Port Gentil is a small town compared to Libreville with only 140.000 inhabitants, but the most important seaport of Gabon. Near Cap Lopez, the peninsula of Port Gentil is also the most western point in Gabon! It’s pretty quiet compared to the capital, but it’s still an important place for the petrol-industry, meaning the city attracts money and for its small size it has therefore a few spots where one can relax on unspoilt sandy beaches near the Atlantic Ocean watching the boats go by. The forest is never too far off and with a 4×4 or a boat you don’t have to go far to be in the rainforest abundant with wildlife. During the whale season you can spot whales not too far off the beach as well.
In 1473 the Portuguese navigator Lopo Gonçalves already sailed near Cape Lopez and the first settlements were built on Mandji Island in the delta of the Ogooué River by the French in 1873, used a base for the expeditions of de Brazza who went into the interior of Gabon and Congo from there out. By the end of the 1890’s it became a trading center for products such as rubber, ivory and wood. After World War I it became a port for timber and not longer after that oil was discovered with its first oil refinery established in the sixties by Sogara and later the addition of natural gas.
Many people from Libreville, both Gabonese and expats come here for a few days, especially on long weekends or for easter, to relax, fish and explore. Port Gentil is also a good base to go to Omboué and Loango National Park to see wildlife such as elephants, crocodiles, monkeys, hippos and even gorillas in Loango.
You’ll get an introduction to the city and we’ll visit beaches such as Sogara Beach and explore Cap Lopez, which is about half an hour from downtown and at the tip of Mandji Island, it was also the place where slave ships set off for Europe in darker times with the rusty lighthouse as its last witness. Cap Lopez has become the oil terminal of Total, which you will see while exploring the area. Don’t be scared, even though there is oil industry, the peninsula offers beautiful paradisiacal beaches with coconut trees, which are full of life during weekends. Your guide will tell you all about the city and can also show you some great local restaurants (or more upscale if you’d like) where you can have dinner afterwards. We work with locals for this tour and use public transport so you can get around the local way!
Price:
– 1 person: 129 usd
– 2 persons: 79 usd per person
– 3 persons: 59 usd per person
– 4 persons: 45 usd per person
