The Gambia: Experiences in Africa's Smallest Country

Overview of The Gambia, the smallest country on the African continent. I spent 8 days there in 2024 and wanted to discuss some things I learned and experienced. I cover the cities, economy, infrastructure, beach tourism, and hookup culture. It's a country not often discussed so I wanted to cover things not generally covered in the more tourism-focused videos on The Gambia.
Good video focusing on the sex tourism and hookup culture:
• Why Are Older British ...
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0:00 Intro
1:34 Languages and ethnic groups
2:49 Poverty
5:18 Infrastructure
7:14 Banjul (capital city)
8:23 Serrekunda Market footage
10:17 Small village experiences
11:42 Tourism
12:43 Food
13:33 Sex tourism & hookup culture
Album dispalyed:
Beach Boys - "Beach Boys Concert" (1965)

[@Cylindropuntia]

I had no idea what The Gambia was like before watching this video. Thank to you for making this.

[@Ryfael]

That's sad, one would have a love of geography and countries watching a channel called the geography King. Damn 😢

[@reddykilowatt]

Idea for a t-shirt: “I went to the Gambia to hook up and all I got was this t-shirt” showing an outline of a map of the elongated country. 😂

[@leestamm3187]

This was great, Kyle. What used to be called the Third World. Few Americans have even the vaguest idea what those places are actually like. My experiences were 50 years ago in southeastern Asia and east Africa. The poverty was even worse then, but the people were always friendly and welcoming, just as you experienced. It's important to understand that much of the world still lives in poverty. The experience made me realize how fortunate I was to be born in the U.S.

[@bettyboop1003]

Just because you think your fortunate what makes you know that Gambia 🇬🇲 are not fortunate $$$ does not make you happy it just pays for stuff & things ...I wish you go and visit and not judge a book by its cover or better yet leave Gambia alone ....they are peaceful ppl until others come to corrupt

[@zgrif]

@@bettyboop1003same country reversing a ban on female genital mutilation? Cool

[@5daysofcoffee]

I have a coworker from Gambia. We design bridges, I always joke she should go back when she’s done here and design a few since there are almost no bridges there.

[@brandyl.robinson7823]

That's the truth in a joke😊

[@calebvalder6855]

You never disappoint Kyle. Thanks for the entertainment. I knew nothing about Gambia

[@johnledingham852]

I didn't realize that the Gambia was such a peaceful and friendly country. My wife and I live in Australia, so that is a long haul away, but what a destination to slip into the must do bucket list. I only have a plastic bucket. But your unbiassed coverage of that tiny country has really stimulated my keen interest in west Africa. The fact that it is not war torn, or engulfed in violence has won me over to nurturing the possibility of visiting there together one day! THANKS!

[@yankiefrenz1367]

i think Gambia alongside Senegal are the most peaceful countries in West Africa

[@GoTownMedia]

Incredibly informative video, thanks for sharing knowledge about your experiences there. I appreciate very much how you did not use the children there as clickbait like I'm sure a lot of other creators would have done, I think people keep coming back to this channel because you know your stuff and your perspective on the world is so wise. So much respect for you sir thank you for making such great content

[@GeographyKing]

Thank you. Some of the best moments of the trip were in situations where it would have been nice to pull out the phone and get photos and video, but a big part of why many people were so kind to me was because I wasn't walking around with my camera up at all times. The entire trip was definitely a learning experience for me.

[@belive7316]

As someone living in The Gambia, this is by far the most accurate video I've seen about the Gambia. You didn't exaggerate the good or the bad, just said it exactly how it is. Gambia is a lovely place to visit, mostly because of peacefulness and hospitality of the locals.

[@michaeldescalso211]

Nice video, Kyle. I spent a week or so there, but we were up river most of the time in a village, Dobang Kunda, that had a hole in the ground for a toilet, a pump well in center of town, and no electricity. Huts made of mud and straw and very few vegetables. The kids were the best, always smiling and full of wonderment at my whiteness and red hair. I felt like the pied piper. Walked with lions in Senegal at the Gambian border (Fathala Reserve) and pet a croc at the Katchakilly Crocodile Pool outside Banjul. Careful on the ferry, they're actually pretty dangerous.

[@GeographyKing]

I didn't go very far upriver. Only about to Bwiam and Kiang West National Park, which is still in the western third of the country. I hiked near where there had been some hyena sightings recently, but no one told me until after I got back. But yeah, that ferry is crazy. It's a disaster waiting to happen.

