Gabon

Visited: March 2024

Duration of visit: 9 days

Capital city: Libreville

Population: 2.50 million (2024)

Estimated reading time: 18 minutes

• Organized, expensive and unattractive capital Libreville without any particular landmarks, but some pleasant facilities along the coast.
• Sensational beaches on paradise island only 30 minutes off the mainland in Point Denis.
• Comfortable, but slow train ride from Libreville to Lope.
• Last minute decision to avoid a visit to Lope National park.
• Uninspiring economical capital Port Gentil, where no results of crude oil extraction are visible.
• The incredible legacy of Nobel Prize winner Albert Schweitzer in Lambaréné.

Crossed by the Equator line and squeezed between Cameroon, Equatorial Guinea, Republic of the Congo and the Atlantic Ocean, Gabon has a population of only two million people.

Forests cover nearly 90% of Gabon and 11.25% of the country is protected parkland.

Famous for large population of gorillas, rich with oil reserves and rather expensive to visit, I was very cautious with my expectations before travelling.

My first intent to visit Gabon, in 2022, was unsuccessful. I applied for online visa, but couldn’t provide local invitation letters, therefore my application was rejected. In 2024, the eVisa system was not reliable and I applied for a tourist visa directly at the embassy in Yaoundé, Cameroon. “The border with Cameroon is closed. I can issue you a tourist visa only if you enter Gabon through Libreville airport.”, was a direct reply from a friendly embassy official.

Since the situation with Equatorial Guinea was even worse, as they were not issuing visas at all, I changed my plans immediately and confirmed the intention of flying to Gabon. My visa was issued the next day without any particular questions or details. Price: 110.00 US$.

I felt confident possessing a tourist visa in my passport and an airplane ticket to continue the trip to São Tomé and Príncipe, 9 days later, when I landed at Libreville airport.

“Where is your hotel reservation? Show me the print out!”, was the first question of a serious immigration officer who was checking everyone`s documents even before reaching a dedicated counter.

I showed him my online Airbnb reservation on the phone, but it didn’t make him happy. His colleague directed me to a nearby bench to wait for further investigation. Fifteen minutes later, an oversized lady called me to the office, registered all my documents, reservations, phone number and let me through to another step where my passport was finally stamped: “Bienvenue au Gabon!”

Country number 146.

Gabon should be one of the richest countries in the world, not only in Africa. Small population, huge oil resources, dense tropical forests and rather nonviolent history, are the main reasons for this predisposition. Exploring Libreville, I noticed much better infrastructure than in neighboring Cameroon or Central African Republic which I visited before.

The prices are higher, shopping more formal in real supermarkets, even famous French grocery chains are present in the country.

The offer of food is wide: local restaurants, international food, fast food chains and informal street vendors. Quality is of high level for African standards.

There are no real landmarks or historical monuments that would be worth visiting in the capital of Gabon. Libreville stretches along the Atlantic coast with some decent beaches in the north, various bays along the main highway to downtown, where fishing boats are docked, an important port and reasonable well-organized traffic without buses, nor motorbikes.

However, at first sight, the city didn’t impress me. I was used to chaos and improvisation from neighboring countries while here everyone respects rules, traffic lights and police orders.

My original plan was to travel counterclockwise around Gabon. First stop would be the second biggest city in the country, Port Gentil. I was shocked when finding out that a three-hour ferry trip to Port Gentil costs 60.00US$. It is true that the luxury of a high-end, fast catamaran is not cheap, but I wanted to check other options.

I took a taxi to Gare Routier, the central bus station, the best-known area for pickpockets in Libreville. It is not the first time that I walk in this kind of red zones, but various groups of men were screaming very aggressively behind me.

Soon my thesis that there is no overland transport to the second biggest city in Gabon, which is also the center of oil industry, confirmed to be right. I quickly took a taxi to leave the market area and avoid any misfortune.

The most beautiful part of Libreville is definitely a coastal area along the main highway from the airport to the city center. Even though the sea is not very clear and low tide washed garbage to the sandy beach due to the enclosed area of Gabon Estuary, the atmosphere and weekend mingling of people in this area is enjoyable. The concept of a new project at Port Molé creating recreational areas, walking paths, combined with restaurants, sport grounds and small shops, has been successful worldwide, but I haven’t seen it in Africa yet.

A new skate park, multipurpose training venue, dancing performances or kids’ playgrounds are new facilities that are increasing the quality of life.

