Northwest Travel Guide
Bamenda, capital of the Northwest Region. Photo via Wikimedia Commons.
Northwest (Nord-Ouest) is the English-speaking Grassfields: cool highlands, powerful traditional chiefdoms (fondoms), crater lakes and a strong craft tradition.
Bamenda, the regional capital, is the base for the great Grassfields excursions: the living royal compound of Bafut palace, the crater lakes of Oku and Nyos, and Menchum Falls. The region's ceremonial dish, achu (pounded cocoyam with yellow soup), is reason alone to visit.
⚠ Official travel advisories warn against travel to parts of the Northwest. Check current government advice before planning a trip here.
Destinations in Northwest
Bafut palaceLiving royal compound of 50+ buildings with a museum in the former German residence. UNESCO tentative list (2006).- Lake OkuCrater lake in the Kilum-Ijim forest near Kumbo, sacred to the Oku people.
Lake NyosCrater lake in the Oku Volcanic Field, site of the 1986 limnic eruption; a degassing tube was installed in 2001.- Bamenda handicraft marketsGrassfields crafts: masks, beadwork and woodcarving.
- Menchum FallsWaterfall on the Menchum River, about 65 km from Bamenda, flowing west toward Nigeria's Benue.
Cities & towns
Regional food
- achu (pounded cocoyam with yellow soup)
- fufu corn with njama-njama
Getting there
Bamenda is reached by road from Douala or Bafoussam. Allow full days for the Bafut and lake excursions.