Ivory Coast | Travel guide, tips, & Requirements

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•Currency: XOF
•Language: French
•Colonized: France
•Independence: 1960
•How to get in from Nigeria
•By Road or By Air
•Visa Requirement: Visa-free for Nigerians
Covid 19: Requirement: 42 hours PCR Test
Two jabs of vaccination& Yellow Fever Card.

Cote d’Ivoire isn’t one of those countries that get tourists and travel operators planning trips to year in year out.

I mean, if you’re not adventurous and looking into exploring every country in the world, Cotedivoire may never cut the top must-visit countries in the world.

I didn’t grow up knowing a lot about the continents and the maps outside the basics that have been taught in Geography and & Government classes in elementary school but travelling has indeed been the best teacher to learning about my continent Africa.

Ivory Coast, also known as Côte d’Ivoire, officially the Republic of Côte d’Ivoire, is a country on the southern coast of West Africa. Political capital is Yamoussoukro in the center of the country; while its largest city and economic center is the port city of Abidjan. {Source Wikipedia}

Other countries to visit that border the Ivory Coast is.
Guinea to the Northwest
Liberia to the west
Mali to northwest
Burkina Faso to Northeast
Ghana to the east.

Other local indigenous languages are also widely used, including Bete, Baoule, Dioula, Dan, Any etc.

My first week In Abidjan, the Ivory Coast wasn’t all that fun, I thought as a solo traveler, I could survive anywhere alone, but sadly, it’s not the case in Cote d’Ivoire.

The language barrier made it unbearable and it’s by luck I was connected to someone who could understand English and speak a bit of it.

Hence, If you don’t understand French, exploring or enjoying Ivory Coast might be more of a Stress than a Holiday.

Is Côte D’Ivoire worth the Visit?

Absolutely Yes, if you’re adventurous and you love the adrenaline rush of new experiences, then you would enjoy it there.

The country has a lot to offer across the region from Nature, of Art, in culture, history and fun nightlife.
You just have to know how to find it. There is little information about tourist attractions in Cotedivoire On the media.
Check out the Edgar page for inspiration.

Things you need to get on Arrival

• SIM cards & Data: Popular sims to get are Orange & MTN SIM cards.. It cost 500CFA to get a sim and data subscriptions varies.

You can get within the city and register with your passport. Location: Abidjan mall.

• Money Exchange: You can either exchange at the Airport or Border ( At the time of this post the Land border to Ivory Coast is closed)

Banking System: The popular banking system in Ivory Coast is Mobile money , same as Ghana.

MONEY:Currency: XOF: Francs

They spend the same currency with the Benin Republic and if you’re travelling from Nigeria, the Conversation rate is 1naira to 1CFA at the time of this post.

One currency might be favoring another, depending on your country note and exchange value at the time of your travel.

Meanwhile, It’s important to note that exploring Cotedivoire, isn’t Inexpensive.

Accommodations from hotels to Airbnb are unjustifiably expensive, ranging from N150, 000 to N60, 000 per Night for a 5-star to 2 star hotels.

And Airbnb can range from $50 per night.

Transportation Within the Country.
There are various means to move around in the country:

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Ride-hailing App: Yango might be your best option if you don’t understand French and can’t easily navigate the city on your own.

Yellow Cab: This is the country yellow bus in Lagos. Cheap, move from different stops
Prices from 100 Franc- 500 Franc

Red Taxi: This is the yellow taxi in Lagos. Way more expensive than yellow cabs and Yango combined. Either you put your bargaining barge on, or you avoid them.

BRT & Boats: There are several buses and port stations in the country, especially in Abidjan Plateau. This is the central business hub Prices ranges from 300 Franc to 500 Franc Boat & BRT respectively.

You can take the boats to other districts of the country like Yopougon, Yamoussoukro, Bonum.

FOOD:

This right here is relative. As a local Nigerian girl with varieties of food options, I struggle to survive out here in ?? .

There are limited food options and some combos that I found pretty weird.
Local meals are:
Acheke
Foutou (which can be pounded banana, Yam or cassava)
Rice
Aloko (which is plantain)

Proteins: mostly different varieties of Fish and chicken. But their first protein option is Fish

Their Sauce and soups are;

• Aubergine
• Groundnut soup
• Onions &onions sauce
• Onions
• and onion and onion sauce again.

Then other things that you see around and have plenty of options for are Croissant (pastries) and coffee shops.

Places to Visit and things to do:
There are several things to see and do, culturally and nature wise. In the next post, I will be listing out things to do in each district of the country.

Advice to tourists visiting:
Either solo travelling or a group trip or Organizing a trip here:

• Learn basic French or get a local guide: You can join in on walking tours in the city or find a local tour guide via Trip Advisor.
• Set your budget, high: It’s better to over-plan than under budget for the trip to this country. To be on the safe side, please put your budget into consideration
• Have your itinerary ready: it’s easy to want to cancel all plans and just go with the flow in this country because of language barriers. Have a certain (must do & see and also leave the rest of nature.
• Get google translate: it’s really important.
• You can choose to cook your preferred choice of meal if you’re staying in an Airbnb.
• If you can afford to rent a car for easy commute, then by all means, do so.

SECURITY :
Abidjan is pretty safe to explore whilst putting basic security measures in place. You’re safe out heret in the country.

Getting ready to explore Côte D’Ivoire, trust me , this is all the information you need.

Check back for more information on places to visit in Ivory Coast.

Talk to you soon