Where you stay in Accra decides how much of your visit is spent in traffic. For a short stay, pick the area for what you came to do, and stay as close to it as you can afford.
| If you are here for | Stay in | Because |
|---|---|---|
| A first visit, a few days | Osu | Restaurants, bars and shops you can walk between, and central for the sights |
| Business | Airport City and Airport Residential | Minutes from the airport, near the offices and the big hotels |
| Embassies and quiet | Cantonments, Labone | Leafy and central; Labone the quieter and cheaper of the two |
| Nightlife and food | Osu, East Legon | Where the late places are, on either side of town |
| Family, a longer stay | East Legon, Labone, Airport Residential | Space, apartments with kitchens, quieter streets |
| The beach | Labadi for the city beach; Kokrobite to the west for a slower one |
The areas
Osu is the closest Accra gets to a walkable neighbourhood, on and around Oxford Street, with Independence Square, Jamestown and the National Museum a short ride away. Rooms facing the main roads are loud late. — Osu, in full
Airport City and Airport Residential sit by Kotoka, which is the reason to choose them: no airport traffic either way, and the business hotels and offices are here. The planes are close too. — Airport Residential
Cantonments and Labone are the leafy residential quarters between the airport and the sea, with embassies, guesthouses and serviced apartments, and Osu next door for food. — Cantonments — Labone
East Legon is newer, with restaurants, short-let apartments and some of the city’s busiest nights out. It is out past the airport, and the traffic into central Accra is the price. — East Legon
Kokrobite and the coast west of the city suit a few days off rather than a base for Accra: an hour or more from the centre in traffic. — Accra’s beaches, and the currents
Before you book
- Look at the map, not the name. A listing that says “near the airport” or “East Legon” can be a long way from either.
- Ask about power and water. Ask whether there is a generator or solar backup, and a water tank. Power cuts and water shortages happen, and a place without either is a hot, dry night. — Electricity and dumsor
- Check the road in. A pretty house at the end of an unpaved road floods in the rains.
- For a short-let apartment, ask who to call at night if something goes wrong, and get the address as a GhanaPost GPS code for drivers.
- Pay through the booking platform, never by MoMo or transfer to a stranger before you have seen the place.
— Where to live in Accra, for a longer stay — Kotoka airport, arriving and leaving — Things to do in Accra