[@jamesbungert3155]

Absolutely awesome. When Rick Steves retires, you're right in line to take over where he leaves off, covering more the of the world!

[@levinpugsley9256]

What a pleasant surprise! I lived in a small Mandinka coastal village of Tujereng, just north of Sanyang in 97’ for 5 months. At the time, there was no paved road to Serekunda, and it took several hours to get into town. There was no electricity along most of the coast south of Serekunda, I remember the stars were extremely vivid in the night sky. The village had a community well that ran on solar pumps, and the women were all extremely fit from fetching large jugs of water to carry home on there heads, as wells as pounding out the millet in the large mortar and pestle in groups with songs and clapping. The Christian Mandiago people from the neighboring Guinea Bissau lived outside the village in compounds with pigs running about ( the Muslim Mandinka didn’t have pigs) and made there living from climbing and tapping the Palm trees for the wine that was sold to Banjul. The Mandinka are a very culturally rich people with an incredibly diverse set of musical traditions and ceremonies that accompany many important passages in their lives. I was planning on staying in Tujereng for at least a year, but I had to return home when I was suffering from a nasty bout of amoebic dysentery. When I returned to Tujereng in 2002, the road south from Banjul was entirely paved, and the village had just received electricity. Unfortunately, most of the beautiful hard wood forest that I had walked through several miles to reach the quiet Atlantic coast had been cleared out for farming, and the wild monkeys and other animals that I had seen in the forest were long gone. The path was still there, but now there were barbed wire fences along the sides, and the land had clear boundaries and plots. The beaches were also beginning to see signs of development, and were no longer the clean and tranquil place that I had first experienced. I admit that I’ve been a little reluctant to check in again with my old friends, I know many have passed since I first left. The Gambia and Senegal are definitely two amazing countries in the often misunderstood Continent of Africa

[@GeographyKing]

A lot of the development in the Gambia did seem rather recent and not really laid out in any particular way. There's still some open beach, but most beaches have at least some hotel or housing. There didn't seem to be much current growth however.

[@theaveragejoe5781]

Was really looking forward to this one. Amazing

[@gregshulas4452]

Thank you Kyle. I greatly appreciate the increased depth of this channel. Looking forward to Senegal. Hope organized crime is not playing a big role in that matter you spoke of. Keep doing great work.

[@GeographyKing]

I've got a video on Senegal coming up!

[@samuelripa-ol1ry]

Once again another great video Kyle!!! I appreciate all the on the ground filming and the in depth discussion. Its also dope to see someone who loves geography as much as his viewers, i feel like geography nerds get a bad reputation about living in our maps and never going into the real world but im glad your showing us how its done!!

[@GeographyKing]

Thanks a lot. It's been a lifelong dream of mine to visit some of these countries that we don't hear much about.

[@garyb6219]

@@GeographyKing Thanks for bringing us with!

[@eljj7968]

Interesting video! I had absolutely no idea about the sex tourism in the Gambia.

[@pavleveljkovic9756]

This was so entertaining. Really nice overall view of The Gambia. Thank you Kyle for the insights.

[@RemnantCult]

I love the insights you have on your travels and observations in the world and the US. Always a pleasure.

[@bing_chilling6143]

I think another candidate for a peaceful country with the lowest GDP per capita is Madagascar. They have had a few coups, but they were nonviolent and the country is super safe. I even met Marc Ravalomanana who was deposed in a coup in 2009 while I was travelling there. It is also such a unique place due to its Austronesian heritage and language. I can't wait to go back to Africa; maybe I will go to the Gambia!

[@CinemaChrisChats]

Fantastic video! I am glad you had a great experience.

[@davidd7042]

It's always great to get your perspective, a perspective I trust, on places I have interest in but little knowledge of. I know more of the countries to the south of the Sene-Gambia area so this was eye opening and fascinating. Thanks!

[@isaacpunch9295]

I feel like a lot of Americans just assume the entirety of Africa is like Mogadishu in Black Hawk Down lmao. You’ve got me wanting to visit now.

[@drewo6388]

Thanks for sharing this great video, Kyle! I love that you visited countries off the beaten path. I'd love to see you travel to more places under-represented places around the world and even in the US!

[@JimmyNasium]

Great video, Kyle. You really do capture the spirit of a place. Thank you from a longtime subscriber.

[@GeographyKing]

Thanks. I appreciate that

[@hallnall1667]

Kyle, I love your respect for culture! I'm always interested in your travels. Keep up the great work!

[@dmike3507]

Wow that was fascinating. I'm never disappointed by your adventures Kyle, hope you have many more of these trips planned in the future. I appreciate you focus more on the educational aspect of travelling rather than the clickbait.

