Gabon - Gabão

Gabon is a country in the west of Central Africa. It lies on the equator, on the coast of the Atlantic Ocean, between the Congo Republic, a Equatorial Guinea and Cameroon.

A small population and oil and mineral reserves have helped Gabon to become one of the richest countries in Africa. The country has generally been able to maintain and conserve its tropical rainforest and rich biodiversity.

Regions

Cities

• libreville - Capital
• Cap Lopez
• Kango
• Lambarene
• Mayumba
• owendo
• Port-Gentile
• Skunk
• Franceville

Other destinations

• Mouila
• Chibanga
• Koulamoutou
• Where?
• bong
• lemmbamba
• fouganmou

Understand

To arrive

By airplane

Of boat

By car

few are the roads main. The second city in the country, Port Gentil has no road connection with the capital. From the big cities only the Libreville-Oyem connection is completely paved. For the third city, Franceville, the road connection is difficult, without a correct level of conservation.

During the rainy season many secondary roads and even some uncoated main roads are impractical under normal conditions. Traveling can become a major setback at these times of the year.

O Traffic in city or village centers it is relatively risk-free, even if there is some non-compliance with the highway code, particularly by taxis that can stop at any time without signaling. Driving slowly is therefore an essential safety condition, particularly at night with poor visibility due to poor public lighting.

O conductor must hold an International Driving Permit.

O vehicle must have an International Motor Vehicle Liability Insurance Charter CEMAC. A 4x4 vehicle will be essential on rough or floodable roads.

The network of service stations fuel it covers the country very poorly; they are often in short supply of gasoline or diesel. On long journeys it is necessary to carry a jerrycan spare. The price per liter is always indicated, and does not vary from place to place or even from brand to brand. A small tip of 100 or 200 CFA francs will always be received with thanks by the employee.

In villages it is possible for people to ask you for a ride, as public transport is insufficient. This is a nice way to get in touch with the locals.

You won't have difficulty finding your way around as most of the roads have direction signs. But you can always find it useful to have a compass and a road map.

By bus/bus

By train/train

Circular

By airplane

Of boat

By car

By bus/bus

By train/train

Speak

French everywhere. English is very rarely understood. As for Portuguese, you may be lucky enough to find an immigrant from Sao Tome and Principe and it can be expressed in this language. Due to the various ethnic groups present in the country, local languages ​​are also used, but the tourist who knows French will have no language problems, with the exception of some regional lexicon of these languages ​​that is quickly learned.

Buy

Trading is the basis, except in cases of products where the price is displayed. The most common method is to divide by two or three the first price that the seller proposes to you; then the answer is still negotiable to finish at a price acceptable to both parties. Be aware that the price depends a lot on the customer's face and the participation that they are able to give to this cultural habit of negotiating. The ideal is always to have small value notes to avoid change that sometimes waits.

Everyday products, which are sold at the intersections of major streets or roads, have a price that is normalized to rounded amounts of CFA francs.

Payment by credit card (Master Card or Visa) is increasingly available in large stores (such as Mbolo or CK2 supermarkets) or international chain hotels (Intercontinental or Le Méridien). In some cases the amount is first converted into euros, rarely at the official fixed exchange rate (which is €1 = 655,957 XAF).

With the

drink and go out

Beer produced in the country (33, Regab or Castel) is cheaper per bottle (65 cl) or can (33 cl) than bottled water (1.5 l) (Andza). carbonated drinks like orange or Djino (from extracts from grapefruit or ananas) are also for sale everywhere.

In large cities where there is a public drinking water distribution network within international standards, you can therefore generally accept ice cubes to have a drink at a low temperature. These patterns - unique in the Central Africa are obtained thanks to the distribution concession to the SEEG company, of the group Veolia.

sleep

Learn

Work

Safety

Health

Virtually all tropical diseases in equatorial regions are active in this country, waiting for the weakest or least prevented. Avoid getting sick as the country has a poor hospital network (with the exception of the private El Rapha clinic in Libreville); therefore, have a good health repatriation insurance to deal with a serious problem.

respect

Stay in touch

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