Three weeks in bike-friendly Burkina Faso

Itinerary

Flight from Germany to Burkina Faso. From the capital Ouagadougou we make a first day trip without baggage to Laongo and visit a project run by artists. At its grounds you find many interesting granite stones that have been worked on by artists from around the globe for over ten years, some of them very expressive. Culture and culinary art -on our way back we have a snack at a dairy that is producing goat’s milk cheese.
By bus to the Southwest, into the second-largest town of the country, Bobo Dioulasso. A pleasant city with old colonial architecture and broad shady avenues. We may visit the market, the Dioulassoba mosque (built in 1880) and the old part of the town. On country lanes we travel to an old sacrificial site. We cycle to the edge of the cliffs, and then walk into a small forest. Besides the place of worship is a pond with gigantic catfish. Along the watercourse we descend to the village.
On an excellent road a long tour takes us to Orodara. From there we make a trip on dirt tracks to Moussoudougou. The next ride takes us 60 km to the impressive rock needles of Sindou. In the end well downhill! We stay three days in the region of Sindou, climb in the rocks and make a trip to a former settlement area high in the rocks, about 40 km away. After only 50 km we reach the lake of Tengréla. There we stay in a beautiful complex of round huts. In the evening we enter a pirogue in order to navigate the lake and marvel at the hippos lying in the water.
From Tengréla to the dome-shaped mountains of Fabédougou, past irrigated sugarcane farms and to the impressive down-welling series of waterfalls of the Comoé River. There we have a picnic and a swim. The camp at Tengréla tempts us to have a rest day. Time for a break, to have a walk at the lake or scout out the town Banfora with a huge market (including internet cafés, restaurants etc). From Tengréla via Banfora back to Bobo Dioulasso. We cycle a well tarred road undulating up and down with beautiful resting places on the way, followed by an excursion to the spring in the dense green forest of Kou. Again picnic and bathing at the bamboo groves. We return to the capital Ouagadougou by bus. In the afternoon and/or evening into the city center, to the market, perhaps we visit a cinema too? At the last day a group photo at the ‚memorial to cyclists‘, followed by a trip to an artisans‘ village. There you will find good quality work-a visit worth the effort. On the way back we possibly have a look around the luxury-class housing scheme ‚Ouaga 2000‘. After the evening meal we go to the airport and our return flight back to Germany takes off.

Description

A cycling tour in the exciting Southwest of the country, in the region of Bobo Dioulasso, Banfora, Sindou and Orodara
At most places we stay 2 or 3 nights while having trips (without baggage) radiating out into the surrounding region. According to demand we may have a rest day. We visit villages in the rocks, an antique sacrificial site, the colorful market of Bobo Dioulasso, the old mosque and the old part of the town. The cycling tour takes us to the imposing rock needles of Sindou, to equally impressive dome-shaped mountains, and past irrigated sugar cane fields to down-welling series of waterfalls.
Guided cycling tour for a small group. We take our own bicycles along, transport our baggage ourselves and do legs between 40 and 80 kilometers per day. In sum total about 720 km in the 12 days that we shall use cycling trips. At noontime we have extended breaks. 9 nights in hotels, from simple to mid-range, 7 overnight stays in a traditional-style ‚kraal‘ complex. Single room accommodation: as far as available and at an additional fee between 3 and 10 Euros per night.
We shall send further information regarding your travel preparations with your booking confirmation.

Included

scheduled flights Frankfurt (on the Main) to Ouagadougou (probably Royal Air Maroc) and bus transfer Ouagadougou-Bobo Dioulasso and back.
Entrance fees and parking fees for all items mentioned above, all overnight stays (double rooms, mostly with double beds).
Experienced tour guide and expert information on the places visited / information pack on the country (maps, articles, recommendations)

Not included

Food and drinks, visa and insurances. We recommend a budget of approximately 100 Euros per week for catering.
Possibly also additional fees for air transportation of your bicycle that are demanded by the airline at check-in.

Travel period

November to January

You can always find the latest information and travel reports on our website in the internet. Please send us an email and we shall regularly inform you about changes of our program and other news.

More on actual dates, prices, photos, reports etc. (in German)