[@GeographyKing]

Thanks man

[@julieremington7103]

Great video, thank you!

[@VentureAddicts]

Loved this video and the Dominica trips. I love the representation of these underrated countries

[@johnparsons1573]

Really interesting video of a country I know nothing about. Right on

[@iheanachovictor4884]

Nice video man, thanks!

[@BnaBreaker]

Banjul proper is small but it's essentially a situation similar to Sydney in Australia where central city has a relatively small population due to the geographic (in Banjul's case) or man made boundaries (in Sydney's case) restricting it, but there is a much larger urban area surrounding it that is essentially only there because of the presence of that capital city. Banjul urban area has 481K people.

[@riddimchef1]

A very balanced and accurate video. 👌🏽

[@bnthern]

thank you, nicely done

[@johnallen8368]

Went to Gambia in 1997 and 2003 even crossed into Senegal oy second visit did the Bamako express train for one stop on the second time watched a soccer match also. Love the Gambia. Awesome place had one of the greatest time of my life there.

[@kajunsblerdeye9325]

I enjoyed this.

[@malikshabazz2065]

great stuff! :-)

[@melburnett]

Hey Kyle, I've been watching a lot of your vids since I found your channel last year. Informative and interesting facts for the lay person without a bunch of snobby "talking down to" like other hosts seem to do. But is it just me or do others check out your Album displays in your background? I see the cover and try to guess who and what album it is, then scroll down to see if I'm correct or not. A lot of them I've heard of and some I've even had. See, ANOTHER point of trivia you also add to your videos.

[@carstarsarstenstesenn]

Very interesting

[@dner75-xh9le]

Geography King with the pimp talk at the end. Just kidding. Thanks for the insightful video about a lesser known country.

[@gabe5518]

Wow you crack me up 😂the “get jiggy with it” had me rolling I’m dead 😂😵

[@SnappyWasHere]

I live in Missouri and barely get 3 bars or service…. And everyone there looks so much happier than my neighbors. 🤔

[@BS-vx8dg]

*Fantastic* video. I think I always learn something new from your videos, but the volume of new info in this one set an all-time high record. I'm a geography nerd who is unable to travel, and this was fascinating to see. I wonder if you might consider establishing a new channel on the intersection of geography and history. As you were explaining about the different ethnic groups in the two countries (and that was a solid map for that), I thought you might give some historical background. How did Gambia come to be British while Senegal was French? In a geographic history video, you could explain the post-colonial history of Senegambia, the failed attempt to unite the two countries in the 1980s, for example. Just some thoughts. I really, really enjoyed this video (except the sex stuff; I didn't need to know about that. I wasn't offended, I just thought it was gross).

[@yodorob]

Back in colonial times, Banjul was known as Bathurst. Yes, named after the same British colonial secretary as Bathurst Street in Toronto (the heart of that city's large Jewish community), Bathurst in New Brunswick (Canada), Bathurst in New South Wales (Australia), etc.

[@carnakthemagnificent336]

Informative, as usual, Mr. Kyle. Regarding weather patterns, is The Gambia in warmer months influenced from the interior of the continent, and the wet months influenced by the Atlantic?

[@mrsanchez7]

Fast times, the breakfast club, get jiggy with it, party like it's 1999, the nookie (x2!) 😂🤣 all used within about a minute, too... JFC Kyle! 😂

[@tenerifetruism4343]

Gambia is a small country but when you go there you going to fall in love the country❤ that's why a lot of people want to go to Gambia in the coastal area house most of them is owned by the old white people

[@JCDofNYC]

Kyle the Globetrotter! I couldn't think of a better emissary for the United States. Any other travel abroad on your itinerary? Thanks for the informative and entertaining travelogue !

[@GeographyKing]

Thank you! I do have quite a bit of travel planned for this year coming up, including both a little bit of Europe and a return to Africa.

[@JCDofNYC]

@@GeographyKing I envy you. In my younger years, I used to fly all over creation for work and play. I've been to 42 different countries and 48 States (I have never been to North Dakota or Mississippi...) There are few things more fascinating than immersing yourself in a different culture. And not the tourist things, but just sitting at a cafe and people watching. Your trips to the marketplaces is a perfect example. I had the good fortune to have lived in the UK for two years, reading for my Master's. To be in another country actually engaged in an undertaking is the best way to truly get to know a place. Having to deal with the mundane day to day stuff -- grocery shopping, banking, getting a driver's license -- you get a better sense of what life is like in that country. It sounds as if you're traveling for work, so I'm sure you appreciate the difference. Whatever the case, safe and happy travels! And keep up with the great videos!

