Fun Facts Planning For Travel To Guinea

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Fun Facts Planning For Travel To Guinea
Travel tips for your trip to Guinea Hotel Maps Famous Places in Guinea helps you to make your trip to Guinea in the holiday a Splendid One

The Republic of Guinea is a small, coastal country located in western Africa. Until recently it was known as French Guinea, but now is known as Guinea Conakry. The new name has the word Conakry appended to Guinea to help differentiate it from its next-door country of Guinea Bissau. It shares its borders with Guinea Bissau to the northwest, Senegal and Mali towards the north and north east, the Ivory Coast to the southeast and Liberia and Sierra Leon to the south and southwest. The people of this country are a mix of tribes like Fula, Mandinka, and Susu who also form the major ethnic group of the country. The history of Guinea consists of records of the land changing hands between many different administrations, including the French. After its independence it came under autocratic rule and has since been added to the list of the poorest countries in the world.

Interesting & Fun Facts About The Republic Of Guinea

The area that is now known as Guinea was first settled by the Susu tribe who were migrating from the north.
The very first empire to have ruled Guinea is believed to be the Ghana Empire and was later replaced by the Almoravides Empire.
It was during this time that the region of Guinea was introduced to Islam.
From the 12th to the 13th Century, Guinea was ruled by the Sosso kingdom only to be replaced by the Mali Empire.
After the fall of the Mali Empire the region was divided and saw the rise of the Songhai Empire, which exceeded the Mali Empire in both territory and wealth.
From the 16th to the 19th century the region of Guinea was ruled by the Fulani Empire.
After the Fulani Empire the region was dominated by the Wassoulou or Wassulu Empire which lasted only from 1878 to 1898.
The colonial history of Guinea can be traced to the French victory over the army of Samory Touré, the leader of the Ouassoulou state in 1898.
After six decades of colonial rule, Guinea finally became independent on 2 October, 1958 and adopted its constitution on 23 December, 1990.
The country is spread over 245,857 sq km and is home to 10,324,025 people (as of July 2010).
The geography of the country consists of a 320 km long coastline with flat plains and mountainous terrain in the interior.
The highest point in Guinea is Mont Nimba which stands at a height of 1,752 m (5,747 ft). The lowest point in the country is the coast which is at a height of 0 m.
The climate of the country is hot and humid most of the times. It does however have a rainy season that lasts June to November and a dry season lasting from December to May.
The country of Guinea has vast amounts of mineral and agricultural resources. Enough that it could easily be the richest nation in Africa.
Having almost half of the world's bauxite deposits, the mining sector accounts for at least 70% of the country's exports.
Some of the crops grown in the country are rice, coffee, sweet potatoes, tapioca, bananas, palm kernels and pineapples.
Guinea is also home to some of the world's last tropical dry forests.
The Fouta Djalon Plateau in the west is also famous for its waterfalls and is known to provide some of the best hiking spots.
Guinea does not have a tourism industry that is well set up, so when making a trip there you should be prepared to rough it out.
One of the most commonly used currency exchange agents are the black market dealers who are known to give good exchange rates and sometimes even accept traveler's cheques.

Free Guide Conakry City

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Free Guide Conakry City
Travel tips for your trip to Guinea Hotel Maps Famous Places in Guinea helps you to make your trip to Guinea in the holiday a Splendid One

Conakry is the capital and largest city in Guinea and has an estimated population of about 2 million people, almost a quarter of the total population of the country. The city is located in the west of the country, along the southern part of the Atlantic coast of the country and also functions as the major port to Guinea. The city has been founded over 120 years ago and has been growing rapidly, mainly during the last decades. Nowadays, it is the cultural, economical and industrial hart as well as the administrative centre. For tourists, it hasn't got that many to offer, apart from the usual hustle and bustle of lively and colourful African cities.

Conakry has a typical tropical climate with hot and humid conditions throughout the year and a distinctive rainy season which lasts from the end of May until early October, with a peak in July and August when heavy downpours occur and floodings are possible. The hottest month is April although the difference is just marginal with the cooler July and August months and even during the night the temperatures just drop 4 or 5 degrees Celcius and rarely gets below 23 or 24 degrees.

Conakry International Airport (CKY) receives all departing and arriving international flights. Destinations include those to and from Bamako (Slok Air, Air Ivoire, Benin Golf Air), Dakar (Benin Golf Air, Slok Air, Afrinat International Airlines), Freetown, Paris (Air France), Brussels, Abidjan and Lagos, among a few others.

Money Exchange for Guinea -Services - Money

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Money Exchange for Guinea -Services - Money
Travel tips for your trip to Guinea Hotel Maps Famous Places in Guinea helps you to make your trip to Guinea in the holiday a Splendid One

Currency information:

Guinea Franc (GNF) = 100 centimes. Notes are in denominations of GNF5,000, 1,000 and 500. Coins are in denominations of GNF25, 10, 5 and 1.
Credit cards:

Limited acceptance. Guinea has a cash economy. ATMs are not available.
ATM:

ATMs are not available.
Travellers cheques:

To avoid additional exchange rate charges, travellers are advised to take traveller's cheques in US Dollars or Euros. These are only accepted in some banks and hotels.
Banking hours:

Mon-Fri 0800-1230 and 1430-1700.
Currency restriction:

There are no restrictions on the import of local or foreign currency, provided it is declared on arrival. The export of local or foreign currency is limited to US$5,000 or equivalent.
Currency exchange:

Hotels will accept some foreign currencies in payment. Inter-bank fund transfers are frequently difficult, if not impossible, to accomplish.

