Akwa

Feels:

Hotels, banks, restaurants and traffic; the commercial heart

Suits:

First-time visitors, business trips

Best time:

Any time by car

Watch out for:

Walking between venues after dark.

In short:

Hotels, banks, supermarkets and restaurants along the Boulevard de la Liberté; busy and noisy, and best left by car after dark.

Bonanjo (the old administrative quarter, the cathedral and the government streets) lies south-west near the river; Akwa (hotels, banks, restaurants) is the commercial centre to its north-east; Bonapriso is the quieter residential district to the south; Mboppi and New Bell lie east and are busy market districts; Bonabéri is across the Wouri bridge.

This district is highlighted. Shapes follow this guide's walking areas and places, not official boundaries.

How this district's sleep area scores for five kinds of traveler, ranked against the other Douala districts that have scores. Scores are this guide's 1–5 judgements.

• First visit

  best of 2

  Bonanjo is a short car ride; everything else is a car ride too.

• Families

  2nd of 2

  Noisy, with poor pavements and heavy traffic.

  Better for this: Bonapriso

• Light sleepers

  2nd of 2

  Busy and noisy along the main boulevards; ask for a room away from the street.

  Better for this: Bonapriso

• Night owls

  best of 2

  Bars and lounges close at hand; get home by booked car.

• On a budget

  best of 2

  A range from guesthouses to business hotels; more choice than Bonapriso.

Opening hours and prices from each place page; (check) means typical hours, not yet verified.

• French Institute of DoualaBook a time

  The French cultural centre: an air-conditioned rain-or-heat stop with a programme of exhibitions, film and music; check the calendar before you go and treat it as an evening or afternoon fallback, not a headline.

What to order and what locals pay, from each eat page. Prices are estimates; check the menu.

• Ndolé at an Akwa restaurant

  Ndolé, the dish most people name as Cameroon's national plate: bitterleaf stewed with ground peanuts and meat or shrimp, served with plantain or bâton de manioc. Take lunch at a sit-down place in Akwa and book the ride home.

• Soya (grilled beef skewers), Akwa

  Soya, spiced grilled beef skewers sold by the piece at roadside grills: buy in daylight or the early evening from a busy stand with a hot grill, eat there and go back by car.

• Akwa$$

  First-timers: banks, restaurants and hotels are close, but choose a hotel with a 24-hour desk, a generator and a car-accessible door, and go out only by car.

  Rooms: XAF 15,000–30,000 (check)

  Skip this if: Traffic noise until late.

  4–8 min walk to Akwa (hotels and Boulevard de la Liberté) · 28–40 min walk to Bonanjo (old administrative quarter)

Lines from the Douala drinking guide that name this district.

• Akwa bars and lounges (check names with your hotel) · Bars, hotel terraces · until Late, especially Fri–SatThe main after-dark area; get out by booked car, not on foot.
• Cocktails · International-style bars in hotels · until about midnight · XAF 4,000–8,000 plus serviceAkwa and Bonapriso hotels

Markets and shopping streets from the Douala buying guide that name this district.

• Artisan and craft stalls near hotels (check) · Carvings, beads, fabrics, bags · Shop hours · haggling: hardPrices start high and quality varies; buy only what you can identify.
• Supermarkets in Akwa and Bonapriso · Packaged food, toiletries, fixed-price essentials · About 08:00–20:00 (check)About 8:00 AM–8:00 PM (check) · haggling: noYour fixed-price reference and an air-conditioned break.

Minutes are this guide’s typical walking and ride times (p50–p90); traffic and heat stretch them.

• Roadside grills

  Light: Late afternoon

  Warm light and smoke; ask first.

• Akwaday: oknight: caution

  Busy, with pickpockets and snatchers; do not walk between venues after dark.

• Quiet nights

  Busy and noisy along the main boulevards; ask for a room away from the street.

• Nightlife

  Bars and lounges close at hand; get home by booked car.

• Late arrival

  Business hotels keep 24-hour desks and can book late cars.

• BonanjoCar south-west, about 15 min
• Mboppi and New BellCar east, about 18 min
• BonaprisoCar south, about 18 min