We will meet at the airport and board our single timed transfer to our accommodation. After a long travel day, you’ll have dinner and a free evening to settle in to your accommodation ready for the adventure ahead.

After breakfast, a short drive takes us to the Shai Hills Reserve, a beautiful and intriguing landscape filled with savannah and woodland and dominated by some incredible granite rock formations. Our guided walk will take us through the reserve where we might be able to spot antelope herds grazing on the open plain, or olive baboons and spot nosed monkeys crashing through the trees in great troops. The bird, insect and plant life are also plentiful here, and we will keep an eye out for turacos and bee-eaters as we move through this beautiful landscape. After a visit to the Obonu Tem caves, we can pause for our picnic lunch before setting off on our journey to Aksombo. On the way, we will visit Krobo village and immerse ourselves in the local culture. The Krobo people are renowned for their traditional bead jewellery that they have been making and wearing for centuries. We will then be invited in to try our own hand at producing our own beads. After a wonderful and relaxed afternoon with the Krobo, we will continue to Aksombo where we will check in to our hotel with some free time before dinner.

We will rise early this morning, and after breakfast head to the Volta region and the village of Amedzofe. Our walk will take in the heavenly cascades of Ote Falls, home to many species of butterfly and surrounded by lush green rainforest, fed by the mists created by the falls. We will continue on to the summit of Mount Gemi, a large and shapely top with views to the stunning surrounding landscape and Lake Volta beyond. After our hike, we will head to Tafi Atome, and spend time with the locals of this village, who have dedicated themselves to the protection of the Mona Monkey. The locals believe that these monkeys are sacred messengers from the gods, and as such, have been protecting them for over 200 years. We will learn of their methods of protection and head into the forest with some of the community members to see these majestic creatures in their natural habitat. We round out the day with a visit to Tafi Abuife, and a kente cloth weaving community. We will have the opportunity to purchase some quality kente cloth here before heading to our accommodation in Wli village for the evening.

Our hotel provides a beautiful location for us to enjoy a relaxed breakfast this morning before we set off for the Wli Falls, believed to be the highest in West Africa. From Wli village we head into the forest to eventually reach the pool at the foot of these great falls. There are a colony of straw coloured fruit bats here and we will likely hear the cacophony of noise before we see them hanging from the adjacent cliffs of this beautiful river gorge. We should have time for a paddle and maybe even a quick swim if you’re feeling adventurous, before continuing up to the higher falls through beautiful woodland. We will return to our hotel for lunch and check out before heading back towards Aksombo. Midway through this afternoon’s transfer we make a stop to climb Ghana’s highest peak, Mount Afajato. Our guides will be on hand to show us the varied flora and fauna visible here, and explain to us how it changes as we leave behind the forest canopy and trek out into open ground to reach the broad summit of Afajato. This evening we’ll be back at Aksombo for our evening meal and an evening at leisure.

We will start early again today, heading for Kumasi. Our journey today will take us into the beautiful Akuapem hills with outstanding views across Accra and Tema in the distance. At the top of the range, we find the Aburi botanical gardens founded by the British in 1890. The gardens are home to a wide variety of indigenous and exotic flora, and offer outstanding views all the way down to Accra on a clear day. A short walk from the gardens is the Aburi craft village, where we can watch the artisans at work. This is an ideal place for souvenir shopping. We will have lunch at Koforidua and have the opportunity to visit the famous bead market with many traders offering antique as well as contemporary designs. Our final leg of this travel day will take us to Kumasi, the home of the Asantehene, the king of the Ashanti Empire. We’ll check into our lodge accommodation here with time to unwind before dinner.

A short drive this morning takes us to the Bobiri Butterfly Sanctuary. A world famous sanctuary home to some 600 species of butterflies. We will have the whole morning here to wander through the forest and experience the beauty and sheer variety of incredible winged species here. An incredible place to savour and enjoy. We will take lunch at the Bobiri guesthouse, before an afternoon on the road, heading for Bonkro and Breku villages. We should arrive by mid afternoon where we will have the opportunity to visit the school built by Ashanti Tours, our ground agent for this trip, in exchange for the community becoming involved in the careful management and conservation of the delicate and important habitats that surround these remote villages. We will also visit one of the Kuapa Kokoo Cooperative farms, a fair trade organisation growing cocoa, predominantly for the Divine chocolate brand. We will spend some time with the farming community here, and learn how the cocoa is harvested and processed. This evening we’ll be staying at a guesthouse within the Bonkro community.

