Things to do in Yaounde
And where to stay, the best time to visit, what a day costs, and the traps to skip.
Best time to visit Yaounde
• a note or something on ✦ an occasion worth the trip
Main dry season and the best window, with the least rain and the most reliable roads for Mefou, Ebogo and Kribi.
A shorter drier spell between rains, greener and quieter, and a workable second window for a visit.
Short rainy season around March to May and June, with dramatic afternoon downpours and slower rural roads.
Heaviest rains, the worst months for a first short road dependent visit, though the Lobe Falls are fullest in and after rain.
What's on
- Youth Day 11 February
National public holiday with school parades, music and sport across Yaounde, and a presidential youth address on 10 February.
- National Day 20 May
Unitary State Day with a grand military and civilian parade on Boulevard du 20 Mai in Yaounde, and major traffic closures.
- FENAC Festival National des Arts et de la Culture Periodic, dates vary by edition
National arts and culture festival hosted in Yaounde in recent editions, gathering dance, music and crafts from all ten regions. Check the year dates.
Best things to do in Yaounde
National Museum of Yaounde
The former presidential palace is the best orientation to Cameroon, with regional masks, thrones and dress shown by a guide.
Blackitude Museum
A private Grassfields royal collection of thrones and sacred objects, small and dense, best seen with staff explaining provenance.
Musée Ethnographique des Peuples de la Forêt
The highest rated museum in Yaounde, devoted to the forest peoples of Central Africa in a quiet, scholarly visit.
Benedictine Museum of Mont-Febe
A small monastery museum famous for carved abbias, paired with hilltop views over the golf course and the city.
Monument de la Réunification
Cameroons defining reunification monument and gardens, short to visit and powerful once you know the symbolism.
Basilique Marie Reine des Apôtres de Mvolyé
A vast modern basilica on the hill of Cameroons first Catholic mission, with calm and sweeping views over the south of the city.
Bois Sainte Anastasie
A landscaped central park on the Ekozoa River with bridges, sculptures and a garden restaurant, made for a calm stroll.
Mfoundi Market
Yaoundes great food market at full volume, best walked in the morning with a local guide and valuables left at the hotel.
Where to stay in Yaounde
Bastos
first visit, solo travellers and walking to dinner
Leafy embassy district with the best cafes and restaurants, quieter streets and the Star Land, Residence Massou and Le Diplomate.
Plateau / Centre Administratif
short sight dense stays and official business
Ministries, the National Museum and Blackitude on the doorstep, with the Hilton, La Falaise and Merina, but quiet after office hours.
Mont Febe
golfers, conferences and pool families
The green hilltop by the golf club and Palais des Congres, with resort facilities and views, at the cost of a drive to everything else.
Think twice about
- Mokolo
Dense market quarter flagged in US Government reporting for theft and robbery. Visit markets by day with a guide, do not base here.
- Briquetterie
Dense commercial quarter flagged for theft and robbery, with few hotels and streets visitors should not walk after dark. Great for soya with a local, wrong as a base.
- Mvog-Mbi and Marche Central sprawl
Intense crowding, bag snatch and pickpocket risk, noise and few hotels of any standard. The saving on cheap rooms here is not worth the exposure.
- Centre-Ville streets after dark away from the major hotels
The administrative centre empties after office hours with patchy lighting. Staying on the Plateau works only from a major hotel using its car at night.
Best restaurants in Yaounde
Le Safoutier
The Hiltons flagship and Yaoundes most reviewed fine dining room, taking Cameroonian dishes seriously in a formal setting.
Bar Panoramique
An 11th floor grill and dining bar with the best restaurant view in Yaounde, made for sunset over the hills.
Le Bacchus Plus
Formal French, Italian and Swiss dining in Bastos for a quiet, grown up occasion in the diplomatic quarter.
Ô Vive
The Bastos all rounder for Mediterranean dishes, proper pizzas and mixed groups, holding an exceptional review score.
La Salsa
European flavours revisited Cameroonian style in a garden setting in Bastos, with grilled fish as the signature order.
Chez Wou
Yaoundes long standing Cantonese address for whole fish and sharing plates, best ordered widely by a group.
Platinium Café
The Bastos cafe locals rate highly for coffee, grills and an easy terrace, five minutes from the Bastos hotels.
Chez Hélène Tchakounte
Simple Cameroonian home cooking near the artisan market at the cheapest tier, where the neighbourhood eats lunch.
Outdoor things to do in Yaounde
Mefou Primate Sanctuary
Around 300 rescued gorillas, chimps and monkeys in large forest enclosures, on a guided walk an hour south of Yaounde.
Ebogo
A pirogue ride on the Nyong River to a giant millennial tree, with fresh river fish, usually combined with Mefou in one day.
Club de Golf de Yaoundé
An 18 hole par 72 course over the Mont Febe hills by the embassy quarter, open to guests with caddies and rental clubs.
