Benin & Togo Voodoo Discovery — Self-Launched

Land at Lomé (LFW) and take a shared taxi or taxi to the city centre (~£3-5). Settle into a budget hotel or guesthouse near the Bè or Kodjoviakopé districts. Walk the Grand Marché area, see the beach strip below the hotel zone, and visit the Palais de Lomé (Museum of the Arts) if time allows. Evening: eat grilled fish and fufu at a local maquis. Tomorrow you'll need cash (CFA franc) — draw from ATMs at the airport or Ecobank branches in town.

🚌Airport taxi to centre ~£3-5

🛏Budget hotel/guesthouse, Lomé (~£18-25)

• →Orientation walk around Lomé centre
• →Beach strip walk
• →Palais de Lomé museum (entry ~£3)
• →Dinner at a local maquis

Morning self-guided city walk: the Cathedral of Lomé (exterior), the craft market and the famous Marché des Fétiches (fetish market) at Akodessewa — hire a local guide on site for £3-5 to explain the objects and traditions respectfully. Late morning take a shared taxi or minibus from the Lomé gare routière to Kpalimé (~2.5 hrs, ~£3-4). Afternoon in Kpalimé: the Centre des Artisans (basketwork, batik, woodcarving) and the coffee/cacao hills. Kpalimé makes a good base for butterfly and waterfall walks.

🚌Shared taxi/minibus Lomé–Kpalimé ~£3-4

🛏Guesthouse in Kpalimé (~£12-18)

• →Lomé Cathedral (exterior)
• →Marché des Fétiches with local guide (~£4)
• →Kpalimé Centre des Artisans
• →Optional waterfall walk (Womé/Cascade de Kpimé, ~£3 guide)

Early morning countryside walk with a local butterfly/nature guide from Kpalimé (arrange the night before at your guesthouse or through the tourist office, ~£10-15 for a half-day), passing coffee and cocoa smallholdings and small villages. Continue by minibus via Atakpamé (~4-5 hrs total, ~£6-8) — break the journey at Atakpamé's cloth market for lunch. Evening in Sokodé: ask at your hotel for news of any fire-dance (danse du feu) or traditional ceremony nearby; these are often held at weekends or during festivals and a local fixer can usually get you in (~£10-20 contribution).

🚌Minibus Kpalimé–Atakpamé–Sokodé ~£6-8

🛏Simple hotel in Sokodé (~£15-20)

• →Guided butterfly/countryside hike (~£10-15)
• →Atakpamé market
• →Traditional fire dance if available (~£10-20)

Take a shared taxi or negotiate a car with driver from Sokodé to Bassar (~1.5 hrs, ~£5-8 shared / £30-40 for a day hire split between two or three travellers). In Bassar town, ask for a local guide to the surrounding villages where traditional clay houses with conical thatched roofs and remnant iron-smelting knowledge survive — a guide for a few hours costs around £10-15. Respectfully request an audience with a village chief; bring a small gift (kola nuts, ~£2). Continue to Kara in the afternoon (~1 hr, ~£4-6).

🚌Shared taxi/car hire Sokodé–Bassar–Kara ~£10-15 pp

🛏Hotel in Kara (~£15-20)

• →Guided visit to Bassar iron-making villages (~£12)
• →Traditional clay architecture
• →Optional chief audience (small gift)

Hire a car with driver for the day from Kara to reach the Tamberma (Batammariba) territory around Nadoba and Warengo (~£50-70 for the day, split 2-4 ways), or join other travellers at your hotel. Pay the local village tourism association fee and take an assigned local guide (~£8-12) who will explain the fortified tata houses, cosmology and daily life, and ask permission to enter a home. On the return, stop at Kabye blacksmith workshops near Kara. Pack a picnic lunch — there are few eateries on the route. This is the cultural highlight of northern Togo; allow plenty of time.

🚌Day car + driver Kara–Atakora return ~£25-35 pp split

🛏Hotel in Kara (~£15-20)

• →Tamberma tata houses with local guide (~£10)
• →Village tourism association fee (~£3)
• →Kabye blacksmith visit
• →Picnic lunch

Long travel day. Take a shared taxi/minibus from Kara south to the border at Kétao–Djougou or via the main Benin crossing, then onward to Dassa-Zoumé (~6-8 hrs total with changes, ~£10-15). En route, stop near Djougou to see the Dankoli fetish shrine — a voodoo shrine covered in offerings; it's free to look but a local guide and small offering (~£3-5) is expected. Note that animal offerings sometimes occur there; if that isn't for you, ask your driver to skip it. Evening arrival in Dassa-Zoumé, a relaxed hill town.

🚌Shared taxis/minibuses Kara–border–Dassa ~£10-15

🛏Guesthouse/small hotel in Dassa (~£15-20)

• →Border crossing on foot/vehicle
• →Dankoli shrine (~£4 guide + offering)
• →Evening stroll in Dassa

Ask your guesthouse to arrange a motorbike or car for the day (~£15-25 with guide) to visit a Fulani (Peul) settlement outside town — bring kola nuts or milk powder as a gift and ask permission before photos. Returning to town, see if an Egungun (masked ancestor) performance can be arranged; contact a local traditional group a day in advance, offering a fair contribution (~£15-25 shared between the group). Afternoon at Okuta, the hilltop historic site with rock art, sculptures and panoramic views (small entry fee ~£2, optional climb).