When finished, it will substantially increase the opportunities to pass the quality time for residents of Gabon’s capital.

One of the things that I enjoyed a lot in Gabon was the local food. Gabonese cuisine reflects the fantastic cultural and ethnic diversity of the people. Rich and varied culinary heritage is based on locally produced vegetables: plantains, cassava, eggplants, peppers and cabbage. All kinds of meat are available and surprisingly popular bush meat is highly appreciated by locals.

What made me very happy is the presence of fish in all forms, as well as a wide variety all around the country. From smoked to dry or fresh fish, caught in rivers or sea, fish dishes are popular and accessible.

A rather neglected access that leads through a red zone of semi-abandoned houses, lead me to an area where fishermen boats land to unload fresh fish on a daily basis, CAPAL – Centre d’Appui à la Pêche Artisanale de Libreville. The fish offer at a dozen of open stands in the early afternoon was limited, but the restaurants section was busy. In the covered area with approximately 30 dining tables, fish delicacies were served in a very informal environment.

I was surrounded by locals who were enjoying food, chatting and drinking predominantly imported, Portuguese wine.

I ordered delicious Captain’s Broth (Bouillon de Capitaine), freshly made fish soup, savored with lemon and chili, accompanied by cassava.

The most popular form of cassava is called chikwangue or bobolo – fermented-cassava product, wrapped in green leaves of a plant called marantaceae. It is my favorite dish in Gabon, beside okra sauce, of sticky texture, combined with smoked fish.

The best activity in and around Libreville one can do is to head to one of the beautiful beaches in the area of Point Denis, located on the island in front of the mainland.

Only 30 minutes by boat transferred me to a paradise island, surrounded by perfect, white sand, calm, clean sea and kilometers of empty beaches to explore.

Lodges and resorts are scattered around the island. They are orientated towards rich tourists who are willing to pay prohibitive prices for accommodation, food, drinks or water sports activities.

It was Saturday, but the area was practically empty. I walked on the beach to find a shadow among the trees and settled down for the day. I was well prepared to be self-sufficient: enough water, a delicious sandwich with sardines and avocado, as well as palak paneer leftover from previous day dinner in Indian restaurant.

Swimming, rafting on the waves, walking on the beach and relaxing, were the only activities. While engrossed in navigating on the mobile phone, I was surprised by an elegant green snake that approached me less than two meters away. When our eyes met, the snake quickly crawled past me into the forest and disappeared without a trace.

I was released and frightened for the rest of the afternoon, paying attention to where I was walking and what I was touching.

There are not many favorable options in Central Africa to travel by train in efficient and comfortable form. The ride from Libreville to Lope National Park is one of those legendary trips that are better done on the railways to avoid changing unpredictable bush taxis or waiting for connection in unattractive towns.

Officially there were no tickets in 1^st class available in the system any more, but the vendor at the counter of Gare d’Owendo was going to check with his boss to find out the solution for me; “It will take only five minutes. I need to talk to my boss. Please wait!”.

With plenty of time and no other plans, I was happy to stand by if the boss can find a solution for my trip in the afternoon. “It is your lucky day. We found one ticket only for you!”. I paid the official price for the last available seat; no extra commission was charged.

I returned to Owendo train station an hour before, as recommended by the authorities. Inefficiently organized checkpoints and numerous inspectors (railway, police, security) were performing the job with dedication to assure that everything would be ready on time.

The kick off was in the Swiss style: I could adjust my watch to the moment when a long train slowly started to move at 3:00pm. There were hardly any passengers in my wagon, the AC converted the area to a freezer.

All kind of employees constantly walked up and down without any particular reason; some of them verified my tickets, others just saluting. The average travelling speed on the section between Libreville and Ndolé didn’t exceed 45 kilometers per hour. Constant stops were reducing the pace, while noisy screeching disturbed my intention to sleep.

The train increased the travel speed in the last section to Lope until we finally reached my destination for that day a few minutes after midnight.

290 kilometers from Libreville to Lope took us nine hours at the average speed of 32 kilometers per hour. According to the statistics, it is still faster than travelling by public transport on the road.

My perception about developed or rich Gabon started to change.

While in Libreville I had agreed to visit Lope National Park on two days tour, joining a group of three other tourists to reduce the coast to a more reasonable level. The guide was going to contact me during the train ride to explain me more, give instructions and agree on any other details. In the last 24 hours no one replied to my messages, nor did the guide contact me.

