10 reasons why you should travel to Togo right now

Togo? Or maybe you don’t know even where is Togo situated? Have you seen the Togo flag? Have you heard about the capital of Togo? Is Togo safe to travel?  Even if you answered all of these questions as “No”, don’t worry, after reading this article, you would know far more about this beautiful country. We will give you information about Togo, why it is worthy of being visited, answer the question "Is Togo safe to travel?" and give you some tips to ensure that you will be safe there. Where is Togo? It is the country in western Africa near Ghana and Benin. Lome, the capital of Togo, is located in the southwest of the country and is the largest city and port. There is a huge diversity of landscapes therefrom lakes and beaches with palms in the seashore of the Atlantic to hills and forests in the centre of the country. Going to the north, you can see light-green and yellow savannah. Thus, Togo is the perfect destination for hikers, as it is eco-friendly, and you can see the country’s wild beauty on foot.  The Togo flag consists of the following colours: red, green, yellow, and white. In the corner, there is a star on the red background. Besides the Togo flag, there are also other national symbols, for example, the coat of arms and motto.  So, now, you know where is Togo, and you got little information about the country. But it is not enough for drawing any conclusion about this charming destination. By the way, we recommend you to look through the Togo map to have some image of this country. Below, we will give you 10 reasons why you should travel to Togo right now, and you also find these places on the Togo map to ease your work. 

1. Beaches

Togo is eminent for its fascinating beaches, including Aneho Beach and also Lome Beach. There are white sands on almost each of the beaches and plenty of coconut trees. If you are a fishing connoisseur, there are a lot of fishing villages built for you. We also strongly recommend you to go to Aneho – it is quite a popular beach, but it is not very crowded. It is located on the border of Togo with Benin. This bewitching beach is also known as the calmest beach in Togo. It can also be a perfect place for water recreation. Aneho is an ideal place if you are a surfer because very often people held competitions among surfers. 

2. Togoville

Copyright: @wenqianchang Togoville is located in the southern part of Togo, next to the shore on the north of Lake Togo. There are a lot of tiny houses with ancient architecture. It is characterized by small houses of traditional architecture from red sand and roof from straw. This beauty of architecture holds a very important historical meaning for Togo. Tourists can look there at the colonial contrast between Germans and Mlapa III, who was a ruler of Togo. Togoville has plenty of various attractive Vodoo shrines, bewitching Cathedral Notre Dame, and the royal palace of Mlapa IV. For sure, seeing this fascinating historic place can be one of the best reasons to travel to Togo.

3. Lome

Being the capital of Togo, Lome is one of the cities which you need to visit at least once in your life. You can see a lot of light markets and restaurants with palatable food. Togo people are very friendly there and will bend over backwards to help you. Places that you need to visit include the Palais des Congres, the Independence Monument. By the way, in Palais des Congres, you can find West African jewellery, plenty of musical instruments, old colonial buildings, perfect work, and very affluent Togo people who will be very affable and very hospitable. Moreover, the city has several fascinating white sand beaches that are often visited by tourists. You can also enjoy the nightlife there and visit a lot of ancient museums.

4. Fazao-Malfakassa National Park

Fazao-Malfakassa National Park is located on the central side of Togo’s western regions. This park has untouched flora, which is covered with a rugged landscape—there are plenty of grasslands on the hills, woodlands of savanna and forest that are very thick.  This National Park was established in 1975 against the border with Ghana. It covers 1920 sq km and is considered the largest national park in Togo. It includes the forest reserves of Malfakassa and Fazao.  There is a huge number of animals, most of them are mammals. Mammals include chimpanzees, elephants, and other tiny mammal types. The birds of Fazao-Malfakassa include hawk eagles, grey parrot, hornbill, swamp greenbul, and many other species.

5. Fosse aux Lions National Park

Fosse aux Lions National Park was established in 1954. Overall the area covered by its park is almost 1650 hectares. There are 60 elephants, a lot of kinds of monkeys, warthogs, and antelopes. Visiting this park, you will be able to see in your own eyes the wild beauty of Togo.

6. Hiking

You will regret it if you don’t take a hike up on Togo's bewitching mountains with a gorgeous view. One of the parts which you need to consider for hiking is Mount Agou. It is situated near the Ghana border, to the southeast of Kpalime. You will face an enthralling adventure there and will be able to immerse yourself in the life of Togo people. There are a lot of beautiful villages where you can learn about their traditional, meanwhile atypical lifestyles. You can also discover fields of cacao, coffee, avocado trees, and orange trees. If you want, you can also participate in the preparation of African dishes and soaps from medicinal plants and herbs.

7. Lome Grand Marche

Lome Grand Marche is situated in the centre of Lome, and it is the best place to travel to truly feel Togo’s style. There are always a lot of people. Also, it is quite noisy because it is the major place for shopping in West Africa. This spot has many items for sale that differ by types of products: electronics, groceries, or clothing. Despite it, the most eminent item is wax cloth. Some tourists travel to Lome Grand Marche to do shopping just for fun.

8. Mount Agou

Moun Agou is situated just near the border with Ghana, and it is the highest point in Togo. It is covered all the way up with cocoa and coffee plantations, connected by a dust road. It’s a perfect place for hiking and has the most beautiful views of the countryside.

9. Kpalime

It is the closest city to Mount Agou, which was described in the previous point. There are plenty of coffee and cocoa plantations. There you can enjoy not only hiking but also look at beautiful waterfalls. Besides, it is both a tiny and busy place for shopping and socializing. To the northwest of the city is Missahohe Forest, popular for its butterflies. Near this city is the next one which is eminent for its flying bats. You can see them everywhere: they hang from the trees and then flutter into the sky and will be reminiscent of a dark cloud. 

10. Atakpame

Atakpame is more a historical place to visit. Roughly 300 years ago, it was the site of a battle between the biggest empires of West Africa, but today there is quite calm there. You can enjoy the local culture and find plenty of traditional shops and an awesome mountain view.

Is Togo safe to travel?

So, we told you about the 10 reasons why you should travel to Togo, and we think that now you can’t wait to see Togo. But, you also need to reckon about the safety of Togo and take some precautions.  The country is not so safe! Risks include pickpocketing, theft, and scam risks. Moreover, there is also a risk of protests. We’ve prepared for you some points which will help you to stay safe: 1. Always keep yourself away from the large crowds of groups or demonstrations. For sure, we don’t tell you to be away from restaurants and shops there, but be very cautious. Try to eat in such places which are not so eminent.  2. In case you are travelling by car, you need to take extra precautions because car-jacking very often occurs in Togo. We recommend you to keep your car doors always locked and never stop in the centre of the reasons if you don’t have reason to.  3. Withdraw your money not from an ATM but within a bank to reduce risks be rigged. 4. Take with you a Togo map in order not to be lost and draw attention! 5. Try not to travel alone at night. It is safer to walk with groups. In conclusion, if you are confused by the question to travel to Togo or not, just look through this article with these bewitching places, and we are sure, you will make the right choice!