[@20thcenturytunes]

"Spring Break for Middle Aged" - awesome - but really you did good with the discussion of The Gambia, as a general rule Americans don't really know much about Africa - its an awe4some continent.

[@gokmachine]

It's becomming more and more popular as a holiday destination for northwest Europeans during the colder months. Like the Canary Islands or Caribean islands

[@holygooff]

Hahaha that was weird to hear a bout the sex tourism. I never heard about Belgian men or women going there, but I wouldn't be suprised if it would be a thing for some. I don't know anything about Gambia. I'm vaguely interested to visit Senegal at some point in my life though. I hope you'll make a full video about that country as well. Maybe it was a less clear experience for you as an English speaker, but it must have left some impression. After all it's a large and very interesting place.

[@GeographyKing]

I'll have a video on Senegal as well, but I do speak French, so visiting there wasn't an issue communication-wise.

[@JonathanCabot]

i am excited for kyle outside of CONUS

[@derekdufail2558]

Help the old British women meet the old Dutch men, problem solved.

[@PhedelCastro]

I was thinking the same thing!

[@mirzaahmed6589]

1. The women are middle aged, not old. 2. Dutch men are not as well endowed as the Mandinka.

[@derekdufail2558]

@@mirzaahmed6589 Thank you. Old is a figure of speech and refers to middle aged as well as old. And yes, anatomy is a consideration.

[@rexx9496]

They're looking for bbc.

[@dmike3507]

I'm pretty sure they're there for the BBC... and I don't mean British Broadcasting Corporation ;)

[@mickeitachannel498]

Thanks

[@martinjdesmond]

My friend worked for the peace corps in Gambia for a couple of years. He told me that the long skinny boundary of the country was created by the British because that was how far that their cannons from their ships could fire from the Gambia river.

[@Ryfael]

@gattsu got a shoutout 14:42

[@jonathanweerts9779]

Madison WI has growing Gambian community and a few of our civic leaders are from there. We are sister cities with Kanifing.

[@SidiqueB]

That is correct ❤

[@pyjatta3112]

Sure you right am from Gambia.

[@theeclecticlifewithsam]

Great video. Both Senegal and The Gambia sound like interesting places. I had a similar experience with being swarmed by overly friendly children when I was in Ghana. Very surreal. It must be rare for them to see white people walking around through their neighborhood, and it's a big deal for them. Very nice people in general. I'm a big fan of west Africa and their delicious food 😋👍🇬🇭

[@blackpanda7298]

😂 the nookie sent me flying 😂😂😂

[@chrispriest7167]

I've always been intrigued by The Gambia. I remember Drew Binski mentioned in one of his videos that Gambia creeped him out because of all the sex tourism. My question is how did you get there? I assume you flew into Dakar, and then rented a car for the duration of your trip?

[@GeographyKing]

I flew NYC JFK to Dakar, then two weeks in Senegal. I then flew the 20-minute Air Senegal flight from Dakar to Banjul. It was just too easy and convenient to fly. Taxi and transit to the border, customs, then another taxi on the other side, was looking like an entire day lost while flying allowed me to see more of the country as well as it being hassle-free. I never rented a car the entire time. Just walked, bus, and taxis, as well as horse-drawn carts in parts of rural Senegal.

[@FeliceChiapperini]

"Toobob" is the same word they used in the miniseries Roots to refer to white people. Alex Haley's ancestors were Mandinka. Interesting connection!

[@Maribel1998_]

The kids are so sweet ❤

[@Manwalkerinpark]

Did you have a fixer for this trip or a travel agency that organised it?

[@GeographyKing]

No, just me and some research.

[@PITU-f7f]

I feel like visiting Gambia now.

[@AlphaGeekgirl]

00:47 is it pronounced Da-kar or Dak-ah? Isn’t that where the car race is held?

[@SidiqueB]

Da-kar and yes

[@lacyLor]

How did you end up choosing to go there?

[@GeographyKing]

I've always wanted to go to Senegal since I was a little kid. I would see it on a world map and how it was closer to the US than most of Europe. I planned the trip, but due to geography, it's difficult to visit Senegal without at least poking into Gambia. It was easier to make a 3-week trip out of both countries than to try to stick to just one.

