Accra Flights

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Accra Kotoka International Airport (ACC) is Ghana's most important airport and located 10 km north of Accra city center. The airport terminal is not among the newest ones. Passengers have to disembark the aircraft at the tarmac and take a bus to the arrival hall. Then walk to the immigration to get your visa stamped. Then pick up your baggage and walk to the customs. It is a forex bureau in the baggage hall.

ATM's, a post office and forex bureau are available in the terminal building. Wi-Fi Internet access is available in the Departures area. There are a few shops in the terminal, including duty-free. Also bars, restaurants and food kiosks.

Taxis are the only form of transportation available and could be found at Car Park 2, close to the Arrivals ext from the terminal. A 24-hour car parks is located near the airport, but be aware of the local police (see warning tip).

Try to book a seat at the front of the plane so that you are front of the queue for immigration.

The officials are polite and efficient, but the system is paper based so it takes time to check all the forms.

If you travel to Ghana by airplane, you will always arrive at the only international airport of the country: Kotoka International Airport in Accra. It is situated at only a few kilometres away from the city centre, to the northeast. There are a few important things that are useful to know:

- A very big problem at the airport are all the taxidrivers who try to fool you when you get out of the airport. The arrival hall officially is closed for public, but even inside the airport there are people who try to take money from you. Don't trust anyone you don't know inside or outside the airport.

It's the best to arrange someone to pick you up at the airport, but if that is not possible, you should bargain a lot with the taxidrivers before you enter their taxi. When I once tried to take a taxi back to Accra from the airport, the driver that wanted to take began with the ridiculous price of 160.000 cedis ($16,-)! He made his own list with prices to show me he was honest with me, but after 10 minutes of bargaining I only had to pay the REAL price of 30.000 cedis!

- The other way, from the city centre to the airport the prices are the same as when you leave from the airport. Again, taxidrivers try to get you to pay much more then that, but a price between 30.000 and 40.000 cedis really is the maximum you should pay for a trip like that!

- And the final thing you need to know about the airport is that when you leave the country, most airlines ask you to show up up to four hours before departure! And that while there is almost nothing you can do at the airport: uncomfortable seats and hardly any shops. And to be honest: it is absolutely not necessary to be there that early. If you arrive three hours before departure, it is more then enough.

First, make sure you confirm your flight from here if you are flying a regional carrier, like Bellview. They have a reputation of "losing" your reservation and then waiting for you to bribe your way on board.

Also, prepare for an experience trying to board your plane. You will not be allowed to go to your gate and through security until you are called. You will be called at the same time as four or five other flights and placed in a single line in a steaming hot corridor. People will cut and your flight will leave late because so many others are in your same predicament. At least that is what happened to me--twice.

I didn't get a very good impression of the airport at all because I lost my luggage when I took a departing flight from Accra. Really, the fault of Ghana Airways more than the airport. Nevertheless, the fact that it may well have been the worst equipped international airport I have seen didn't help matters. And to top it off, I was feeling rather ill at the time, and did not sleep much before that early morning flight.

In hindsight, the airport was .. functional I suppose, and really not that much worse than other airports of other developing countries. And they were undergoing renovations when I was there, so perhaps they can be forgiven.

In any case, be vigilent, ask questions, and be prepared for anything.

It is best when you come in with a plane.Transportation
Always travel on STC buses whenever possible. They are more comfotable and a lot safer.
It is best and safe to get around with Accra with the
registered local cabs or the radio taxi cab.

The airport is a very basic airport. It was being renovated when I was there (Apr '02). Departed on a Ghana Airways flight, and they did not even have the proper baggage tracking strip (the standard sticker strip with a barcode and a tracking number). All I got was a number on a piece of cardboard on a string.
The city itself is not very large, so most of the attractions are withing walking distance. Streets are relatively wide and clean. There were buses, but I did not take any. Taxis do not have meters. I only took taxis when going from central Accra back to the hotel in Labadi, and if I recall correctly, I paid 15,000 Cedis.

There are Ghana Airways flights from Kotoka Airport in Accra to almost every country in West Africa, as well as flights to New York and London. The airport is also served by several major western carriers. The US$20 departure tax is payable in cedis or in US dollars.

Ships connect Tema, 25km (16mi) east of Accra, with ports in Nigeria, Côte d'Ivoire, Cameroon and South Africa. By land, there are buses, taxis, tro-tros (minibuses) and pickup trucks that run between Ghana and Burkina Faso, Côte d'Ivoire and Togo. Border formalities for travellers with visas are usually minimal; greasing a palm or two may speed things up. Watch your pockets at crowded border posts.
Getting Around
Airlink offers low-priced domestic flights from Kotoka Airport, 10km (6mi) north-east of central Accra, to Kumasi and Tamale. Considerably slower but oh-so-adventurous, the Yapei Queen makes regularly scheduled 24-hour passenger runs across Lake Volta from Akosombo, 104km (65mi) north-east of Accra at the base of Lake Volta, to Yeji, more than 200km (125mi) away on the lake's north-western shore. The steamer stops at many villages on the way. From Yeji, ferries continue to Buipe, 100km (62mi) farther north-west, and Makongo, 15km (10mi) east; you can arrange ground transport to Tamale from either destination.

Ghana's road network is in decent shape, though there are some badly potholed stretches between Kumasi and Tamale, and almost all secondary roads are unsealed. You're bound to run into an occasional police checkpoint, though they're usually just angling for a 'dash' (the ubiquitous kickback). Car rental is expensive but available in Accra. Otherwise, most Ghanaians get around in taxis, tro-tros (minibuses) and mammy wagons (generally some sort of converted pickup truck).

Government-run buses connect most major towns and some smaller ones, but their service ain't what it used to be and it's usually better to travel with any of the private bus companies. A comfortable but slow railway system connects Accra, Kumasi and Takoradi in a single-track triangle. Only sleepers need to be booked in advance.