General: The Gambia

I travelled to The Gambia in January (2004) and am still completely enchanted by the place. Its a small country at 30miles narrowing to only 15 miles wide and 200 miles long. Its centred around the Gambia River, so the country is quite lush and green compared with other African countries. It was part of the British Colony until it gained independence in 1965. Its principally a muslim country and made up of five tribes, the largest being Mandinka. **BEFORE YOU TRAVEL** There are several jabs which are recommended for travel to The Gambia but this is down to advise given by your GP. As a rule ... more

Many years ago, I was searching for a holiday that suited every member of my new family. I was about to marry a man with children, and our honeymoon was going to cost us a lot of money, but we sat down and talked about the different places that we could go, and ruled many out. There was Disneyland in the states which was one possibility, although this was outruled because we would come home more tired than we started off, and the holiday had to be one that catered for all of us. We wanted somewhere safe, we wanted beach, we wanted the possibility of mixing with the lovals and not having to ... more

I visited The Gambia in October 1999. I took my two children then aged 16 and 13 with me and we all agree this is the best country we have visited. We had a very pleasant 6 hour flight, and the minute we left the plane, we were hit by the atmosphere of this lovely country. As we were searching for our coach to take us to our hotel we were bombarded by young children asking for our newspapers and magazines, which we later found out they sold to other holidaymakers the following day. There were men and women on stilts trying their best to entertain us. The journey from the airport to our hotel ... more

My husband and I have visited the Gambia, West Africa several times. Originally, we chose the Gambia as we like the sun and it wasn’t too far to travel (about 6 hours flying time). Since then it has come to mean much more to us than just a holiday destination. Situated on the unspoilt West African coast, the Gambia is one of the smallest countries in Africa. Mostly flat, the country is dominated by the majestic River Gambia which meanders through tropical forest, bamboo and mangrove swamp. The Gambia is a third world country and the journey from the airport to the hotel is often a ... more

For years I have wanted to visit the Gambia but my husband was reluctant to go as the people had a bad reputation for harassing tourists. We had read on the internet that, in some areas, it wasn’t advisable to leave your hotel. This made me a bit wary as well because, when I visit a country I like to explore it, meet the locals and try the various foods. I decided to give Gambia Experience a call. They have been specialising in the Gambia for years and have recently started flying out of Glasgow, which made it even more appealing to me. The girl I spoke to was more than happy to advise ... more