-Saharan African countries, do not have unprotected sex! Also you should avoid contact with still freshwater as there is a risk of schistosomiasis.

Some restaurants will approach high health standards, but be prepared to pay for this. Smaller restaurants, often called "chop bars," will likely not meet these standards.

Because of the tropical climate near the coast, travellers will need to stay hydrated. Bottled water is available everywhere. Voltic Water has been a reliable brand over the years, but do check to make sure the seal has not been broken.

Drinking water from the tap is not generally considered to be safe, so choices include plastic bottled water (e.g. Voltic, 1.5 L, c. GH₵1.00), boiled or filtered tap water, and "pure water" sachets. These sachets are filtered and come in 500 mL. porti…

Respect

Do try to pick up on respectful practice (such as not eating or offering with your left hand), but in general Ghanaians are quite accepting of tourists getting it wrong. Greetings are very important. Ghanaians are not forgiving of people who do not take time to greet others. Sometimes greetings come in the form of a salute accompanied by a "good morning" or "good afternoon". The expected response is the same (a salute with a "good morning or afternoon"). Inquiring how the person is doing is also a good idea.

The Ghanaian hand shake is a typical handshake, quickly followed by the snapping of thumb and middle finger. The technique will be introduced to you the first time you shake hands; it will take you by surprise as it involves sliding your hand down the other persons hand, taking their middle finger between your thumb and middle finger as they take your middle finger between their thumb and middle finger, then snapping your finger together as they do likewise. It is unique. Smile, make new friends, and give them a Ghanaian handshake: they will smile and nod!

Travellers are not expected to dress like you are a Ghanaian, but if you are attending a significant event, dress appropriately to convey respect. This could mean wearing black (or black with red), modest clothing to the funeral of an adult, but a brightly coloured dress to a wedding. As a country with many traditions, it may be best and simplest to ask your hosts what will be most suitable. For example, the preferred…

Connect

Telephone and postal services can be unreliable within Ghana itself but international post, at least to and from Accra is reasonably reliable (approx a week either way to the UK for example). Ghana Telecom (later re-branded Vodafone) is the most widespread landline phone company, but is not yet entirely reliable or widespread. There are three voice-and-data mobile network operators operating in the country commercially: MTN, Telecel, and AT. MTN and Telecel have 2G GSM (including EDGE), 3G UMTS (including HSPA+), and 4G LTE coverage in the regional capitals and other major cities. AT may start operating 4G services. Coverage is good in the urban areas, and is increasing in the rural areas and along major highways. MTN is likely to have the most coverage. The three mobile phone networks have GSM 900/1800, and UMTS 900 (Band 8)/2100 (Band 1) in common. However, while buying a SIM card (~GH₵10.00), you are expected to present a certain type of ID card (not a visa) issued in Ghana in order to register (activate) it. ID cards of the required type may be issued to resident foreigners (at an initial fee that's fixed at US$120, the card is valid for one year), citizens, and refugees. The Government of Ghana planned to cause an alternative where foreign passports could be used instead (to activate the SIM card for a month) to be implemented, however, the alternative might not be implemented, so you may be required to have a foreign SIM card and a suitable roaming plan in order to make…