The Atonement Pilgrimage

Arrive in Accra, Ghana. Transfer from the airport to your hotel for a fantastic traditional welcome ceremony, including cultural drumming and dancing (for daylight arrivals only), pouring of libations, welcome drink and orientation. Spend the rest of the day at leisure or by the pool soaking up the African sun. Overnight at your hotel.

After breakfast, check out of hotel and embark on a sightseeing city tour of Accra. You will drive through the administrative and economic districts of Accra, the capital of Ghana. This city is well over 100 years old and has a blend of colonial and modern architecture that summarise her history. You will visit the W. E. B. Dubois Center for Pan African Culture, the place where Dr. Dubois (an American academic and civil rights champion) spent the last two years of his life working on a Pan-African encyclopaedia under the invitation the first Ghanaian president, Dr. Kwame Nkrumah.
Next, you will visit Independence/Black Star Square and Kwame Nkrumah Memorial Park, significant landmarks in the city which are of immense historical and cultural value. Lunch will be on your own in a local Ghanaian restaurant. The Accra tour will end with a visit to the Arts Center, where you will have an opportunity to use your bargaining skills to shop for artefacts from Ghana and West Africa in an open-air market. Overnight at your hotel.

After breakfast, depart your hotel for an early morning flight to Tamale. Upon arrival in Tamale, you will be met at the airport by Landtours representatives who will take you on a sightseeing drive around the city of Tamale. You will notice a significant difference between the cities of Accra and Tamale. Check-in at your Tamale hotel and take some time to relax and unwind. Overnight at your hotel

In the early morning, depart for a scenic drive to Salaga, one of the towns used as a major slave market during the slave trade. Meet with the traditional leader and tour the site where the slave trade started in the former Gold Coast. In Salaga, you will find families whose ancestors were slave raiders, slave chains and shackles are still kept in some family homes. The atonement will be sealed by villagers washing the feet of participants as an act of humility and a plea for forgiveness. This ceremony, designed by the villagers themselves, is a symbolic apology for the acts of their ancestors.

Continue to the market site where the slaves were sold, known as the “Salaga Slave Market.” Lay a wreath at the grave site commemorating those who did not survive the slave trade. The day will end with joyous celebration, including traditional drumming, dancing and a healing feast that includes the sharing of food between the descendants of the slave raiders and of the slaves who were taken to the new world.

Join the group for “kasa” (talk time). Kasa provides an opportunity to learn more about Ghanaian culture or simply talk to each other and share impressions of the tour experience. Kasa discussions are led by your tour leader or tour guide. (This activity is optional). Overnight at your hotel.

Enjoy breakfast in your hotel. Depart for the drive to Kumasi. En route, stop at the former slave markets of Kintampo and Assin Bono. Enjoy this scenic but haunting drive through the land where the slave trade took place. Notice the change in climate and terrain, which has a direct bearing on the population of Africans that the slave traders targeted. Visit the Kintampo Waterfalls to experience the cool, invigorating atmosphere created by nature and savor the breathtaking view of the cascading waterfall. Continue the drive to Kumasi. Upon arrival in Kumasi, check-in at your hotel and relax. Overnight at your hotel.

Enjoy your breakfast at the hotel. Afterwards, depart for a drive to Kumasi, the seat of the Ashanti Empire. Explore the legend of the famous Ashantis at the Manhyia Palace Museum. There you will get a sense of a day in the life of an Ashanti ruler (Asantehene). At the museum, you will also obtain firsthand information on the legacies of the Ashanti kingdom, a regal history that dates back to 1700 and is told with relics and artifacts.

Enjoy a drive through the city of Kumasi to view monuments dedicated to the memory of the great Ashanti people. End the day’s tour at the National Cultural Center, featuring the Prempeh II Jubilee Museum and the studios of various potters, brass and batik makers. Overnight at your hotel.

This day is devoted to visiting the three famous craft villages in the Ashanti Region: Ahwiaa (the wood carvers’ village), Ntonso (the home of Adinkra) and Bonwire (the Kente weaving village). You will have the opportunity to see how West African crafts are made and buy directly from the artisans who make them. After lunch on your own, depart for Elmina.

This morning you will visit Elmina Castle, built by the Portuguese in 1482 and originally known as St. George's Castle. This castle was the first European structure built in Sub-Saharan Africa. Explore the grounds and rooms full of haunting history. Stroll down to the beach for a memorial ceremony where each participant will throw bread into the waters in remembrance of ancestors. A wreath with a candle is solemnly cast out to sea a respectful moment of silence is observed in remembrance of those who died in the middle passage.

After lunch on your own, savour a walking tour of Elmina. The rich history of this colonial town is captured in its buildings. They tell the stories of the people of Elmina and their interaction with those who came from outside West Africa. Visit the colourful Asafo houses, which were used as a place for warriors to prepare mentally and spiritually before going to war. They are wonderful examples of how art is used in daily lives of Africans.

After dinner, you will have the opportunity to participate in “Reverential Night.” There will be candlelight processions and a vigil to commemorate the Africans who died in the slave trade. There will also be a moving ceremony and re-enactment of the slave passage through the “Door of No Return,” followed by a midnight declaration of Emancipation Day. This is the highlight of the Panafest celebration.

After breakfast, check out of your hotel for a drive through the former slave route to Assin Manso. This was the final transit point for enslaved Africans before being shipped off to the new world. You will have the opportunity to visit the slave dungeons as well as the final resting place for two ancestors whose mortal remains were returned from the USA and Jamaica and re-interred in Ghana.

The Emancipation Day Celebration is opened with a Grand Durbar of traditional Chiefs and people of the Central Region. Witness this grand, colourful and spectacular event that showcases the pomp and pageantry of Ghana's traditional rulers, dressed in rich Kente and adorned in glittering gold jewelry. Discover the African rhythm in you as you dance to the beat of the 'fromtomfrom' drums.

After breakfast, depart for a scenic drive to Accra. Lunch will be on your own in a local Ghanaian restaurant. Next, visit the Arts Center, where you will have an opportunity to use your bargaining skills to shop for artefacts from Ghana and West Africa in an open-air market. Early evening transfer to the airport for check-in and departure.