[@Trtevoorryu]

I wonder if Gambia's beaches are warm. Water can get kinda cold in Africa

[@datguymayor_]

yes they are warm, I am Gambian living in UK, I lived in Gambia for 90% of my life Its really beautiful, just less development

[@favjr]

"The nerdy perspective on the nookie." ;-)

[@charlottetracy3970]

Kyle, you dawg you! LOL

[@Gerstberger]

Yo awesome Kyle hope you are getting enough of the nookie regardless of whether it was in the Gambia or not man

[@KevinLynch1717]

Yeahhh! Great vid

[@tahall5646]

Why ‘The Gambia’ and not just ‘Gambia’? Note that the article is capitalized, in contrast to counteries like ‘the United States’.

[@GeographyKing]

It's kind of like The Netherlands, or The Bahamas, where The is part of the official name.

[@jricoc3475]

@@GeographyKing ... or The Bronx!

[@JCDofNYC]

It was my understanding only three places in the world took the capitalized "The": The Hague, The Vatican, and The Bronx! Add The Gambia to the list ..

[@bradmohr8098]

Beach Boys

[@threesixnine369six]

Some of my favourite dishes are Gambian and Senegalese 🌶️🥵🔥🐟🍚🍛🍅🥜

[@chiarosuburekeni9325]

Strangest shaped country on earth

[@CultureAfrica-dv2mh]

Point of correction is not the smallest in Africa is the smallest in the main land

[@norwoodwildlife9849]

10:27 Tom Brady

[@carnakthemagnificent336]

Thinking back on tourist "dating," that seems exploitive. One person participates because they have money, and the other because they really need money. Besides the setting aside of each person's dignity, it has to be seen as dangerous. What would happen if someone posing as a "date" were really bait for parties willing to find out how much more money could be had for the safe return of the tourist?

[@rheffner3]

The Gambia is certainly the most unusual country in Africa. It exists because of slavery. Good video. Thanks.

[@abdouj7116]

Not slavery but the British guy was looking for navigation inland of Africa because of the river..

[@CaliGirlJade]

Liberia exists bc of slavery but in the U.S.

[@user-vt1kb4xe9x]

Senegal is actually about the size of Belarus

[@JH-fb3mp]

Mama mia, its Da Gambia

[@dovygoodguy1296]

I wonder why small Gambia couldn't be transformed into a Singapore or Dubai, free trade zone, tax free, technology hub.

[@Dhi_Bee]

I’m honestly surprised they didn’t just combine the ridiculous colonizer borders into one country like Cameroon did when it combined the British & French colonial lands after independence.

[@DeciduousNature]

"Romance", huh?

[@carnakthemagnificent336]

Not the word I was thinking of, either.

[@futon2345]

Africa's Rhode Island

[@stuartrollings602]

Interesting but no thanks…any wild animals to see?

[@rogerpenske2411]

Das Ookraine

[@EGSBiographies-om1wb]

83rd

[@JxH]

2:45 "...interfaith marriages and that's something you don't see at all in the western world." What ? Perhaps you mean a particular example where there could be violence, so I see your point.

[@Merle1987]

It must be awesome to be those guys. Getting paid for adult exercise.

[@PITU-f7f]

I don't like the idea of criminalising or labelling " sex tourism" youths go to Spain and binge in drug, drink disco and sex and they call it fun. older men or woman go to South America, Asia or Africa have sex and immediately it is "sex tourism". I love when I go abroad and have sex, paid or unpaid . As if there's unpaid sex. Go on a budget to Spain and see if you getting lucky in the equatorial line?

[@mambojazz1]

A white guy is walking around in Gambia and not one person in the video even looks at him?!🤣🤣 I cant trust this video😆!!

[@yankiefrenz1367]

why so?

[@MikeNaples]

Great trip report but c'mon Kyle, do us a Paul Harvey and tell us the rest of the story. We ain't gonna say nothin.

[@GeographyKing]

What happens in The Gambia, stays in The Gambia.

[@nursestew]

While I can appreciate your desire to maintain a sense of decorum for your videos, calling the sex trade that goes on in The Gambia "romance" is not only disingenuous but its also dangerous.

[@GeographyKing]

Although there are elements of scamming and money/control, most of what I saw was consensual adults having a good time with genuine smiles and laughs. There have also been many cases of people going there looking for short-term companionship but end up finding their true love there. There's a sinister side to everything, but I saw mostly harmless adults partying.

[@curtisgregory517]

@@GeographyKing what about the gays,,,, not any info? all other aspects very well covered, thanks.

[@emminaspannatina4758]

amazing video, thank you!!

[@user-vt1kb4xe9x]

Senegal is actually about the size of Belarus