Akwidaa

Akwidaa’s proximity to the Atlantic Ocean, Cape Three Points Forest Reserve, oil palm plantations, rubber plantations and mangroves, means that any visitor to Akwidaa has easy access to pristine beaches, lush greenery, wildlife, river activities and rich local culture!

One of the southernmost towns in Ghana, Akwidaa was once considered a Brandenburg-Prussian and Dutch settlement. This fishing and farming community is situated on a peninsula and a cape along the Atlantic coast. The densely populated town comprises two parts – Old Akwidaa and New Akwidaa, separated by the beautiful Ezile River (pronounced ézilé). Old Akwidaa is the unusual site of the ruins of the triangular 17th Century Fort Dorothea, one of the oldest forts in Ghana, and a former trading post for the Brandenburg African Company. It is said that Dorothea was once one of the most beautiful forts on the coast.
                                                            
The people of Akwidaa are from the Ahanta ethnic group. In September of each year, they celebrate the Kundum Festival, which is a weeklong annual harvest festival. During the festival, many different foods (mainly corn and cassava based) are prepared in homes. Kundum is a time of reconciliation and announcing bumper harvest, and it is characterised by drumming and dancing.

Formerly famous for the production of coconut oil, the people of Akwidaa now grow food crops, mainly tomatoes, garden eggs, pepper and okra. Corn is mainly harvested for local consumption.

Akwidaa has a Town Tourism Development Committee, and several tour guides have been trained in interpretive and guiding skills. Their presence and their activity ensure that the incomes brought in from tours are used for the benefit of the community.

 

GhanaWestCoastMap

 

What to Do : Where to Eat and Where to Stay : Getting There : Fact File

 

  • Relax and sunbathe on the beautiful/pristine beaches at Akwidaa. Swimming, surfing and body boarding must be done with caution, as the waters are not very safe. Play volleyball, soccer and other beach games. If you keep your eyes wide open, you may spot some whales, dolphins or sea turtles coming to lay their eggs during the peak season of October to December.
  • Tour Old and New Akwidaa. You will enjoy the half-hour walk along the beach, just as much as you will enjoy the inimitable scenery while crossing the long wooden footbridge over the Ezile River, to get from one part of the village to the other. In Old Akwidaa, view the sturdy two-room building that the British built as a warehouse.
  • Indulge in a cultural tour to the Akwidaa fishing village, and engage in household activities like fufu pounding, yaka yaka preparation, and fish smoking.
  • View the nocturnal nesting of the endangered sea turtles. Their peak season is from October to December each year, although they may arrive any time between August and March. Help protect the turtles, by helping the turtle hatchlings get into the sea safely, keeping them from poachers and predators.
  • Hike to Fort Dorothea for a sneak peek into history. From the top of the Dorothea’s rounded rocky hill, you will enjoy stunning views of the surrounding area. Note: the land around the ruins of the fort is considered sacred ground, as it serves as a cemetery for the Akwidaa royal family. As such, you must seek permission before trekking to the site.
  • Hike or cycle along coastal paths, into lush oil palm and rubber plantations, and into the Cape Three Points Forest Reserve (2 km away). See the mangroves, bamboo, and identify the various types of palms (coconut palm, oil palm, date palm and raffia palm). Learn about the old railway line that used to pass through the area, and walk the plank on the Media (pronounced ‘medingha’) bamboo footbridge. You can walk on this hiking trail all the way to Dixcove, through farmland. Keep your eyes open for a glimpse of local wildlife.
  • Hike or cycle near Ezile Bay, to see the foundation of a merchant’s attempt to build a fort.
  • Hike or cycle to Cape Three Points, to see the southernmost tip of Ghana, and enjoy amazing panoramic views atop the pretty lighthouse. If you want to hike, be prepared: it’s a one-and-a-half hour walk to Cape Three Points, either way. Do wear a hat, and take some water with you. If you still want to go to Cape Three Points, but you don’t want to hike or cycle, you can take a tro-tro to Cape Three Points village, and continue the short walk to the lighthouse by foot.
  • Hike or cycle to the fishing village of Dixcove, and tour Fort Metal Cross.
  • With trained tour guides, take a dugout canoe to the Ezile River, and paddle through one of the best evergreen mangrove forests of the Western Region. You will marvel at the fascinating eco-system, prolific with crabs, mudskippers, mudfish, crocodiles, monitor lizards, birds, and butterflies. There is also a chance of viewing monkeys. This trip, which ranges between 1-3 hours, provides the opportunity to try your hands on self-paddling or engage in hook fishing. There is also the opportunity to sample fresh palm wine in a calabash, and see alternative livelihood activities like vegetable oil palm, coconut plantations and maize farms.
  • Join experienced fisher folk on a high sea fishing expedition in a wooden dugout canoe with outboard motor. The fishermen go to sea every day except Tuesday (when tradition forbids them from doing so). End your day by eating a meal on the beach, made from the catch of the day.
  • For the engaged romantics, there is the possibility of having a tropical beach wedding under a palm tree altar...

* To book a place on any tour, please register with the Town Tourism Development Committee.

