Sierra Leone
Freetown's most famous landmark is the fat Cotton Tree, which looms large over the buildings of central Freetown. Rumoured to be hundreds of years old, it is said to have played a key role in the city's history, when poor black settlers rested in its shadows after landing in Freetown in 1787.
Either way, the tree has witnessed a lot, including the sometime occupation by a huge colony of chirpy bats.
4.46 MILES
In the dense rainforest of Western Area National Park, Sri Lankan founder Bala created Tacugama Chimpanzee Sanctuary, a leafy, waterfall-framed hideaway…
0.04 MILES
There are two galleries inside the Sierra Leone National Museum – one housing a collection of cultural and historical artefacts, including Temne Guerrilla…
3.64 MILES
This wide sweep of beach has lost some of its atmosphere since the 2015 demolition of dozens of bamboo and thatch food shacks, and the numerous, ugly…
1.81 MILES
You don't have to be a rail fan to enjoy this Clinetown museum, where enthusiastic staff guide you around a surprising collection of restored locomotives,…
0.11 MILES
The State House, up on Tower Hill and overlooking the downtown area, is an example of Freetown's old Krio architecture, which features brightly washed…
1.79 MILES
Gutted by fire in 1999, only the stone shell of the Old Fourah Bay College remains, but this 1848 building is graceful even in its decay. The World…
0.12 MILES
St John's Maroon Church is a squat white building with big windows built around 1820. An example of the area's Krio architecture, it was built by returned…
14.41 MILES
Dating back to the days of the slave trade, the bell was reputedly used to alert people to important events or emergencies. It is used for the same…
0.02 MILES
The ornate Law Courts have been beautifully restored following considerable war damage. Located immediately east of the Cotton Tree.
2. Sierra Leone National Museum
0.04 MILES
There are two galleries inside the Sierra Leone National Museum – one housing a collection of cultural and historical artefacts, including Temne Guerrilla…
0.11 MILES
The State House, up on Tower Hill and overlooking the downtown area, is an example of Freetown's old Krio architecture, which features brightly washed…
0.12 MILES
St John's Maroon Church is a squat white building with big windows built around 1820. An example of the area's Krio architecture, it was built by returned…
0.19 MILES
Built in the early 1800s, this grand cathedral provides welcome respite from hectic downtown Freetown, as well as an interesting insight into the city's…
0.2 MILES
The ancestors of nearly all present-day Krios passed through King's Yard Gate, atop Tower Hill in the strategic military Martello Tower, built in 1805…
0.27 MILES
The Old Wharf Steps, sometimes erroneously called the Portuguese Steps, lead up from Government Wharf. The stones were set in 1818. Many of the new…