Health and Medical Information for Guinea

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Health and Medical Information for Guinea
Travel tips for your trip to Guinea Hotel Maps Famous Places in Guinea helps you to make your trip to Guinea in the holiday a Splendid One

Health insurance is essential. Travel insurance which covers travellers for repatriation to their country is advisable. There are rudimentary medical, dental and optical facilities in Conakry. Medical facilities are poorly equipped and extremely limited. Some private facilities provide a better range of treatment options, but are still well below global standards. There are no ambulance or rescue emergency services available. Doctors and hospitals expect immediate cash payment for health services.

All water should be regarded as being potentially contaminated. Water used for drinking, brushing teeth or making ice should have first been boiled or otherwise sterilised. Only eat well-cooked meat and fish. Vegetables should be cooked and fruit peeled.

Diarrhoeal diseases are common. Bilharzia (schistosomiasis) is present; avoid swimming and paddling in fresh water. Hepatitis C and E are widespread. Hepatitis B is hyperendemic. Epidemics of meningococcal disease may occur, particularly in the savannah areas and during the dry season. Dengue fever and tuberculosis both occur. Rabies is present. For those at high risk, vaccination before arrival should be considered. If you are bitten, seek medical advice without delay.

Short History Of Guinea and Culture

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Short History Of Guinea and Culture
Travel tips for your trip to Guinea Hotel Maps Famous Places in Guinea helps you to make your trip to Guinea in the holiday a Splendid One

Modern Guinea was part of the Mali empire, which espoused Islam and dominated the region between the seventh and 15th centuries. Portuguese explorers arrived in the region during the mid-15th century and over the next 300 years they, the British and the French made Guinea the centre of a major slave trade.

In 1849, the French declared the Boke region a French protectorate. The division between the Guinea Republic and Guinea-Bissau dates from a Franco-Portuguese agreement of 1886, one of many concluded in West Africa to settle the competing claims of European colonialists. In 1895, the French incorporated the Boke province – the heart of the Guinea republic today – along with adjacent territory which they had taken control of, into French West Africa. The region was a single entity comprised mostly of modern-day francophone West Africa, which was governed from Dakar. When French West Africa was dissolved in 1958 prior to decolonisation, Guinea was the only former French protectorate which refused to join the French Community upon independence.

After the departure of the French, political power was assumed by the Parti Democratique de Guinée (since renamed the Parti pour l'Unité et le Progrès, PUP), which became the sole legitimate political party. However, by 1983, the regime's extreme mismanagement and repressive behaviour had driven an estimated two million people into exile. In March 1984, the ruler of Guinea since independence, President Sekou Touré, died and the army immediately seized power in a bloodless coup led by Colonel Lansana Conté. The Conté government straight away set about improving badly damaged political and economic links with its West African neighbours. In 1989 Conté unveiled plans for a gradual move towards democratic government. A new constitution, known as the Third Republic, was accepted by national referendum in December 1990. The first presidential elections under the new constitution were held in December 1993 and won by Conté. At the beginning of February 1996, Conté survived an attempted coup, after which he assumed personal control of the country's armed forces. He also appointed a Prime Minister, Laimine Sidimé, for the first time. (Sidimé was replaced by Francois Lonseny Fall in February 2004 who then fled the country and resigned in April of the same year. He is currently living in exile claiming his life would be in danger if he returned. The position has since been left vacant). Conté was elected for a third term as President in December 2003 (after first holding a referendum in 2001 that officially removed the two-term limit on presidency).

Guinea has recently become embroiled in the struggles for territory and mineral wealth that have engulfed neighbouring Liberia and Sierra Leone (see relevant country entries for more detail). The Guinean army has had to deal with refugees from Sierra Leone (numbering 80,000) and Liberia (70,000) who have fled to Guinea to escape fighting in the area where the borders of the three countries meet: by April 2002, the refugees numbered about 150,000 split roughly evenly between Liberians and Sierra Leoneans. Some of the fighting spilled over into Guinea, and the country has only narrowly avoided full-scale involvement. A large UN peacekeeping force brought an end to the civil war in Sierra Leone in 2002 but fighting continues in Liberia. Further afield, Guinea attracted rare international attention as a member of the United Nations Security Council which in 2002 deliberated the issue of Iraq. Despite occasionally intense pressure, the Guineans remained circumspect amid the furious argument between the pro- and anti-invasion factions of the Council.

Guinea Accommodation. Hotel Guide. Details

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Guinea Accommodation. Hotel Guide. Details
Travel tips for your trip to Guinea Hotel Maps Famous Places in Guinea helps you to make your trip to Guinea in the holiday a Splendid One

Novotel Ghi Hotel Conakry

General

Room Service, Restaurant, Pet Friendly, Disabled Access, Bar / Lounge, Air Conditioned, Non-Smoking Rooms, Cable / Satellite TV, TV
Activities

Fitness Room/Gym, Swimming pool, Massage / Beauty Centre, Tennis Courts, Excursions, Boating, Water Activities, Museums/Galleries, Sightseeing Tours, Salon, Barber/Beauty Shop, Beauty Salon, Outdoor heated pool
Services

Business Center, Concierge, Elevator / Lift, 24 Hour Reception, Dry Cleaning, Babysitting / Child Services, Banquet Facilities, Conference Room(s), Currency Exchange, Safe-Deposit Box, Security Guard, News Stand, Secretarial Service, Porters, Wake-up Service, Meeting Rooms, Shops, Photocopier, Office Supplies, Colour Printing, Facsimile, Audio/Visual Equipment, Slide Projector, Souvenirs/Gift Shop
Internet

Wireless internet on site.
Parking

Parking is available. Bus parking is available. There is an airport shuttle that runs from the hotel.

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