Ghana’s domestic network is small, cheap by international standards, and genuinely worth it for the longer routes. Accra to Tamale is a twelve-hour drive or a ninety-minute flight, and the flight often costs less than a day of your time is worth.
Where you can fly
All domestic flights use Terminal 2 at Kotoka.
| Route | Why you would |
|---|---|
| Accra – Kumasi | The busiest. Competes with a four to five hour drive |
| Accra – Tamale | The strongest case. The road is very long |
| Accra – Takoradi | Business, oil and gas |
| Accra – Sunyani | Thin, but the road is slow |
| Accra – Wa | The Upper West, which is otherwise a serious journey |
| Accra – Obuasi | A private mine airfield, flown for the mine |
— See all of them on the route map
Who flies them
The domestic market has consolidated to a handful of operators and it changes — carriers have entered and left this market repeatedly. Check who is actually flying your route this month rather than trusting a list.
The route map on this site names the airline on each route and says the date it was checked, which is the honest way to publish something that moves.
Is it worth it against the road?
Usually yes for Tamale and Wa, arguably for Kumasi, rarely for anywhere closer.
Count the whole journey, not the flight: getting to Kotoka in Accra traffic, 90 minutes before departure, the flight, then getting from a regional airport into town. For Kumasi that can come to four hours door to door, which is roughly the drive — but it is four hours you are not driving.
— Day trips from Accra — Driving in Accra
The baggage rules catch people
Domestic allowances are much smaller than international ones and they are weighed. A suitcase that came from London will very likely be excess on the way to Tamale. Expect to pay, or pack a smaller bag for the domestic leg.
Connecting from an international flight
Terminal 2 and Terminal 3 are not connected airside. A domestic connection means clearing immigration and customs, leaving the building, walking or riding to the other terminal, and checking in again.
Do not book a domestic flight less than three hours after an international arrival, and be aware that the two tickets are usually separate contracts: if the first is late, the second is your problem.
Practicalities
- Book ahead for December, when everything fills.
- Flights are cancelled or consolidated when loads are thin, especially on the smaller routes. Have a road fallback for anything time-critical.
- Take a photo of your bag tag.
- Pay by MoMo or card on the airline’s own site rather than through an agent, unless the agent is one you know.
The alternative
For Kumasi and anywhere closer, the road is a real option, and for the north the long-distance coaches are more comfortable than their reputation.
— Getting around Accra — Trotro guide — Day trips from Accra