Cameroon Travel Guide

Cameroon is not a country you can just come to. There are few visa-free arrangements in place, so most travelers need a visa. Citizens of Mali, Chad, the Central African Republic, Gabon, Equatorial Guinea, and Nigeria don't need a visa.

The currency of the country is the Central African CFA franc, denoted FCFA (ISO currency code: XAF). It's also used by five other Central African countries. It is interchangeable at par with the West African CFA franc (XOF), which is used by six countries. Both currencies are fixed at a rate of 1 euro = 655.957 CFA francs.

By plane

Camair-Co operates as a national carrier and on domestic flights.

By train

Rail services operated by Camrail, run from the capital, Yaoundé, to the port city of Douala and the northern city of Ngaoundéré. While bus service is quicker and more reliable to Douala, the overnight train is the best mode of ground transport to the north. Check for current schedules and pricing.

The two official languages of the country are French and English. Of the two, French is the more useful language (understood by 80% of Cameroonians and the first language for many Cameroonians) and will get you far.

As is the case in any developing country, you should do whatever you can to blend in with the local population. What this means is that you should avoid presenting yourself in a way that would get others to think you are rich, and you should most certainly avoid isolated areas and travelling alone at night.

As Cameroon is a developing country, health care facilities are poor and are much below Western standards. In addition, you should expect a language barrier at healthcare facilities if your French-language skills aren't good enough.

To make local and international calls you need to buy a pre-paid SIM card. Check if your cell phone has a compatible GSM standard (Africa/Europe) - if not, in addition to a SIM card you probably need to buy a new phone. "MTN" and "Orange" are two major telephone companies in Cameroon. E-SIMs are available for data connections from various companies such as Airalo and Ubigi. The local networks offer 4G connections which are neither fast or stable.

It is very common for people, including people you've never even met before, to greet people around them. You will easily observe that it's common for people to exchange greetings and say things like "good morning", "how's your health", "how is your family", and so on. Don't be fazed or surprised by this; this is how the Cameroonians get to know others, and you can very easily make a friend or two by following suit!