I was tired and in bad mood, when finally saw other tourists with the guide and asked, why I was not contacted during a long ride. “No internet on the train. I meet you at the station anyway!”, was the answer of a young guide in broken English. This was the top of the iceberg, showing how serious tourist workers really are in Gabon.

Requiring more details about the activities for the next two days, I didn’t receive the input I wanted. “We will start tomorrow from 7:00 to 8:00am and I will provide you more details!”, the guide explained to me in French, since she didn’t understand a single word in English. Another deviation from the original promise, that the guide was going to be fluent in English.

Suddenly, the hotel owner showed up as well. We had previously agreed, he was going to wait for me at the train station to lead me to the hotel, since we were arriving so late after midnight.

The wooden barrack was extremely basic, but I was so tired that I actually appreciated the clean bed, covered with mosquito net. There was no shower.

A huge tank of water was useless, since a bucket to pour water out in smaller quantity was not provided.

“No worries, I am tired, I just want to sleep! But bring a bucket in the morning to take a shower!”, were my last instructions to the guesthouse’s manager, before falling asleep.

Next morning, I woke up at 7:00am and walked around the village to find a place for breakfast. Lope village is a conglomeration of rundown wooden houses without any order and planning. Several basic stores, neglected restaurant and another guesthouse don’t reflect the myth of one of the most popular national parks in Gabon, where animal watching should be a highlight of any trip to the country. One of the only few parks in Africa where it is possible to spot mandrills, gorillas, chimpanzees and forest elephants.

In the guesthouse, I met a well-informed American backpacker who explained me that there is no chance to see mandrills at that moment. Since the gorillas are not habituated and I had already seen them on this Central African trip in Cameroon and in Central African Republic, I decided to cancel the trip to Lope National Park.

At 8:30 am the guide appeared starting to collect the goods for the trip. Another reason proving her unprofessional performance. She couldn’t explain the exact itinerary, nor activities that would lead me to great wild animal observation. I asked her to cancel all the activities and walked around the dull, remote village, visited the National Park headquarter, where a bored park manager didn’t even think about opening the museum or suggesting me popular activities. Without any enthusiasm, he was explaining me about a climb to the mountain or afternoon safari by a jeep.

I was not buying that! I have seen so many animals in Africa that this would be a waste of time and disappointment. I decided to move on and started looking for transport to the west: Ndjole and Lambaréné.

There is no public transport (beside train), nor shared taxis, that would be available in Lope to any direction. Finding a lift to the west is easier to say than doing it. There are some trucks that transport wood from the tropical forests to the port of Libreville.

The cabins are usually full with drivers and assistants, but those available were asking for ridiculous amount of money as an exchange for a lift. My only hope was a mechanic who was repairing a broken truck and promised me a ride with him in a Toyota pick-up truck, once finished the job at 11:00am.

I came to the meeting point with my small backpack at 11:00am, ready to leave Lope. However, the assignment wasn’t finished and it took the mechanic another two hours to assemble all the engine parts. In the meantime, I had lunch, which was significantly tastier than I could have expected, given the condition of the neglected restaurant.

When the truck was fixed and all the goods loaded to the pick-up truck, the rear door couldn’t close. We needed another 45 minutes to fix it, then the mechanic ate lunch, took a shower and packed his stuff. It was 3:00pm, when we finally left Lope.

After an hour drive, we encountered a heavy freight vehicle parked on the side of the dirt road, which belonged to my driver’s company. We stopped and the reparation began. During the next two hours, the axle and wheel cover with numerous heavy bolts were replaced, before a spare wheel was installed in front.

Every 5 minutes a truck, loaded with a container full of wood, passed by and covered us with dust, while the unbearably hot sun boiled with its rays.

The road was probably one of the worst I had travelled in Central Africa. Still solid, but full of holes, sharp stones that shook the vehicle at increased speed. It was almost impossible to pass slower trucks which were occupying the best part of the road and were pushing the dust high into the air.

108 kilometers and 10 hours after the official departure time, we arrived to Ndjole at 9:00pm. I was tired, hungry and decided to spend a night in town.

A delicious fish on a BBQ with cold radler assured to recover the lost energy during a day, in which I was basically not doing much, other than waiting, sitting, hiding from the heat and dust. A typical day in Africa. I was happy to reach the civilization again. I knew travelling from here on would be with much less hassle.

Lambaréné would probably be an unknown village in the middle of nowhere if it hadn’t been put on the map due to the unique legacy of German missionary, theologian, organist, humanitarian and doctor Albert Schweitzer.