🚌Local motorbike/car hire ~£10-15 pp

🛏Guesthouse/small hotel in Dassa (~£15-20)

• →Fulani settlement visit
• →Egungun masked ceremony (~£20 contribution)
• →Okuta historic site (~£2)
• →Hill climb for views

Morning climb/visit the Sacred Hill in Dassa (free entry, local guide optional ~£3). Then take a shared taxi to Abomey (~2 hrs, ~£4-5). In Abomey visit the Royal Palaces of Abomey (UNESCO, entry ~£5, guide included) — a powerful introduction to Dahomey kingdom history. See the Chameleon temple in town and visit blacksmith and appliqué-workshop quarters. In the late afternoon, try to reach Covè (~45 min) for a Gelede mask ceremony; these are frequent in the region around the Voodoo Festival but confirm locally through your guide or hotel first (~£15-20 contribution).

🚌Shared taxi Dassa–Abomey ~£4-5; local taxi to Covè ~£5

🛏Guesthouse/small hotel in Abomey (~£12-18)

• →Sacred Hill of Dassa
• →Royal Palaces of Abomey (~£5)
• →Chameleon temple
• →Blacksmith workshops
• →Gelede mask ceremony if available (~£18)

Travel by shared taxi via Cotonou to the Abomey-Calavi jetty (~3 hrs, ~£6-8), then take a motorised pirogue to Ganvié stilt village (~30-45 min, ~£10-15 per boat, split between passengers; a shared option is cheaper). Pay the village tourism entry (~£3) and hire a local guide (~£5-8) to walk/boat around the floating market, school and homes. Stay overnight in a simple stilt guesthouse — the village at sunset and dawn, without day-trippers, is the real reward. Optional after-dark boat to the floating market (~£8).

🚌Shared taxi Abomey–Abomey-Calavi ~£6-8; pirogue ~£10-15 per boat

🛏Simple stilt guesthouse, Ganvié (~£15-20)

• →Pirogue to Ganvié
• →Village guide (~£6)
• →Floating market
• →Optional night boat trip (~£8)

Return by pirogue to Abomey-Calavi and take a shared taxi or minibus to Ouidah (~1.5 hrs, ~£3-5). If your dates fall on 10 January, you'll hit the national Voodoo Festival — the main event is at the Python Temple and beach square; otherwise ask your guesthouse about ceremonies in nearby villages, which happen year-round and often cost £10-20 in contributions. Visit the Door of No Return at the beach, the Sacred Forest and the Python Temple (combined ticket ~£8-10, local guide worthwhile). Ouidah is the beating heart of voodoo heritage — allow a slow afternoon.

🚌Pirogue back + shared taxi to Ouidah ~£8-10

🛏Guesthouse/small hotel in Ouidah (~£15-25)

• →Voodoo Festival / local ceremony (£10-20)
• →Door of No Return
• →Python Temple and Sacred Forest (~£8-10)
• →Walk the slave route through town

Take a shared taxi east towards Porto-Novo (~2 hrs, ~£5-6), stopping for lunch in the city. Visit the Afro-Brazilian Great Mosque (exterior) and the city's colonial architecture, then hunt down a small local gin (sodabi) distillery and a drum-makers' quarter near Adjara — a moto-taxi guide for a couple of hours costs ~£5-8. Continue to Cotonou (~1 hr, ~£3), see the Cathedral of Notre-Dame (exterior), the Amazons statue and the long graffiti murals by the port, then settle into the Fidjrossè beach area.

🚌Shared taxis Ouidah–Porto-Novo–Cotonou ~£10-12

🛏Budget hotel, Fidjrossè, Cotonou (~£20-28)

• →Afro-Brazilian Mosque
• →Sodabi distillery visit
• →Drum makers
• →Cotonou Cathedral, Amazon statue and graffiti murals

Take a shared taxi or minibus west to Grand-Popo (~2 hrs, ~£5-7). Hire a motorised boat on the Mono River estuary (~£15-25 per boat, split) through the mangroves and past birdlife. In the afternoon/evening, ask around Grand-Popo or the nearby village of Avlo for a Zangbeto 'guardian of the night' stilt-mask performance — these are frequently staged for visitors around festival season, with a group contribution of ~£15-25. Return to Cotonou in the evening or, better, stay in Grand-Popo and travel on the next day.

🚌Shared taxi Cotonou–Grand-Popo ~£5-7

🛏Guesthouse in Grand-Popo or Cotonou (~£18-25)

• →Mono River estuary boat trip (~£10 pp split)
• →Mangrove and birdwatching
• →Zangbeto mask ceremony (~£15-25 contribution)

Continue west along the coast, crossing back into Togo at the Hillacondji border (walk across, ~£1-2 in moto-taxis) to Aneho. In Aneho, ask at the tourist office or your guesthouse about a trance ceremony or a meeting with a traditional healer (~£10-15 contribution) — Aneho is famous for voodoo trance dancing and ceremonies are often accessible with advance notice. Walk the old colonial town. Then take a shared taxi to Lomé (~1.5 hrs, ~£3-4) and end the day with a final dinner at a beachfront maquis.

🚌Border crossing + shared taxi Aneho–Lomé ~£5-6

🛏Budget hotel, Lomé (~£18-25)

• →Aneho old town walk
• →Voodoo trance ceremony or healer visit (~£12)
• →Beachfront dinner

Breakfast, last-minute craft shopping at the Grand Marché or the artisan centre, and a taxi to Gnassingbé Eyadéma International Airport (~£3-5) for your onward flight. If you have a spare morning, the Palais de Lomé gardens and the national museum are a peaceful way to close out two weeks on the voodoo coast.

🚌Taxi to airport ~£3-5

🛏—

• →Grand Marché shopping
• →Optional national museum