100% customisable travel idea

From the Sine Saloum to the Atlantic coast Family time in Senegal

Senegal - Palmarin - Saly

A gentle Senegal

From $3400 to $4500 per person for 7 days Price depends on departure city, season, accomodation types and selected activities

Itinerary highlights

  • Three days of mangrove green and three days of golden sand: the perfect balance for a carefree trip
  • Two hotels ideally suited to travelling families, with exclusive settings and quality services
  • Big game safari, introduction to fishing, bush cart ride and African museum: it’s all included
  • Direct flights, carbon absorption, concierge service, trusted recommendations: the extra Voyageurs touch
A week on the edge of Africa - and already fully immersed. Once you land, you’ll head straight for Palmarin, on the fringes of the Saloum Delta National Park. This sumptuous, sinuous environment, fringed with mangroves and home to a rich land-sea-air ecosystem, is listed as a Unesco World Heritage Site. We don’t send you just anywhere. Here, African nature shows its finest side, west as much as east. Around your tree-perched house, there is plenty to do. For three days, the adventure unfolds in the folds of the landscape, and is relived again and again in the evening, as you chat beneath a starlit sky. Certain places and shared experiences create a special bond between adults and children - like the sounds carried across the water. After a stop in Joal-Fadiouth, birthplace of Léopold Sédar Senghor - a president who was also a poet - you follow the Petite Côte north to Saly, the country’s leading seaside resort. The beach lies just beyond the garden gate. Another three days follow, split between splashing in the water and forays into the bush. It's the perfect way to unwind and let earlier experiences settle, helped by an environment that invites you to slow down and simply enjoy being there. There's everything you need to channel some youthful energy and recharge tired bodies. Fishing boats come and go. Windsurfers skim the waves. Many would happily stay a little longer. 

Your trip

A seamless Senegal. That’s the idea. The keys belong first to your driver-guide (and to all the drivers who handle your transfers). No transport headaches: comfortable journeys, short distances, easily manageable for younger travellers, even if they spend most of the time gazing out the window. Accommodation has been carefully chosen: one with a slightly adventurous feel in the Saloum Delta, the other focused on Atlantic-coast beach life. Both share a contemporary African feel and a genuine attention to family needs, with space for everyone. Half board means you never have to worry about where or how to eat - peace of mind guaranteed. We considered a wide range of activities and chose the following: a fishing day in the Saloum, a bush-cart outing, a visit to a private museum dedicated to West African cultures, and a safari in the Bandia Reserve. It's a varied programme, catering to children and adults alike. If you wish to add a village visit or test your nerve at baobab tree climbing, just let us know. Senegal is a welcoming, easy-to-navigate country - ideal for a first African experience. And should an impromptu idea take hold or a minor setback occur, you will have access to our on-site concierge service to assist you.
Sénégal © Claudiovidri/Getty Images/iStockphoto
Sénégal © Claudiovidri/Getty Images/iStockphoto
Collines de Niassam © All rights reserved
Collines de Niassam © All rights reserved
Réserve de Bandia © _mishamartin / Adobe Stock
Réserve de Bandia © _mishamartin / Adobe Stock
Djimandé - Sénégal © Charlotte Lapalus
Djimandé - Sénégal © Charlotte Lapalus
Réserve de Bandia © Droits réservés
Réserve de Bandia © Droits réservés
Réserve de Bandia © Martin Pelanek/stock.adobe.com
Réserve de Bandia © Martin Pelanek/stock.adobe.com
Collines de Niassam © Collines de Niassam
Collines de Niassam © Collines de Niassam
Delta de Saloum © Marion Osmont
Delta de Saloum © Marion Osmont
Sénégal © Curioso.Photography/stock.adobe.com
Sénégal © Curioso.Photography/stock.adobe.com
Pique-nique - Plage © Natalia Blauth / Unsplash
Pique-nique - Plage © Natalia Blauth / Unsplash
Sénégal © Pierre/stock.adobe.com
Sénégal © Pierre/stock.adobe.com
Saly - Petite Côte - Sénégal © Alexey Demidov/Unsplash
Saly - Petite Côte - Sénégal © Alexey Demidov/Unsplash
Sénégal © Michel Uyttebroeck Piccaya/stock.adobe.com
Sénégal © Michel Uyttebroeck Piccaya/stock.adobe.com
Sénégal © kemaltaner/stock.adobe.com
Sénégal © kemaltaner/stock.adobe.com

