The hook
Where the rainforest meets the Atlantic in the most surreal way: elephants and buffalo strolling on the beach, hippos surfing in the ocean waves, and gorillas in the forest behind, on a wild, empty coast.
01Why it's worth it
Gabon is one of Africa's great conservation stories, a small, heavily-forested country that set aside a remarkable network of national parks, and Loango, on its central Atlantic coast, is the jewel. It became famous for images that seem impossible: forest elephants, buffalo, and even gorillas emerging from the jungle onto broad ocean beaches, and hippos venturing into the surf, earning it descriptions as the place "where the jungle meets the sea." Beyond that spectacle, the park protects a mosaic of rainforest, savanna, lagoons, and coast that shelters western lowland gorillas (some habituated for tracking), forest elephants, mandrills, and abundant birdlife, while offshore, humpback whales and dolphins pass in season and leatherback turtles nest on the sands. Exploring it by boat through the lagoons, on foot in the forest, and along the wild beaches is a genuine expedition into pristine equatorial Africa. It is remote and premium, reached by light aircraft to a few camps, but for a wholly different, coast-meets-rainforest safari, Loango is extraordinary and unlike anywhere else on the continent.
02How to experience it
Fly in to a camp for a multi-day safari combining boat trips through the lagoons, forest walks (including gorilla tracking where available), and the wild beaches where wildlife appears; time it for the July-September whale season if you can. Go in the drier months. It is remote and premium, and utterly unique.