What to see in Ivory Coast: 9 must-sees
Discover what to see in Ivory Coast: 9 must-see destinations, from Yamoussoukro to Abidjan (commercial capital). Predominantly city and UNESCO heritage; each entry includes the best time to visit and the link to its official source.
City(5)
Follow Yamoussoukro's main avenue to the Basilica of Our Lady of Peace, one of the largest churches in the world, inscribed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2019 along with its gardens. Walk among the coconut palms of the Presidential Palace, look at the ponds where crocodiles live, and wander through the markets of the Habitat district to try attiéké with fish. In Ivory Coast's political capital, wide streets and administrative buildings coexist with popular neighborhoods where coupé-décalé music plays until nightfall.
Walk through Abidjan, the commercial capital of Ivory Coast, and cross the Treichville market among stalls of wax-print fabrics and spices. Explore the Plateau, the business district of skyscrapers beside the Ébrié Lagoon, and visit St. Paul's Cathedral for views over the city. At dusk, head for the beaches along Grand-Bassam Road or the Marcory waterfront, where local maquis serve grilled fish with attiéké. Here, life moves to the rhythm of coupé-décalé.
Cross Cocody, Abidjan's residential district, where embassies sit behind high walls amid bougainvillea and manicured tropical gardens. Head up Boulevard Latrille to Félix Houphouët-Boigny University, one of the largest in West Africa, then down to the Riviera, an area of restaurants and terraces beside the Ébrié Lagoon. Neighborhood markets sell attiéké, fabrics, and fresh fruit, while mansions with pools contrast with the workshops nearby. At dusk, the lagoon shores offer views of the Plateau skyline and a relaxed pace that invites you to linger.
Explore Bingerville, the first colonial capital of Ivory Coast, located about 15 kilometers from Abidjan on the shores of the Ébrié Lagoon. You'll walk streets where buildings from the French era survive, such as the former military hospital and residences with gallery-lined façades and high roofs. Every morning the central market brings together vendors selling attiéké, smoked fish, and wax print fabrics brought from nearby neighborhoods. Along the lagoon's shores you'll see fishermen with their pirogues and the bustle of motorboats heading to the economic capital. The city keeps a calm pace that contrasts with its administrative past.
Explore the Plateau, Abidjan's administrative center, where glass and concrete skyscrapers rise beside the Ébrié Lagoon. Stroll between St. Paul's Cathedral, with its modern structure, and the nearby markets selling wax print fabrics and tropical fruit. Watch civil servants cross the avenues at midday while street vendors offer alloco and coffee. From the high viewpoints you can pick out the horizon toward the Atlantic and the bridges linking the district to the rest of the city. End the day tasting attiéké with fish at a maquis in the neighborhood.
UNESCO Heritage(2)
Take in the 3,600 km² of Taï National Park, in Sud-Comoé, one of the last primary tropical forests in West Africa. Walk among centuries-old trees as you listen for the chimpanzees, famous here for using stones to crack nuts. Forest elephants, colobus monkeys, and bongos inhabit this rainforest, declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1982. Guides from nearby villages organize dawn outings, when mist still blankets the canopy and duikers cross the muddy trails.
Discover Comoé National Park, in the Zanzan region, one of the largest protected areas in West Africa with 11,500 km² of savanna and humid forest. Declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1983, it is home to elephants, lions, hippos, and chimpanzees along the Comoé River. Travel its dirt tracks between palms and gallery forests, where migratory birds and antelopes set the pace of the day. Here, a visit demands patience and rewards with genuine sightings, far from the continent's crowded routes.
Beach(1)
Take in Grand-Bassam Beach, in the Sud-Comoé region, where fine sand stretches along the Atlantic beside the colonial old town, declared a World Heritage Site. Walk along the shore among fishermen's pirogues, swim in its warm waters, and get close to the 19th-century facades of the France quarter, with their balconies and wooden verandas. Here, swimming, resting under the palms, and the memory of Ivory Coast's first capital all lie within a few steps, alongside fresh-fish restaurants and artisans working by the lagoon.
Natural(1)
Discover the Bété Plateaus, in the Sassandra-Marahoué region, following trails among rocky tablelands where waterfalls tumble through the vegetation and rivers carve their way toward the valleys. The geological formations dominate the horizon and offer viewpoints from which to take in the region's lush greenery. Explore its paths on foot, watch for birds and plants found in this part of inland Ivory Coast, and visit the Bété villages set among the hills, keeping their agricultural and ceremonial traditions alive.
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