Getting Around Cameroon

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If you are visiting the National Parks and some of the more remote areas in Cameroon you will need a 4WD vehicle.
We had a saloon car for most of the trip to the South, West and North West but hired a 4WD for our trip to Wum as the roads in the area pretty much end here and you are then driving on tracks. During the rainy season you cannot even get through in a 4WD, but the motorcycle taxis manage pretty well to get to the villages. In some areas our saloon car was really put through its paces on rough roads and particularly when we crossed the Mungo River on the hand-winch operated ferry! (see picture)
In the Far North we had a 4WD for the whole trip to go into the Waza National Park and the Mandara Mountains. In Waza it is easier to spot game and drive off road. In the Mandara Mountains some of the roads are very rugged and steep, particularly visiting the more remote villages.
Having a 4WD does not guarantee you won't have problems though. In the North it is so dusty that our engine got clogged and we broke down for a few hours (see second pic). Luckily the nearest town had a mechanic with the right skills and spare part.

We flew from Douala to Maroua with Air Leasing which is the only internal airline in Cameroon. We didn’t realise that the weight limit is only 10kg so I had to re-pack at check in and leave a bag with our guide in Douala. The biggest problem with Air Leasing is the staff who are rude and indifferent. From check in to flight attendants customer service is bad all along the way. A lady who was obviously very ill boarded our flight and was given no help at all by staff. When she was sick, the flight attendant came to the aisle held her nose and sprayed air freshener over her. The family travelling with her had to ask for towels and clean up. Despite the staff the flights were fine and reasonably on time with modern planes. The flight does a round trip from Douala to Maroua and Garoua. When Maroua has a problem with dust, which happens quite often, the flight cannot land or leave from there and you have to get to/from Maroua.

To get past a roadblock without paying you can but a hitchhiking policeofficer in the frontseat. This way noone will stop you because they don´t dare because of the policeofficer in your frontseat may have a higher rank then themselves. Learn more about this: http://www.cameroon-guide.com

“La Kribienne” is the bus agency that connects Yaoundé with Kribi and visa versa. You can find the agency in Quartier Mvan in the south of Yaoundé or in the centre of Kribi. Tickets will coast about 3000 cfa and you don’t have to pay for your luggage, but the porters will ask a 2000 for your luggage. The trip will take about 3 hours and don’t be surprised when they drive like F1 pilots.

When traveling around the cities/villages most people taxis. Its the way everyone does it. But be prepared to be sitting next to a mommy and her 4 kids with one on your lap! Everyone pays the same fare not mater how many are in the vehicle because you pay for a seat. If that bothers you then you can pay for 2 seats. You call a taxi by sticking your arm out to the side, not over your head. Once they come up to you you say where you are going and how much. They will either stop and let you in or they will keep driving if its not worth their trip.
When traveling from one village/town to another you usually go to the car park and talk to a head person there. There are routes that most people so you may have to wait for them to fill up a car before it leaves.
Prices are standard when going from city a to city b and you should pay the same as everyone else does in the taxi. Always ask though before they take your luggage and throw it in the trunk.

If you want to travel to Cameroon from Beijing, here are the most popular airlines that will get you there.

Air France flies to Paris and Cameroon every day. You can buy a round trip ticket to Yaounde or Douala for about 22-24,000RMB (around 3,000 USD or 2,200-2,400 EUROS). Sometimes you can get a discount on your ticket. When you fly with Air France:
- Make sure you get a transit visa if it is required (ask the airlines office or even better - call French Embassy for more information)
- Normally it is a 12 hours transit - consider about 3 days travel on the way back and tell the agent which date you have to be back to Beijing.
There is an Air France office next to Hanwei Da Sha (Hanwei Plaza). It is close to Kerry Center hotel.

Ethiopian Air. Named the best African airline of 2006. I agree their prices are the lowest. But their service gets worse and worse when you get closer to Africa or fly within Africa. And I experienced their worst on the route Delhi-Beijing.
There is a stop over in Addis Ababa. If you take a flight from Beijing on Thursday, your transit in Addis is only 2,5 hours. On the way back from Douala you can only fly on Fridays and you will have 24 hours transit in Addis.
Round trip from Beijing to Douala would cost you around 11,400RMB (nearly 1,500 USD or 1,140 EUROS ). Go directly to the office - located in GuoMao, tower 2, second floor (entrance faces the 3rd ring road). You can take subway till GuoMao, exit to the 3rd ring, turn left. Show up in person They work till 6pm except weekend.

Take a shared taxi from Bamenda to some of the villages in the highlands.
Taxis leave from Nkwan park and you may have to change at mile 4 depending on other passangers destinations.
Costs:
Bamenda - Belo = 900cfa (45 mins)
Bamenda - Njinikom = 1200cfa (1 hour)
Bamenda - Fundong = 1500cfa (1 hour 20)

Taxis run every five - ten mins and leave as soon as they are full. A taxi is considered full when it has 4 passengers in the back and 3/4 in the front however the journey is quite smooth as the road is newly tarmaced all the way to Fundong.

Public transport within the cities is handled by taxis. Most of them are yellow and they dominate the traffic in the cities. Sometimes you get the impression that the majority of the cars are taxis.

There are different systems:

Taxi ramassage
These taxis go on a special route. You share them with other passengers and have to know where you have to change to another taxi to get to your destination. This makes the usage for a traveller a bit difficult. But the prices are low (150 - 175 CFA-France per trip)

Taxi course
These taxis transport only one passenger to the destination he wants to go. They charge 2.000 CFA-Franc per hour.

Taxi depot
These taxis bring you to the destination you want to go. But you allow the driver to pick up other passengers on the way. They charge about 1.000 CFA-France per hour.

1.000 CFA-Franc are about 1,5 EURO or 2 US$ (Nov. 2004)