Itinerary

100% customisable for you

Welcome and assistance with formalities. You’ll meet your driver-guide and take a private transfer to Palmarin. Stay for three nights by the lagoon. The atmosphere is generally calm, sometimes stirred by pelicans with their loud flapping and grunting. Your accommodation is set against a beautiful tree, elevated, with two sections and a distinctive terrace. There’s wood everywhere and it has a chalet atmosphere. And of course a view. There’s also the pleasure of returning to the cabin - but this time, it’s comfortable. There is also a focus on leaving the smallest possible footprint. No air conditioning, for example - but there are fans. Nevertheless, your comfort is not diminished in any way. It is simple, yet authentic. The décor features African touches arranged harmoniously. At the restaurant, you can enjoy homemade Senegalese and French cuisine. A massage service is available to guests. And a lovely swimming pool is open to them for relaxation.

Scheduled - Fishing day. Ready to fish? The upside is that you’ll never return empty-handed. The mangroves play a part here, serving as a nursery for many species. In the bolongs and in the channels that run through them, people catch barracuda, thiof grouper, carp, captain fish and jacks. These are the big ones. Small fish, like the cobo and the yellow sardinella, also have their merits. You’ll be accompanied by Serer specialists. When you get back, the catch will be grilled over hot coals and everyone will be able to enjoy it. Next up, an outing by bush cart. The family climbs into the horse-drawn vehicle and, clip-clop, clip-clop, sets off to explore the surroundings. In the golden hues of late afternoon, the walk draws you in. It’s time for the hyenas to come out. They emerge from their shelters to fulfil their role as cleaners: dead animals and abandoned fish make up their meal. If nature is relatively clean, we owe it in part to them. That should help restore their poor reputation. Well hidden, we’ll watch them leave for work. As the environment is favourable, you might also spot a Nile monitor - the largest African lizard - which can grow up to two metres (6.5 feet) long!

Already planned - Visit to the Mahicao Museum. The Museum of Art and History of West African Cultures is in Djilor-Djidiack, birthplace of Léopold Sédar Senghor’s family. It documents the history and civilisations of West Africa, from prehistory to the present day. The programme is extensive, supported by a significant collection of objects: masks, jewellery, statues, music instruments, puppets, textiles, locks, and more. Thanks to the quality of the artefacts and clear exhibit design, the museum is accessible to all. And it lives up to its ambition to restore the richness and beauty of a world that has been battered. You’ll have lunch on site. Back again, you’ll never tire of watching the birds that are so numerous in the delta: royal tern, black-tailed godwit, Eurasian curlew, redshank, Eurasian spoonbill and many more.

Scheduled - Drive to Joal-Fadiouth, birthplace of Léopold Sédar Senghor. Fadiouth, built on a vast mound of seashells, is linked to Joal by a long wooden footbridge. It’s a key site on the Petite Côte.
After the visit, you’ll continue your journey to Saly. You’ll then settle in for three nights in an accommodation with direct access to the beach. This is a modern establishment that meets the standards of its category. The level of facilities - in both the common areas and private spaces - is entirely satisfactory. Sand and water are what it’s all about. Everything is therefore organised accordingly. You’ll enjoy water activities and simply go with the flow. Swimming pools for adults and children pleasantly complete the facilities. The rooms are well-appointed, clean, with a modern African style. At the restaurant, you’ll find Senegalese and international cuisine. The spa offers a fine range of services.

