Best Tourist Places to Visit in Tema, Accra, Ghana, Africa

Best Tourist Places to Visit in Tema, Accra, Ghana, Africa

Tema is a Ghanaian coastal city, situated around 25 km east of Accra, the capital of Ghana. It is the administrative centre of the Tema Metropolitan District, belonging to the Greater Accra region. Tema holds the largest seaport of Ghana, for which it owns the nickname of “Harbour Town”. The popularity of Tema also extends as a trading centre, industrial town and tourist destination. The climate of Tema is classified as a dry equatorial climate, with an average precipitation of about 750 millimeters annually and its geographical coordinates are 5°40′ N 0°0′ W.

History of Tema:

Tema originated as a small fishing village, remained in that position until the independence of Ghana and following Ghana’s independence in 1957, Tema saw rapid growth with the construction of a large port in 1961. Tema once populated around 209,000 people in 2005 but its population declined to 161,612 in 2013 due to lack of social amenities.

How to reach Tema?

Kotoka International Airport is the closest airport to Tema, situated around 25 km southwest of the heart of Tema and operates flights from and to Kumasi, Takoradi, Tamale, Frankfurt, Amsterdam, Beirut, Madrid, Banjul, Dakar, Monrovia, Cairo, Abidjan, Dubai, London, Rome, Lisbon, São Tomé and Istanbul.

Taxis are generally available at the airport and also one can use minibus service for inexpensive airport travel.

Including the national capital, Accra, buses are regular between Tema and all the important Ghanaian cities.

Food and Shopping in Tema:

The SOS Hermann Gmeiner International College is the prime educational institution in Tema and other reputed institutions include Tema International School and Tema Secondary School.

Shops are abundant in Tema, also one can drive towards nearby Accra for better hospitality services. Some reputed restaurants in Tema are as follows:

Maria’s Restaurant
Seoul Grill Restaurant
Peterpan
Mos Bar BQ

Things to do in Tema:

Visiting Tema port
Shopping
Walking

Places of interest in Tema:

Tema Port:

Being the largest port of Ghana, the Tema Port itself is the identity of Tema, covering a total land area of 3.9 sq. km. Around 80% of the import and export cargo of Ghana takes place here, including the major export of the nation, cacao.

Sakumo Lagoon Protected Area:

The Sakumo Lagoon Protected Area is a birdlife zone, situated 3 km west of the downtown Tema. The area is mainly for the population of Sandwich Tern Sterna sandvicensis, Black Tern Chlidonias niger and Spotted Redshank Tringa erythropus.

Kwame Nkrumah Memorial Park:

Located in Accra, around 30 km away from Tema, the Kwame Nkrumah Memorial Park is dedicated to the prominent leader led the independence of movement of Ghana, Kwame Nkrumah. The park features his mausoleum, a museum and monument dedicated to him. It is worth a visit.

Kane Kwei Carpentry Workshop:

The Kane Kwei Carpentry Workshop belonged to Seth Kane Kwei who was the inventor of renowned design coffins. Collections can be seen at the workshop, which is currently handled by the grandson of Kane Kwei, Eric Adjetey Anang.

A list of the other places of interest in Tema includes:

Labadi Beach
Parliament House of Ghana
The National Theatre of Ghana
E.B. DuBois Memorial Centre
National Museum of Ghana
Kwame Nkrumah’s Mausoleum
Kokrobite Beach
The Ghana Academy of Arts and Sciences
Artists Alliance Gallery
The National Archives of Ghana
Cathedral Church of the Most Holy Trinity
Academy for African Music and Arts
Aburi Botanical Gardens
Coco Beach
Resurrection Presbyterian Church

Best time to visit Tema:

Tema can be visited throughout the year, although the most popular time among visitors is from November to February.

Accommodation options in Tema:

There are around 20 upgraded hotels in Tema with great hand in providing memorable hospitality services to visitors with all sorts of modern and traditional facilities as well as services like airport travel and arranging recreational activities. Some famous modern hotels in Tema are as follows: