Guinea-Bissau

Street in Bissau, the capital of Guinea-Bissau
Source: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Bissau4.jpg
Author: Colleen Taugher


Guinea-Bissau is a small country in West Africa. It is bordered by Senegal to the north and Guinea to the south. Covering 36,125 sq km (13,948 sq mi), Guinea-Bissau has a population of 1.6 million people (2011 estimate). Its capital and biggest city is Bissau.

The official language of Guinea-Bissau is Portuguese, although the majority of the population speak Kriol, a Portuguese-based creole language. Most of the people here follow African indigenous beliefs and Islam, with a small Christian minority.

Ministry of Justice in Guinea-Bissau
Source: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Bissau1.jpg
Author: Colleen Taugher


Guinea-Bissau observes Coordinated Universal Time (UTC+0). The official currency of the country is the CFA franc (XOF). Traffic is driven on the right here. The phone IDD code is +245.

Guinea-Bissau is one of the poorest countries in the world. Its 2009 estimated nominal GDP is only $826 million, equivalent to a per capita nominal GDP of $512. Its per capita GDP at purchasing power parity stood at only $1,068.

Guinea-Bissau is a tropical country. Its coastline is covered by mangroves while its interiors are savanna. The Bijagos Archipelago is located off the coast. The country was once part of the Kingdom of Gabu. It was gradually colonized by Portugal from the 16th century until it attained independence in 1974. The country has been unstable since, going through numerous coups d'état.

Termite hills in the savanna of Guinea-Bissau
Source: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Paesaggio_savana_con_termitai_in_Guinea-Bissau.JPG
Author: Francofranco56

Planning your visit to Guinea-Bissau

Due to the volatile political situation in Guinea-Bissau, casual visitors are cautioned against paying it a visit until the condition improves.

Getting into the country itself may be a trying challenge, as all visitors need a visa, but there isn't a embassy in most Western countries. One should attempt contacting the Guinea-Bissau embassy in Lisbon, Portugal.

Major Cities in Guinea-Bissau

Places of Interest in Guinea-Bissau

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About this website

Dear visitor, thank you so much for reading this page. My name is Timothy Tye and my hobby is to find out about places, write about them and share the information with you on this website. I have been writing this site since 5 January 2003. Originally (from 2003 until 2009, the site was called AsiaExplorers. I changed the name to Penang Travel Tips in 2009, even though I describe more than just Penang but everywhere I go (I often need to tell people that "Penang Travel Tips" is not just information about Penang, but information written in Penang), especially places in Malaysia and Singapore, and in all the years since 2003, I have described over 20,000 places.

While I try my best to provide you information as accurate as I can get it to be, I do apologize for any errors and for outdated information which I am unaware. Nevertheless, I hope that what I have described here will be useful to you.