7-Day Benin Cultural Tour from Lomé with Voodoo Heritage

• Arrive at the Lomé airport, meet your guide, and transfer to your hotel.

• After breakfast, start with a Lomé city tour that takes you to Lomé's big market, the fetish market, and the Place of Independence.
• Visit Davedi, an ecotourism village, to learn about the Ewe culture. You will be taken through the farmlands to see pineapples, which are the people's cash crop. In the village, you will assist with twin doll rituals led by the older women and possibly learn how they process palm oil.
• End the day with a cultural dance performed by the women's association in the village.
• Have a traditional Ewe local dish for lunch.

• Travel to Benin. Stop at Agbedrafo for a guided tour of the Wood Slave House to learn about the thought-provoking transatlantic slave trade.
• Our next stop is Zalive, a vibrant Voodoo community across Lake Togo.
• Enjoy a Voodoo performance there.

Cross the border to Benin and stay overnight at Possotome.

• Start the day with a Zangbetor performance in a nearby village. It is an important practice and religion in most parts of southern Benin. This is a traditional rural community where you can learn more about the Fon people and their beliefs.
• Visit the famous Voodoo doll carver, Atavi, and have an exchange.
• On arrival in Ouidah, visit the Python Temple and meet a Voodoo priest or priestess. The city is considered the Voodoo capital of Benin, and Voodoo celebrations often take place on weekends.

Overnight stay in Ouidah.

• Explore Ganvié, the largest stilt village in West Africa, located on Lake Nokoué. The Tofinou people founded the village in the 17th century for safety purposes, as Dahomey soldiers could not pursue them on the water. They live by fishing and petty trading, while tourism brings extra income for some members.
• Continue to Ketou, about 150 km north of Cotonou.
• Enjoy the Gélédé masks' dance, performed in the late afternoon. It is a famous Voodoo cult among the Nago-Yorouba communities.

Overnight stay in Ketou.

• Visit the Ida Royal Palace and the old palace with its sacred doors before heading back to Cotonou.
• Enjoy a canoe ride on the Black River, the most tranquil ecosystem in southern Benin, surrounded by raffia palms. The visit will give you an overview of the daily activities of the people living along the river.

Overnight in Cotonou.

• In the morning, visit the Dantokpa Market and the Zinsou Foundation, an NGO specialising in art exhibitions (optional).
• Relax or shop before your final flight in the evening.