Full Day Private Tour in Dakar: move, eat, act like a local
Description
Visit Dakar like a local with your guide, Malou-P, a singer-writer during the night and a guide during the day. With his simple, sociable and teasing nature, Malou-P is a Senegalese proud of his culture, his country and his language. On the back of his vespa or in his car if you feel more comfortable, discover the life in the streets of working-class neighborhoods and interact with the people who live in Dakar. In complete safety with Malou, regular Touba coffee stops and laughter guaranteed! A friendly stroll to get to know Dakar's neighborhoods better and exchange about Senegalese culture, beliefs and the hard reality of the working market for the young people, whether you're just passing through or have lived here for several years!
Tour Options
Itinerary
Have breakfast in a small vendor near the high school of the neighborhood.
Walk in the streets of Medina and visit street workers - steel workers, carpenters and different kinds of informal market merchants. At one special street vendor, your guide will teach you about local beliefs and mystical lucky charms. You may buy your own lucky charm to bring back with you !
Visit the mechanic workers and learn about work conditions in Senegal
Visit the market and eat at a local dibiterie crowded with senegalese customers.
See the Grand Mosque of Dakar and learn about religion and beliefs.
Visit the house of Ousmane Sow, a famous senegalese sculptor showing strong and impressive sculptures of the life style of various ethnies.
Go to the fish market as a normal customer, find the perfect fish just coming from the fishermen's pirogues and all the necessary ingredient for a perfect grillade.
Highlights
What's included
Pickup Locations & Times
Your local tour guide will wait for you at your location in Dakar. If you are staying in another city, he can wait for you at the TER station.
Traveller Ratings
Important Information
- Public transportation options are available nearby
- Suitable for all physical fitness levels
Reviews(15)
Malou was very friendly and made sure that I was happy all the way. This is a great way to stay away from the tourist areas and really immense in the local life. Totally Recommend!
Great tour of all of the city including many local areas and small fishing market areas. Great local food.
Senegal had become champions the night before, so we couldn't do the city tour. Our guide offered alternative tour, we did this. Was really nice. They were also super helpful with all kinds of good tips
Time was rubbery on this colourful and arty zoom around Dakar. I asked respectfully to avoid as many shopping stops as possible, so we had more time at the artists workshop, the mosque, and the monuments. But the true highlights were the beachside foodstop - incredible local spicy fish dish - and an unexpected drop-in to a cliffside reggae bar to watch the sun go down. Magic. Zey was a great guide, full of knowledge and fun.
I booked the tour as I wanted an alternative tour of Dakar and the description of te tour was exactly that. But that is not what I got. Unfortunately the normal guide was sick and the agency sent me a different guide, which they promised would be able to give same tour. Forst of all the guide started stating that his English was really bad. The first 2 hours he drove me around the Dakar showing me places, but without any explanations (although he was nice to help with taking pictures etc.). After 2 hours he stated that we would go for lunch and then he would drive me back to the hotel. I showed him the program and said that I wanted to see the streets of Medina, visit the street workers, hear about the local belief etc. He said that he would be able to do that as well. He took me to the area where the fishermen live, but again walked be around without any explanations. Then he took me to Kermel market, which is very small and nothing like the Medina / Sandaga market. Again I got no explanations, histories or other information about the places. The tour ended after 5 hours, which is much earlier than promised I could have ordered a taxi and received the same tour much cheaper. When I afterwards contacted the agency they stated that the guide speaks English and the the tour was given correct. By which I can only conclude that their quality level is close to fraud. The day after I went myself to Sandaga market and found a local vendor that showed me around the market and the workshop in perfect English. I paid him 5usd and bought some of his things. You can contact him directly Atou Fall +221 77 998 30 72 Tripadvisor / Viator has decided to pay me back 29usd, but I feel scammed, and I would not recommend this tour guide to anyone.
Hello Charlotte, We are truly sorry that your experience did not meet your expectations, and we understand your frustration. On the day of your tour, our usual guide was unfortunately sick at the last minute. We made the decision to maintain your booking by assigning an alternative guide whom we believed could deliver the tour in English and follow the planned itinerary. Clearly, this did not work as intended, and for that we sincerely apologize. This is not representative of the quality we aim to provide, nor of our usual tours, which are based on cultural immersion, storytelling, and interaction with local communities. Following your feedback, we have reviewed our guide substitution procedures and language requirements. We respect Viator’s decision regarding partial compensation and regret that the experience led you to feel disappointed. This was never our intention, and we appreciate you bringing these issues to our attention so we can improve. Kindly, Béatrice
It was a great day, crisscrossing Dakar. The guide explained everything very well and had a lot of information on a wide variety of topics ready. I was welcomed everywhere very friendly and devoted, had a lot of fun and enjoyed the day very much. All my wishes and ideas were taken into account. The tour I can highly recommend.
This excursion is a great way to see city life in Dakar. Yes do the monuments and museums in another tour. But don’t miss this one. See how people live. See the fishing villages. The quaint restaurants. The food was fabulous. Malou is a great guy. He is knowledgeable. Great personality to hang out with for the day. I’m so glad I booked this tour and highly recommend it to anyone who wants to get to know the culture in Senegal.
The only way to experience Dakar. Zip around via scooter and take in this vibrant, fast-paced city like a local. Malou is friendly, professional, and will make you feel as if you’re family. The whole tour flowed seamlessly from curbside pickup at my local accommodations all the way till drop off. As a traveler who loves to eat, a personal highlight was finding a plate of brilliantly spiced jollof rice and chicken for lunch at a locals only food stall. A tasty experience I surely would have missed wandering Dakar by myself. Do yourself a favor. Book this experience! 🇸🇳
Wow. Eye opening. Thrilling. Not to be missed. The guys met us OUTSIDE the port gate on two mopeds with helmets. Cover up or wear lots of sunscreen. Bring water. A fascinating look at Senegalese society including back-alley breakfast shops and a delightful lunch at his aunt’s home. Some French very helpful.
As a first-time visitor to Dakar, this tour provided me with the valuable and rare opportunity to explore the city through the eyes and experiences of a local. As a proud Senegalese and talented musician who is strongly engaged with the social life and cultural history of Dakar, Malou was the perfect guide for someone who is interested in arts, culture, and the complex histories of colonialism and exploitation in Africa. Highly recommend!