As a young missionary, he opened a hospital in the area in 1913, converting it to the primary source of healthcare for the surrounding region, growing through decades to five leading facilities in Africa engaged in scientific study of malaria. With the money awarded by a Nobel Peace Prize, he started the leprosarium at Lambaréné. Schweitzer kept working in the hospital until his death in 1965.

His legacy of being a multipurpose man who managed to balance between art, science, Europe, Africa, passion and work, is amazing.

I visited the hospital, a museum and his grave on the banks of the Ogooué River. The impressive life of Schweitzer is presented in a simple museum, where some of the objects from his life are exhibited as well. There are many proofs of how important, internationally recognized and accepted was he as a person. Maybe the best evidence are the letters from Albert Einstein, president of USA Eisenhower’s personal greeting card for his birthday or becoming an honorary member of the Order of Merit by Queen Elizabeth II.

The town center of Lambaréné is nothing special. It was really hot in the early afternoon when I walked down to the river bank, where hundreds of fish, covered with salt, were arranged on wooden racks to be exposed to the hot sun to dry.

I stopped for le soupe de capitaine, delicious fish soup with manioc, before returning back to my guesthouse for the rest of the afternoon to avoid extremely high temperatures. The street stalls were offering a wide variety of dry fish; alcohol drinks, due to stores being predominantly run by Muslim – were limited.

I continued my trip from Lambaréné by boat on the Ogooue River to Point Gentil. Passengers are always called to gather two hours before the departure time. Since I had purchased my ticket the day before, I showed only 30 minutes before the scheduled time. Before boarding the boat, I asked a young vendor to prepare me a baguette sandwich with eggs, tomato and beans.

There were two classes for passengers: the lower economic deck with limited view, where six people were squeezed in one bench and the premium upper deck offering AC, more space and better views.

I opted for the lower budget and hoped that during the trip I would be able to find a more comfortable position to observe the surrounding nature from the top deck. An hour later, before 9:00am, I climbed to an open deck, where a group of men and women had intense conversation and had already started to drink beer. They were friendly, talkative and attentive to me.

The fast boat stopped at some villages to pick up more passengers, the captain explained to me a few facts about the shallow river and we spotted hippos on several points. It was a pleasant navigation along the clean river, surrounded by intact tropical forest. It was the first time, that I was able to talk partly in English to locals in Gabon.

Port Gentil is an economical and commercial hub; the second biggest city in Gabon, which has developed from petrol industry. From a visitor’s perspective there is nothing to see or do, beside the beach on the outskirts of the city. Since I was dedicating only one day and a night to Port Gentil and I had had and would have better opportunities for swimming, I skipped the beach in Port Gentil. The city is widespread, without a central point, historical remains, museums, attractive buildings or markets.

Being claimed as an oil capital of Gabon, I expected much more development. The rather neglected, conformist and day to day survival attitude didn’t impress me.

Maybe the potential of Port Gentil has not been developed to the full scale due to the fact that it is not connected by road to the rest of the country. Travelling by air, river or sea is expensive, logistically complicated and slow.

I left Port Gentil in the same way as I arrived there – by water. The only change was the ocean water instead of the river. This time I travelled on a speed ferry to Libreville. A 4 hours luxurious trip in airconditioned cabin has its price, but it is still much cheaper than a 30 minutes flight, which costs twice as much as any airplane ticket within Europe.

One more proof how expensive Gabon is, especially considering the quality of service that is received.

Gabon was never high on my priority list and, after visiting it, I am even more disappointed with what it has to offer. Expensive, lacking any historic or contemporary landmarks, overrated natural attractions and undeveloped outside of Libreville, Gabon has much better tourist promotion than its neighboring countries. Having wild animals and protected national parks, doesn’t mean that you can actually easily see them, even less that they are accessible from a financial perspective.

The first unwelcome reception at the airport and constant control of my passport when travelling around, are more a routine. However, I was never really relaxed, when taking photos or meeting authorities. A couple of times they warned me to avoid taking photos of absolutely innocent scenes.

If Gabon has one of the best policies to protect the tropical forest, this fact should be under scrutiny from what I was able to notice.

Hundreds of trucks transport wood from the eastern part of the country to Libreville port, probably destroying huge areas of pristine forest that had been sold to foreign corporations for exploration.

Most of the transport is done in cargo containers, which means the logs are previously cut and properly hidden to the public eyes.