Saint-Louis

Understand

thumb|350px|Colonial architecture in old Saint-Louis. The city of Saint-Louis is about 260 km north of Dakar on the coast and spreads across the mainland (Sor), Île de N’Dar (the Island), and the Langue de Barbarie Peninsula. The mainland is connected to the historical island, which is just 2 km long and 400 m wide, via the Pont Faidherbe Bridge, which was rebuilt in 2011.

The Île de N’Dar is linked to the Langue de Barbarie Peninsula via the Pont Mustapha Malick Gaye Bridge; the peninsula is home to the beautiful beaches of the Hydrobase as well as part of Langue de Barbarie National Park. Also accessible from Saint-Louis are the Parc National des Oiseaux du Djoudj and the Réserve Spéciale de Faune de Guembeul.

Saint-Louis was founded in 1659 as a fortification and was known as St-Louis-du-Fort to distinguish it from other places with the same name in the French Empire. The area had already earlier been an important trading point, but the island where the colonial city was founded was uninhabited as natives thought it was haunted.

During the age of colonization, in the 17th and 18th centuries, the town changed hands between the French and British a couple of times, and became one of the most important cities in West Africa culturally, economically and politically. It served as the capital of French West Africa until 1902, and capital of French Mauritania until 1957. Today Saint-Louis is more of a regional center, but the world heritage-listed old town reflects its gloriou…

Get in

As of early 2026, the way in is by road. There is an airport, but services from Dakar that apparently restarted in 2024, have been discontinued. Rail services ended at the turn of the millennium, and the tracks are largely overgrown or covered in sand.

See

Saint-Louis was founded in 1659 and named after the French King Louis XIV in the 1700s. It is the oldest city to be created by Europeans on the western coast of Africa and served as the capital of Senegal from 1872 to 1957. It played an important cultural and economic role in the whole of West Africa, a stroll around the Ville (as the cab drivers know it as) quickly reveals the French colonial influence.

Many of the buildings hold their old character with many brightly colored buildings and beautiful balconies to be seen all around the island. The island was named a UNESCO World Heritage site in 2000. Be sure to stop into the Syndicat d’Initiative of Saint-Louis in the Governance building opposite the bridge and pick up the urban walk they have mapped out.

thumb|Faidherbe Bridge

Buy

thumb|Fabric for sale in Saint-Louis Saint-Louis offers a lot by way of shopping, you can check out the large market on the mainland as well as a smaller market on Guet N’Dar which if you look hard enough you can find boutiques filled with fabric down the side streets or you can check out any number of the small shops on the island to get your fix of locally made items and other tourist type offerings. Boutiques selling everything from water and candy to ice cream and basic staples can be found on just about every block as well throughout all of Saint-Louis.

Eat

thumb|View to Guet N'Dar Given that Saint-Louis is a hot destination for French-speaking tourists and a home to many foreign-born residents, the offerings are plentiful on the island for food and drink. You can stop at any one of the unassuming Tangana shacks for Senegalese food or a simple sandwich which can be found in great numbers on both the Mainland or the Island or check out some of the restaurants and bars listed below for something a little different. Also don't be afraid to stop at one of the many sandwich stands set up on the street or any of the other street foods. You can also drink a cup of Nescafe or Cafe Touba for under 100 CFA at many places along the street. In general you will find that it is cheaper to have a drink on the main land as opposed to the Island.

Sleep

thumb|Place Faidherbe, right in the middle of Saint-Louis island

thumb|Palais de la Gouvernance

Connect

As of early 2026 Orange Sonatel offers 4G coverage in urban Saint-Louis, Free Saga and Expresso Sudatel both offer 3G. Inland there is at least GSM coverage along the main roads, southwards along the coast there's however no mobile phone coverage past Tassinère.Some hotels and restaurants also offer Wi-Fi.

There are about half a dozen post offices around Saint-Louis, for example just behind the Musée Jean Mermoz and tourist office.

Go next

Parc National de la Langue de Barbarie - Located just 18 km (11 miles) south of Saint Louis in the region of Gandiol, the park is home to over 160 different species of bird as well as other animals and is a great place for nature lovers, sightseers, photographers and bird watchers to visit. The park offers tours by boat, or explore on bike or by foot. There is a monthly bird count that visitors to the park can participate in that happens towards the end of each month, contact the park for details.

Parc National des Oiseaux du Djoudj - Located in the Senegal River Delta, this bird sanctuary is home to some 1.5 million birds covering 16,000 hectares and here you will find a wide variety of bird species. It is easy for bird lovers to take a day trip to the park and visit the third largest bird sanctuary in the world. The park is most easily accessible with an organized tour group which can be arranged through one of the agencies listed under the activities section. It was dedicated as a UNESCO world heritage site in 1981.

Réserve Spéciale de Faune de Guembeul - This natural reserve is home to many bird species, mammals and reptiles as well as to the African Spurred Tortoise and is about 10km south of Saint-Louis.

Mauritania - Arrange transport to the border city of Rosso, pass immigration, cross the Senegal river by ferry, and step into a world unknown to most tourists. As well, the Mauritanian border is just a couple of kilometres north on the spit making up the western part…