Ghana - Tourism, travel, and recreation

Ghana has sought to develop a tourist trade. Attractions include casinos, fine beaches, game reserves, and old British, Dutch, and Portuguese trading forts and castles. Indigenous dance forms and folk music thrive in rural areas, and there are many cultural festivals. The National Cultural Center is in Kumasi, the capital of the Ashanti region, an area rich in traditional Ghanaian crafts. There is an Arts Center in Accra, as well as the National Museum, the Alwri Botanical Gardens, and the burial place of W.E.B. Du Bois. Visas or entry permits are required of all visitors as well as yellow fever immunization. In 1999, 372,651 tourists visited Ghana, and tourist receipts totaled $304 million. In 1998, there were 10,879 hotel rooms with 14,289 beds.

In 2001, the US Department of State estimated the cost of staying in Accra at $165 per day. Daily expenses are an estimated $132 in Kumasi. Elsewhere the cost per day can be significantly less, averaging around $60.