By: Sheila A. WILLIAMS
If anyone asks you to name five places in Ghana for tourists to have fun and experience the warmth of this country to the fullest, you may definitely be looking at the very popular tourist destinations, sites and monuments.
First to cross your mind will be Kakum National Park, Elmina Castle, Boti Falls, Manhyia Palace, Paga Crocodile Pond, Mole National Park, etc.
This is almost always the case for several others outside Ghana because of the hype and marketing done for these sites.
Many tourists who have already visited these places struggle to find new things to do or other places to visit when they come back here. Truth be told, there are some amazing places in Ghana where you can have fun as a tourist whether you a domestic or international tourist. Don’t you think it is about time we sell our other sites and fun facilities to Ghanaians and other tourists who don’t know about such places?
Here are 5 fun places for tourists in Ghana that you may not know about.
Go-Karting
In other parts of the world, kart racing is very popular for its fun, excitement, adrenaline rush moments with lots of speeding and competition among family, friends and lovers. In Ghana, this is not so common. However, in the past few years, go-karts have begun to gain some level of recognition and affection from fun lovers and tourists.
Rather than visit the same old places over and over again, tourists in Ghana can go to the kart race courses and have a happy time riding and competing with family, friends and loved ones. It presents another opportunity to shake the boredom off. There are a few go-kart facilities in Ghana now but one very popular one known as the A1 Raceway located in Tema is one that stands out.
Shai Hills Resource Reserve
When you talk about wildlife in Ghana, you may not even think of this place right? Aren’t you just used to the Mole National Park, The Buabeng Fiema Monkey Sanctuary and Kakum National Park? Anytime wildlife is mentioned in Ghana, only a selected few are talked about.
However, there are so many great wildlife reserves to see and experience. One such reserve is the Shai Hills Resource Reserve.
This reserve is made up of very eye-catching rocky hills lined up in a chain of the woody plains. About 200 metres above the surrounding land is the Shai Hills and is primarily made up of quarry stones. With caves surrounding the plains, you can actually go on an adventure while on the hills. With a current count of about 31 species of mammals, more than 175 species of birds and 13 reptile species, this is definitely a place to visit. There is a lot to see and plenty to learn.
The main mammal species currently found in the reserve which are of great importance to tourists include western kob, oribi, grey duiker, bushbuck, genet, anubis baboon, vervet monkey and spot-nosed monkey. Are you a lover of wildlife? This is the place to be.
Accra Polo Club
If you are familiar with this sport, you will be wondering why nicely dressed men will ride on a horseback using a long-handled mallet to score goals against an opposing team by driving a small white plastic or wooden ball into the opposing team’s goal. It is normally played on a grass field and each polo team consists of four riders and their mounts. In Accra, the main polo club is at the Accra Polo grounds where games go on usually on weekends. It also presents a great opportunity to network since many corporate leaders and businessmen use this sport to relax. Tourists are always encouraged to register and play as it is a great form of exercise.
Wli Water Falls
In Ghana, there are two very popular waterfalls that almost everyone knows about – the Boti Falls and the Kintampo Waterfalls. This makes those two falls very busy with many people visiting them all year round.
Why not try out the Wli waterfalls? A different feel and great scenery awaits you. This amazing waterfall is located in the Wli Forest Reserve, about 20 kilometres from Hohoe in the Volta Region. This amazing waterfall flows throughout the year giving you the opportunity to experience it all year round. Being the highest falls in West Africa, the Wli falls descends from a height of about 1,600 feet. It also marks the border between Ghana and Togo. In addition to the beautiful scenery is the fact that this waterfall is located at the edge of the Agomatse Wildlife Reserve which has bats, antelopes and a few wildlife animals.
Kumasi Fort – Ghana Armed Forces Museum
This tourist site is special because it is one of the few military museums in Africa. It is located in the Uaddara Barracks in Kumasi, the capital city of the Ashanti Region.
There are other nice tourist sites close by such as the Kumasi Cultural Centre, Kumasi Zoo, Kumasi Central market and the Manhyia Palace. However, these sites are very popular and you may have visited there once or twice. Why not do something new for a change.
The fort was built from granite and brown soil that was brought from Cape Coast to Kumasi by porters. Exhibits at this museum include: military equipment, artefacts and other objects used in the British-Asante war of 1990 and during the Second World War. The collection includes weapons of war, colours, medals, armoured cars, anti-aircraft guns, photographs and portraits. This serves as a valuable historical institution for tracing the evolution and development of the Gold Coast Regiment of the colonial era, to the present-day Ghana Armed Forces. This is a different feel from all the other sites in Ghana where you experience animals, flora and fauna, aqua and vegetation. Here you get a great sense of the historic fights and wars while you listen to stories of brave warriors and soldiers who laid their lives to protect this great land.
Seeing the same old tourist sites and monuments can get boring at some point. Check out these other sites and do something new for a change anytime you visit Ghana. There are more places and a lot more to experience. Just make that move and travel!
Writer’s e-mail address: eyram.williamsgh@gmail.com
