Abidjan walking tour & city guide

Plateau and the lagoon

Le Plateau is the business district, with modern towers, government buildings and the dramatic St Paul's Cathedral, whose tilted white tower looks out over the lagoon. Across the water, Treichville has the big covered market and the Palais de la Culture, and Adjamé is one of the busiest commercial districts in the region.

Cocody, to the east, is greener and calmer, with wide avenues, the university and upmarket neighbourhoods, and the Riviera districts beyond.

A classic walk

Start at St Paul's Cathedral and walk through Le Plateau's streets of towers and shaded squares, then cross the Félix Houphouët-Boigny bridge to Treichville Market. Take a water taxi across the lagoon for the skyline view, and finish the evening at a maquis in Cocody or Zone 4.

Good to know

The driest months are December to March. Taxis are orange ('taxi compteur') for city trips and green woro-woros for shared rides. The Banco National Park, a patch of rainforest inside the city, and the colonial town of Grand-Bassam, a UNESCO site on the beach, are both easy half-day trips.