Already planned - Safari in the Bandia Reserve. Let’s set aside the birds for a moment - even though there are many - to focus on the large mammals. Under the baobab trees of the Bandia forest, they have been reintroduced as part of a regeneration programme. So you can now get close to giraffes, buffalo, Derby elands, sable antelopes, rhinoceroses, nyalas and warthogs in excellent conditions. You can even spot the elegant and endangered dama gazelle there. Howler monkeys and vervets are plentiful. Crocodiles waste no time taking advantage of wetland areas. And then there are ostriches, so a bird, after all. Lunch on site.

Golden sand and opalescent blue-green water form the horizon for the day. In fact, Saly is devoted to the sea. And, more and more, leisure time. You can still watch the fishing boats leave and return at Saly Portudal. Against all odds, Senegalese catch fish. So we make the most of the hotel’s amenities. There are many of them, and they invite you to make the most of life. They are also suitable for young people, who receive special attention. Which benefits their parents, of course. In short, everyone can find something enjoyable here.
À la carte  - Bush walks; baobab tree climbing.

Transfer to Dakar Airport. Direct flight back.

À la carte

This suggested itinerary can be customisable down to the smallest detail, including duration, stops and content. An à la carte menu of experiences is also available to create a journey that reflects who you are.

A bush outing around Saly

All aboard a four-wheel-drive vehicle with driver as you set off into the hinterland, discovering Peul and Wolof villages along the way. The Wolof people make up the majority of Senegal’s population and are traditionally farmers, while the Peul are pastoralists. In the bush, both communities go about their daily lives. You meet them at their home, with the chance to spend some time together, out of courtesy and to talk about the world and how things are going. This is village life - observed not as a spectator, but as a traveller. Lunch is enjoyed with a Senegalese family.

Have you heard of accro-baobab?

The trees back home are all very well, and treetop adventure courses deliver their share of thrills. But some things change everything - the baobab, for instance. This park is probably the only one in the world offering courses from baobab to baobab. It looks impressive - and it is. Zip lines, rope bridges, Himalayan walkways and balance logs guarantee excitement, with professional-level safety throughout. Several routes are suitable for families with younger children.

Why visit Senegal with Voyageurs du monde?

Every day, our travel specialists craft bespoke experiences shaped around each traveller's profile, desires and budget. These passionate experts design experiences delivered on the ground by a local network of Concierges and trusted contacts. These fully customisable, made-to-measure trips are complemented by a wide range of high-end services (lounges, 24/7 assistance, travel booklet, app, Wi-Fi, restaurant booking, etc.)

Let us create your trip

A few of the advantages of travelling with us to Senegal

  • Globally unique concierge service
  • 24-hour assistance
  • CO2 absorption

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Estimated budget

Price depends on departure city, season, accomodation types and selected activities

Based on two adults and two children
The estimated budget for this trip is $3,400 to $4,500 per person.

A fixed price is rarely applicable to a bespoke journey. The final cost depends on various factors, such as the level of service, travel dates, and booking lead times. The only definitive price will be the one provided in your personalized proposal.

The average price for this trip is $3,700 per person

Included in this suggestion

  • Direct flight to Dakar on a scheduled airline
  • Airport taxes and fuel surcharges
  • Carbon absorption contribution for your trip's CO2 emissions through reforestation projects (via our Philippe Romero Insolite Bâtisseur Foundation)
  • Private transfers as mentioned in the travel itinerary
  • A private vehicle with driver-guide for four days
  • Three nights in Palmarin, in a family baobab room, half board
  • Three nights in Saly, in a family room, half board
  • In Palmarin: a fishing day in the Saloum Delta and a bush-cart outing
  • A visit to the MAHICAO Museum (Museum of Art and History of West African Cultures) in Djilor-Djidiack
  • A visit to the village of Joal-Fadiouth, built on a mound of shells
  • In Saly: a private safari in the Bandia Wildlife Reserve
  • Our on-site Concierge service
  • Wi-Fi access during your trip: an international mini router or eSIM allowing you to connect your various devices (phones, tablets, computers)
  • A travel booklet with useful information (your day-by-day itinerary, hotel contact details, a personalized selection of our recommendations, etc.)
  • Our recommendations and reservations at selected restaurants
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