Parcours Vita
A free wooded fitness trail on Mont Febe where the whole city runs and walks at dawn, supervised and open daily.
Mont Febe
The best accessible panorama over Yaoundes seven hills, paired with the monastery museum and lunch on the same hill.
Lac Municipal de Yaoundé
The municipal lake heart of a Plateau ministries walk that explains Yaounde as a planned political capital.
Chutes de la Lobé
A river waterfall that falls directly into the Atlantic near Kribi, best done as an overnight from Yaounde, not a day trip.
Nachtigal Falls
Powerful Sanaga River rapids and falls north of Yaounde, a spectacular viewing trip with a driver guide and no swimming.
Best hotels in Yaounde
Star Land Hotel Bastos
The modern Bastos flagship with pool, spa and strong service, the consensus best hotel in Yaounde for business stays.
Residence Massou Bastos - Golf
Spacious serviced apartments with kitchens and gardens in Bastos, run by a host guests praise as exceptionally helpful.
Hotel Le Diplomate
A simple budget hotel that buys you a safe Bastos address near the cafes, with working air conditioning and basic rooms.
Hilton Yaounde
Cameroons only international five star, on the Plateau by the ministries, with the citys deepest facilities and security.
Hotel La Falaise
A full service four star at Warda with a large pool and professional staff, at well below Hilton prices on the Plateau.
Hotel Merina Yaounde Centre
A central independent four star a short walk from Blackitude Museum, with comfortable rooms and a French restaurant.
Hotel Mont Fébé
The hilltop resort hotel beside the golf course, with indoor and outdoor pools, gardens and the quietest air in Yaounde.
Hotel Mansel
A friendly value hotel near the Omnisport stadium, a good mid budget alternative to Bastos and the Plateau.
Is Yaounde expensive? What a day costs
| Budget | FCFA 22,000 a person |
|---|---|
| Classic | FCFA 55,000 a person |
| Splurge | FCFA 140,000 a person |
A day of food, drink, sights and getting around, before the room
What to book ahead
- A private guided city day: a few days ahead
- Mefou Primate Sanctuary: a few days ahead
- Ebogo: a few days ahead
- Club de Golf de Yaoundé: a few days ahead
- Chutes de la Lobé: a few days ahead
- Nachtigal Falls: a few days ahead
- Star Land Hotel Bastos: weeks ahead
- Residence Massou Bastos - Golf: weeks ahead
- Book the Hilton, Star Land and Mont Febe ahead for December to February and for conference and official event weeks.
- Reserve Le Safoutier, Bar Panoramique and Le Bacchus Plus for weekend evenings, and the Mefou plus Ebogo day at least a day ahead.
- Confirm the National Museum opening on the morning itself, as unannounced closures are documented, and carry cash XAF for Mefou entry.
- Sort visa, yellow fever certificate and malaria prophylaxis weeks before travel, and always carry proof of legal presence.
Is Yaounde safe?
- Violent and petty crime are common, and travel to the Southwest, Northwest and Far North and near the CAR, Chad and Nigeria borders should be avoided.
- Base in Bastos, the Plateau majors or Mont Febe, take cars after dark, and visit Mokolo, Briquetterie and Mvog-Ada market quarters only by day with a guide.
- Avoid demonstrations and roadblocks, carry bags away from the street against motorcycle bag snatches, and enrol in your government's traveller registration programme if it offers one.
- Medical services are limited and evacuation may be needed at your expense, so carry evacuation insurance and take malaria prevention seriously year round.
Yaounde travel tips: tourist traps to skip
- Do not displace Mefou with the dilapidated Mvog-Betsi Zoo as a headline sight, and agree its total price before entering if you go.
- Decline bushmeat offers plainly, and never use unlicensed money changers, as the CFA franc is pegged to the euro at a fixed rate.
- Skip the Douala road day trip sold as easy, as it is three plus hours each way, and follow busy grill crowds rather than signage for street food.
- Do not photograph in markets without permission or walk them with a visible phone and an open bag.
Getting around Yaounde: public transport and more
- Shared taxis cost around 250 to 350 XAF for a short hop, a private depot hire around 1500 to 2500 XAF for 5 km, and prices are agreed before you get in.
- Hire a car with driver through your hotel for excursions and full days, and confirm fuel, waiting and return time in the price.
- Avoid benskin motorcycle taxis entirely, however short the hop.
- Nsimalen Airport is about 45 to 60 minutes from the centre, so arrange a hotel pickup on arrival, especially after dark.
Who Yaounde suits
| Solo travellers | Good |
|---|---|
| Groups of friends | Good |
| Couples | Good |
| Bachelor parties | Not ideal |
| Families | Good |
| Bachelorette parties | Not ideal |
Make Yaounde your trip
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