We will wake this morning to the immersive sounds of the rainforest and the morning bustle of the Bonkro community that has now enveloped us. We’ll have a relaxed breakfast before setting off along the field boundary trails, the meeting point for agriculture and the deep, natural forest beyond. We will move from village to village, meetng locals and observing farming practices, all brought to life by our expert guide. We will return to Bonkro for lunch and refreshments before our afternoon options. This afternoon we can either delve into the rainforest in search of the endangered yellow-headed Picathartes, and other mammals that call this jungle oasis home. Alternatively you may wish to join the chef in a cookery lesson, preparing and showcasing some of the local delicacies we will be later eating for our dinner. The evening is spent in the restaurant and bar on site, and enjoying this peaceful and remote location within the forest.

This morning we will wake bright and early in preparation for a drive out of the wilds of Bonkro village and on to Kakum National Park. We will wave a fond farewell to our new friends, and after a few hours on the road, find the rainforest canopy walkway where we will get to walk suspended among the tree tops. This experience consists of seven bridges rope and slat built suspension bridges with interlinking viewing platforms built around the trunks of some of the forest’s tallest, towering trees. The views here are epic, and the alternative perspective here creates the opportunity to see bird and wildlife species that you can’t appreciate fully from the forest floor. We might be able to spot Diana monkeys, resting in the higher branches, hornbill perched among the canopy, or parrots squawking as they circle the tree tops above our heads. On the forest floor there are also antelope and we may even be able to see elephants as they crash their way through the undergrowth. A superb experience to remember and cherish. We continue into the forest to the stingless bee project. A conservation effort and educational deep dive into the importance and protection of these bee species that naturally exist within the forests of West Africa.

We round out the day with a trip to the UNESCO world heritage designated Elmina Castle in the coastal town of the same name. The museum found within is a sobering experience highlighting the castle’s role within the tragic transatlantic slave era. We will have some time at the end of the day to walk the streets and coastline of Elmina enjoying the busy atmosphere of this fishing community. We will retire to our hotel, overlooking the crystal blue waters and white sand beach of West Africa’s Gold Coast.

Today we will be transferred along the coast, after breakfast, to the fishing community of Komenda. We will enjoy the deserted white sand beaches of this coastal stretch on a walk taking in the most beautiful beaches the country of Ghana has to offer. Busy fishing villages are interspersed along the way, comprising harbours lined with traditional wooden fishing boats that haven’t changed in design for hundreds of years, and bustling market lined streets beyond. We will aim to lunch in Brenu Akyinim before continuing our walk inland, heading first through the watermelon and pineapple filled farmland beyond the village, through crops of cashew nuts, tomatoes, peppers and okra, before reaching our ultimate goal, our return to Elmina by the end of the day. A wonderful walking day allowing us to experience some of the key crops and communities that thrive here in Ghana.

An inland walk awaits us today, as we head to Abrafo before striding out to Ebekampa on foot. The start of the walk passes through palm and cocoa plantations and the villages that farm them, before reaching the rainforests surrounding Ebekampa. These forests are home to some 600 species of butterfly, as well as many birds and mammals, and if we’re lucky we may even be able to spot pangolin padding along the boughs of the ancient trees here. After our morning walk, we head off to Cape Coast and the Baobab Children Foundation, where we will have lunch today. This foundation helps children unable to attend school in the area, either through lack of funds, access, or disability, and gives them a fairer start in life, through vocational classes including agriculture, carpentry, and tailoring. This afternoon we move on to Cape Coast Castle and have a thought provoking tour of this infamous monument to a harrowing period in the regions history. The ‘door of no return,’ as it was once known, is the exit door to the castle, which processed more slaves than any other castle on the west African coast. This evening we can relax at the accommodation, or head out into the busy streets of Elmina to sample some live music at a local bar and restaurant.

This morning we will pack up in preparation for our onward journeys home, and then if there is time, we may wish to spend a while on the beach before our transfer to Accra. We may also be able to head down into town to see the fantasy coffin creators of Teshie Nungua. After a usually solemn funeral, a burial celebration follows, and the coffin creators have taken to creating fantastically eccentric designs that reflect the life of the person within. Designs have included cars, cocoa pods, shoes, and aeroplanes. After transferring to Accra we will share an early evening meal at a local restaurant, before departing for the airport.