Be warned: the undertow is strong in Cape Coast

Located about an hour outside of Cape Coast, Kakum National Park is a great place to see some of the country's best rainforest. A 40m high canopy walk through the tops of the trees is an essential experience to see the array of vegetation growing in the area, and if you're lucky and look closely, you may see some wildlife.

If canopy walks make you nervous, just make sure you don't walk behind or in front of teenage boys who enjoy to jump and run across the suspended bridges, as I did!

There's also a great nature walk you can take, and a guide can explain to you the different kinds of plants and trees around you.

The Hans Cottage Botel (not quite a hotel, not quite a motel), located approximately 10km from Cape Coast, was everything you could want from a jail cell. No, I'm just kidding, but there's a wide variety of rooms available, so if you're sticking to a small budget, prepare for bed bugs and questionable shared bathrooms. There's a nice pool and pool-side bar, and the botel boasts a crocodile pond where you can go and look for camouflaged crocs.

I stayed in a basic room with a fan. You can upgrade to a room with a TV, air conditioning and a private bathroom, or to a fancier suite.

Visitng Cape Coast Castle was a great, and quite moving, experience. There is a great museum on the history of the castle and slave trade in Western Africa and a tour of the castle takes you through the rooms were kept, throughout the castle, and through the door of no return.

I was in Ghana last summer for 2 months during the same time you're going, and I spent a bit of time in Cape Coast. Things to keep in mind when packing are that a lot of things you will be able to find in the town, espeically since Cape Coast is a bit more touristy than other regions. A lot of clothes you'll be able to buy fabric and get made cheaply by local tailors, mostly skirts or dresses, so don't pack too many clothes. Otherwise, when it comes to clothes, it depends on how much you enjoy doing laundry. If you hate it, bring more (at least more underwear!), if you don't mind, bring less. Keep in mind that your clothes will take longer to dry if it's really hot and humid - espeically if you get surprise bouts of rain that drench your clothes on the clothes line!

It's always a good idea to bring a mosquito net in case wherever you're staying doesn't have one, or if you're travelling. You don't always need to use it, but if you really want to keep the bugs away, then at least you've got it available. Most mosquito nets can be packed pretty small so they won't take up much space.

I don't really remember what else I was worried about when I was packing, so if you have any other questions, just send me a message!