"CAMEROON" Top 5 Page for this destination Cameroon by janiebaxter

Cameroon Travel Guide: 390 reviews and 763 photos

Land of Diversity

Cameroon is Africa in Miniature with elements of both West and Central Africa and with terrain ranging from lush tropical rainforest in the South, mountains, hilly fertile grasslands in the West and savannah and volcanic mountains in the North. Its coastline lies on the West Coast of Africa in the Gulf of Guinea and it shares borders with Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, Congo and Central African Republic in the South and Nigeria and Chad in the North. It is around twice the size of the UK.

People and Culture

Fulani Girls

Culturally Cameroon is as diverse as its terrain with many tribes, cultures and religions co-existing happily. The Baka “pygmies" live in the forests of the South and near the coast and are the oldest known tribe in Cameroon. They still follow their traditional way of life – hunting and living off what the rainforest provides. The people of the grasslands are the Bamoun and other tribes descended from the Bantu people. Here the chiefdoms, which date from the time when the country was not called Cameroon but was divided into many separate kingdoms, are still incredibly important and there are many palaces still existing. The Bamileke people are the main tribe in the Southwest. In the North the main tribe is the Fulani who were originally nomadic cattle herders and are Muslims. We spent 2 days staying in a Fulani village and this was one of the main highlights of the trip.

Wildlife

Giraffe

The diversity of Cameroons' geography and climate is reflected in the variety of wildlife. Waza National Park in the far North is home to many animals that inhabit Savanna areas – elephant, lion, hippo, monkey giraffe, antelope and many species of birds. The rainforests of the Southeast form part of the Congo basin and contain many species of primate including Western lowland gorillas. Other primates in Cameroon include Chimpanzees, 20 species of Monkey and Drills which are one of the most endangered species. Cameroon is a wonderful place for birds, wherever you go, with over 900 species.

Pros and Cons

Pros:plenty to see, stable, friendly people, plenty of food grown
Cons:None
In a nutshell:All of Africa in one country

Last visit to Cameroon: Mar 2010
Intro Updated Aug 26, 2010
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Reviews (25)

Waza National Park Things to Do (6)

In the far North, Waza is close to the borders of Chad and Nigeria. The vegetation is sparse and dry with a few... more travel advice

Entrance to 500 year old Palace at Bafut - Cameroon

Royal Palaces Things to Do (6)

Cameroon is full of Royal families, particularly in the West and Northwest areas, where the main tribes are the Bamileke... more travel advice

4WD or Car? A Challenge for Vehicles! Transportation (2)

If you are visiting the National Parks and some of the more remote areas in Cameroon you will need a 4WD vehicle. We... more travel advice

Traditional Dances Local Customs (9)

Traditional dances are very popular in Cameroon and are performed at many ceremonies, along with the traditional music.... more travel advice

Comments (5)

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angiebabe Apr 2, 2013 at 3:12 AM

Fantastic to see your page one of the best here of course Janie...my boyfriend, who does speak french, wants to go to Cameroon and Im itching for more of Africa so Im starting to get excited that I might head off here - in a week or two maybe - whats the minimum amount of time to aim for would you suggest to make it worthwhile and though the wet season is due to start apparently from April/May thats why if we go Im keen to go asap to increase the chances of not getting rained on...what would your opinion be?
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  janiebaxter Apr 2, 2013 at 1:08 PM
  
  Wet season would be difficult! There's a lot of forest and dirt roads which fast turn to mud. If you are going to the North you will def need a 4WD. I haven't updated my Cameroon pages but I have some pics from a more recent trip where we travelled into Congo from Cameroon and the roads are just red mud, so if you do go close to rainy season be very careful. The South and Central areas are not too bad but any off the beaten path places would be impossible to get to and you may well get stuck. The village I stayed in is cut off in rainy season with access by foot or motorbike taxi only. I don't know about hiring vehicles as I had a guide and driver both times organised in UK as we were on small group tours.
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spidermiss Apr 3, 2011 at 7:40 AM

My friend spent four years in the north of Cameroon where she was a volunteer English teacher. She also told me about the Fulani people, the culture and language. Interesting and brought back my friend's descriptions of the areax
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Wafro Sep 19, 2010 at 11:18 AM

Love to read the experiences of people who've visited Cameroon. Great info and nice pix.
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Bonobo2005 Sep 19, 2010 at 7:59 AM

outstanding and useful page! I'm heading there soon. Do you think it's better to bypass Rhumsiki and visit less touristic villages?
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angiebabe Aug 2, 2010 at 3:39 PM

Hi Janie, see youre still in love with AFrica and still in AFrica?! wonderful that you do get to these wonderful places - thanks for the great pics and writeups - hope I will start getting to more of AFrica before too long!