Maps of Benin

Situated in western Africa, Benin whose capital is Porto Novo borders with Niger, Burkina Faso and Togo. In the south, the coast of Benin stretches for miles of sandy beaches under the shade of coconut palm trees, while behind the coastal areas, beyond the lagoons of Porto Novo a plateau rises gradually reaching the heights of the Atakora Mountains.

French is Benin's official language, but there are also many ethnic groups who speak their own languages such as the Bariba and Fulani, while English is rarely spoken.

In Porto Novo there are many examples of colonial and pre-colonial buildings and the Ethnological Museum is also an interesting site to visit.

The museum of Abomey, 100 km from the capital features exhibits from the past Aborney kingdoms, with an authentic throne of the period made entirely of skulls.

Benin has a vast animal kingdom amongst which are cheetahs, crocodiles and hippos, where one can admire at the two national parks, the Pendjari and the W National Park near the frontier with Benin's bordering countries.

Water activities are rather limited, although one can find some good beaches at Ouidah and Grand Popo, it is however advisable to be careful for there are strong currents and tides.

Nonetheless one can hire a yacht at the Cotonou Yacht Club or go canoeing in the Nakoue Lagoon.

The climate in Benin varies depending on the location, with an equatorial climate in the south with four distinct seasons, hot from April to January and August, with the rainy seasons from May to July and September to December. In the north the temperatures can get very high with dry weather from November to June and the rainy season from July to October.

The people from Benin are called Beninese.