Best 9 things to do in Gabon

Last updated November 2nd, 2023.

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Gabon is a wildlife lover’s paradise – but not how you might think. Located in Africa’s central belt on the Atlantic Ocean, it’s not vast plains that make it a haven for species. Instead, it’s Gabon’s forests, which are home to gorillas, elephants, and chimpanzees.

The country also has a fascinating history. This includes strong links with early European colonisation of the continent and Albert Schweizer’s hospital. But that’s not all, Gabon also has a lively modern cultural life.

Here are my best 9 things to do in Gabon!

1. Track gorillas at Mikongo

Gabon’s 13 national parks were established in 2002 following a report by conservationist Mike Fay. Covering 10% of the country’s landmass, they protect key parts of Gabon’s forest cover, a westward extension of the Congo rainforest.

One of the largest and easiest to reach is Lopé National Park, a patchwork of forest and savannah. Mikongo is a research centre and secondary camp within the park. It’s also one of the best ways of tracking western lowland gorillas in the country.

Around 90 minutes from the heart of the park at the lovely Lopé Hotel, ranger led walks last a full day. Covering around six miles (10 km) on the humid forest floor, gorillas are the main aim for many.

However, there’s also a chance to encounter troops of brightly-coloured mandrills, especially from June to September, forest elephant and chimpanzee.

Be warned though, this is no stroll through a safari park. The animals are not habituated to humans as they are in east African national parks. They can be both dangerous and difficult to find. This is one for your inner Indiana Jones!

2. Visit Albert Schweitzer’s hospital

Still one of inland Gabon’s best medical centres, attracting volunteer doctors from around the world, Albert Schweitzer’s hospital was set up in Lambaréné in 1912.

Serving the local community for hundreds of miles, Schweitzer became so famous he was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 1952. Other awards included the 1928 Goethe Prize, and an Order of Merit, one of the UK’s highest civilian accolades.

Visit the hospital today and you’ll find one of the original whitewashed wooden structures have been converted into a museum. Inside it contains some of Schweitzer’s most cherished possessions, including his upright piano on which he played Bach.

There’s also a collection of correspondence from the likes of Albert Einstein. If you’re interested in paying homage to the man himself, he is buried close to the entrance of the hospital. Just watch out for snakes in the long grass!

Lambaréné is easily combined with Libreville since the roads are largely good in this part of the country.

3. Live it up in Libreville

Tour the Gabonese capital of Libreville and you might learn it took its name from Freetown in Sierra Leone. But it has more in common with some of the chicest areas of Paris – prices included.

If you need to let your hair down after a few tough days, look no further than the Quartier Louis. It extends north from the city’s tiny port (Port Mole). The streets a block back from the front on the Atlantic Ocean form Libreville’s de facto entertainment district.

There’s little point giving specifics on where to eat or dance. The cool place to be one season can often end up being très passé by the next. Also be warned that though its restaurants and bars are open from around sundown at 6 pm, turn up at this time and you’ll pretty much be eating and drinking alone.

Things don’t really kick off until much later, and don’t necessarily come to an end until dawn the next day.

4. Grab a selfie on the equator (or forget to)

The equator carves its way silently across Gabon a little way south of the Gabon Estuary. Passing along the highway from Libreville to Lambaréné and Ndjolé there’s a helpful billboard marking its exact location.

It’s not exactly a major tourist destination however, with most drivers not thinking anything of it.

But if you get the chance, it’s always a satisfying feeling to find yourself with a foot in either hemisphere. Let’s face it, most of us don’t get to do this every day!

5. Go whale watching at Loango

Getting to or staying at Loango National Park in Gabon’s south isn’t cheap, and nor should it be. Occupying a dizzying stretch of tropical beach adjoining the rainforest, the park offers up unique wildlife encounters as if they were nothing.

Fancy encountering elephants on the beach? No problem? Keen to watch the world’s only surfing hippos? Also not an issue.

Whale watching becomes the activity of choice around mid-July and stretches through to mid-September. Breaching humpbacks being the main species to look out for.

At other times of year game anglers can try their luck against tarpon in October and November. This is quickly followed on by the turtle nesting season.

Considering these natural attractions come in addition to chimp tracking and gorilla trekking in an almost pristine habitat, and you can see why Loango has become the go to destination for wildlife documentary makers the world over.

6. Journey on the transgabonais

Running west-east across the map like a river, the transgabonais (or Trans-Gabon Railway) links Libreville with Franceville.

A huge feat of engineering only fully accomplished in 1986, it crosses rivers, passes over swamps, disappears into tunnels and cuts through otherwise uninterrupted tree cover for 420 miles (670 km).

Stopping at 21 intermediate stations – including one at Lopé for the national park – the train line has become a vital transport link, although it’s certainly not fast.

But as a way of experiencing life in the country and getting chatting with locals – there’s nowhere and nothing better.

7. Soak up the sun at Pointe Denis

Already one of my top beach destinations in Africa, Pointe Denis can only be reached by boat. Small craft make the journey from Libreville’s Port Mole a couple of times a day each way on the weekends.

Getting there is picturesque enough. However, it’s only once you’ve arrived that you feel the wave of tranquillity wash over you.

Popular with Gabon’s expat and middle-class workers, the beach has the sort of fine white sand that’s perfect for making those back home jealous. The fact the beach is within Pongara National Park only adds to its untouched nature.

If you’re looking for something to do other than soak up the sun, there are quad bikes and sailing opportunities. That’s alongside legendary Pointe Denis hotel buffet lunches few want to miss.

8. Delve into Lastourville’s caves

The grottes des Lastourville sit hidden in the forest on the edge of town. They are usually reached on foot with a guide, a walk of around an hour.

There are over 40 in total, dating back 50 million years. Human history at this tentative UNESCO World Heritage Site has been dated back at least 7,000 years. It’s believed they were used for rituals – weapon making tools have previously been identified.

The best place to hunt down a trustworthy guide is at the Hotel Ngoombi. It’s also a sensible place to stop if you’re in need of a good meal.

Created by the flow of the Ogooué River, the caves are wet and muddy, so be prepared to get mucky. They’re also not much fun is you’re chiroptophobic – afraid of bats. The inner recesses of the caves are home to colonies numbering in the thousands.

9. Splash about in the waterfalls of Ivindo

Another of Gabon’s 13 national parks, Ivindo is best known for its elephants, which visit clearings known as bai. These grassy areas seem to have a social as well as nutritional value to solitary forest elephant.

However, another top reason to consider Invindo one of the best things to do in Gabon is because of its impressive waterfalls.

The largest is without doubt Mingouli Falls, a series of cascades falling almost 400 metres which seem to use more than the three-dimensions the universe permits them too. Roaring with water after the rains, trips begin by taking a pirogue down river, with plenty of opportunity to encounter hippos, monkeys and birds.

Visit during the dry season and not only are the falls rather less than their best. And you might also end up helping to drag your pirogue across the river bed.

Unmissable things to do in Gabon

It may be one of Africa’s lesser visited nations, but that doesn’t mean there aren’t amazing things to do in Gabon. For wildlife, it’s hard to find a better destination in the region. But Gabon doesn’t disappoint when it comes to history and culture either.