Guinea Bissau

Visited here March 2014

$1CAD = 465CFA

Getting out of Senegal (and into Guinea Bissau): Ziguinchor to Sao Domingo

• 7 place — 1500 CFA (bag included)

Where to Stay

• See here for my hilarous time at the “Pensao Branco” (which is not a real guesthouse, to be clear).
• In town, about a 5-10 minute walk from the garage, there are two hotels side by side. I’m told one is 3000-5000 CFA and the other is about 10000.

Eating Out

• Plenty of street food at the corner where these two hotels are. Sandwiches are really big for dinner for 100-300CFA, depending on how much stuff you get in them.
• Portuguese Crystale beer is 400.

Sao Domingo to Bissau

• many options here; apparently, city buses run on schedules, but the mini buses and cars at the garage run as normal – they go when they’re full.
• City bus — 1000
• mini bus — 1500 + 500
• 7 place 2500 + 500

I attempted to go to the islands of Bubaque and Bolama. Read about those attempts here. Ticket for ferries to Bubaque — 3500 and Bolama — 2500.

I wasn’t able to get my phone to connect to the data cellular network, so I went to the MTN cafe next to the Pensao Branco. You can buy specific credit for wifi at a store nearby (250CFA/hr), or sometimes inside the cafe itself, and then bask in the air conditioned glory while you connect.

Where to Stay

• Pensao Centrale — Closed
• Pensao Creola is now the cheapest option within central Bissau. I felt that it was really nice. Homey room, comfortable, secure. But, you pay for it. 15000/night.
• I ended up meeting someone who I stayed with for the rest of the time in Bissau.

Eating Out

• For a city centre, Bissau is dead at night! Some street food, but I ended up paying for a pricey Spaghetti Carbonara at the hotel/restaurant near to the Pensao Creola, which was a bit salty, but overall not disappointing.
• Across from the entrance to the Mercado (market), there is a Senegalese place with a blue door – great for lunch, 500CFA.

Getting Around

• Blue and yellow minibuses run on regular routes, and are marked as such, but I have no idea where many of them go (Aeroporto is pretty clear though)

Getting out of Guinea Bissau (and back into Senegal): Bissau to Kolda

• I failed at this. I am sure that there is a better route to take, which crosses at a different spot, farther east. But this is how I went:
  • Blue & Yellow bus on Enterramento line to garage — 100 CFA
  • 7 place for Ziguinchor (arrived by 10 but it took 2 hrs to fill and 4 hrs to travel) — 4000 (no bag charge)
  • 7 place for Kolda — 4500 + 500 (took another 2 hours to fill and was another 4 hour journey. Would have totally preferred to stay in Zig another night).
  • mototaxi to auberge — 500