 

Where to Eat and Where to Stay

Eat at your home stay or hotel, or buy a dish from one of the local food vendors. Try fufu (large dumplings made from pounded cassava and plantain), which is the staple food of the Ahanta people. Also widely eaten are kenkey (steamed balls of fermented corn, wrapped in banana leaves), gari (roasted cassava grits), yaka yaka (flattened gari), boiled cassava, and boiled plantain. While you’re at it, try the fresh and smoked fish products that abound at Akwidaa. The commonest fish in the area are tuna and kingfish. Grace your meal with a calabash of fresh palm wine.

Contact the Town Tourism Development Committee or a tour guide for information about home stays in Akwidaa.


Hotel/Lodge

Ezile Bay Village, www.ezilebay.com, 1 km after New Akwidaa

 
Meals & Drinks Price Range (GH¢)*
Breakfast 2.50 – 7.00
Lunch/Dinner (Continental)        8.00 - 12.00
Lunch/Dinner (Ghanaian) 8.00 – 12.00
Drinks/Beverages 1.30 – 16.00
Remark(s) Breakfast part of residential guest package, but can be prepared for non-residential  guests
Room Range Low-cost bungalows  
Room Rates
(GH¢ per night)*
10 - 17  
     

Hotel/Lodge

Green Turtle Lodge, www.greenturtlelodge.com , Old Akwidaa, 10 km from Dixcove, and 2 km from Akwidaa village

 
Meals & Drinks Price Range (GH¢)*
Breakfast 2.50 – 5.00
Lunch/Dinner (Continental)        4.00 - 6.50
Lunch/Dinner (Ghanaian) 4.00 – 6.50
Drinks/Beverages 1.0 – 16.00
Room Range Chalets with double rooms, double ensuite rooms, beachfront suite, and family villa
Room Rates
(GH¢ per night)*
4 – 30  

Hotel/Lodge

Safari Beach, www.safaribeachlodge.com, Old Akwidaa, 8 km from Dixcove, and 3 km from Akwidaa village

 
Meals & Drinks Price Range (GH¢)*
Breakfast 3.0 - 6.50
Lunch/Dinner (Continental)        7. 00 – 25.00
Lunch/Dinner (Ghanaian) 7.00 – 25.00
Drinks/Beverages 1.50 – 60.00
Remark(s) Breakfast part of room package for residential guests
Room Range Chalets with ensuite rooms, non-ensuite rooms, dormitory, tents
Room Rates
(GH¢ per night)*
5 – 30  

 

Hotel/Lodge

Ceto Self Catering, www.cetoghana.com, Near Achoa, west of Dixcove

Remark(s) Self catering beach rental house
Room Range 2 bedrooms (double and twin) with fans, bathroom, open plan kitchen and living area, first floor, open air balcony, and veranda
Room Rates
(GH¢ per night)*
From 30 per person per night  

Hotel/Lodge

Fort Metal Cross, Dixcove

Remark(s) Self catering beach rental house
Room Range Upmarket chalets in the grounds by the sea (yet to be completed)

*Prices as at September 2009
Note: Akwidaa currently has no electricity or running water. Some accommodation facilities have tank water, and some have solar power and/or generators.

 

Getting There

Akwidaa is situated 12 km west of Dixcove, and 6 km east of Cape Three Points. It is a 30-minute drive from Dixcove, an hour’s drive from Agona, and one-and-a-half hours’ drive from Takoradi.

By private vehicle:
At Takoradi’s Kwame Nkrumah Roundabout, take the Airport Road exit, which is adjacent to the Goil petrol station. Drive for 30 minutes to the centre of Agona. At the roundabout in Agona, turn left, onto the road leading to Dixcove. At Dixcove, ask for directions to the Akwidaa road. Once you get on the Akwidaa road, drive straight on, passing through colourful villages, until you get to Old Akwidaa. To combine a trip to Akwidaa with a visit to Cape Three Points, it is best to use the Cape Three Points road.

To get to Akwidaa on the Cape Three Points road: at Agona roundabout, get on the Dixcove road. After about 10 minutes, you’ll get to a junction on the right, with a few signs. There’s a small sign to Cape Three Points. Turn right, and drive straight on. At a point, where you enter the rubber plantation, you’ll come to a fork in the road. Take the left turn. Go straight. When you get to Akwidaa junction, veer left into Akwidaa.

By public transport:
At Takoradi, go to West End (near Tarkwa station, by the STC bus terminal), or go the Goil petrol station at Kwame Nkrumah Roundabout (also known as ‘Agip’ roundabout). Take a minibus (‘called tro-tro’) to Agona. At Agona, there are regular tro-tros and taxis to Akwidaa, via Dixcove.

 

Fact File

  1. The town of Akwidaa used to be called Ezile (after the river). It is said that during the Dutch occupation of the area (1687-1698), there was an old man who used to ferry people across the river. The village was named Akwidaa (Twi word, meaning ‘old man’) after him.
  2. New Akwidaa was created in the 1960s, to house those who lost their homes when the sea destroyed some of the houses at Old Akwidaa.
  3. During the months between August and March each year, Ghana West Coast plays host to three of the world’s remaining five species of sea turtles : the Olive Ridley, the Leatherback, and the Green turtles.
  4. It is estimated that only one out of three hundred sea turtle eggs has a chance of surviving. Turtle hatchlings are at the peril of fishing nets, local residents, land animals (dogs, crabs, birds, monitors lizards), and sea creatures such as kingfish, dolphins and sharks.
  5. Two turtle species are now extinct.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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