Corinthia Atlantic Hotel

The Gambia was a treat to visit, but quite a culture shock at first. Had lots of fun bird watching, fishing and mixing with the locals in and around the villages. Banjul is the capital city of the Gambia, with all the countries government bulidings and trade. The Atlantic is the only big hotel in the area and so there is little tourist acivities in the area. Due to this the atlantic has really got the market for meals, with only really one other restaurant to visit locally called Michelles. The buffet restaurent is below average, the outside restaurent was terrible, the service was very poor, taking an age for the food to arrive and then if you were lucky you would get the right meal. The gataux of the day was alway nice though. Generally the rooms were very nice, although we were with out hot water for almost a week, but the staff did have a look at it every day, what ever that means?. In the end they finally agreed for us to move to another room. It's also best not to relie on the reception desk for a wake up call, or else you will be having a lot of lie ins. All in all the hotel looked very nice, but any problems could never be sorted out. If you want a nice easy holiday go to another hotel in the gambia. Lucikly i was out of the hotel everyday so all the problems i had with the hotel didn't ruin the holiday to much but if i was going to be staying around the hotel eveyday i think i would have had one of the worst holidays i had ever had.

I spent half my trip in Banjul at the Corinthia Atlantic. This was the one hotel where you were not constantly harrassed by bumsters. The staff was more than pleasant & sincerely happy to see someone from the U.S. (not many Americans make the trek). The one complaint that other guests had was that the staff was not accomodating. Guess what?... you're in their country. Don't expect for them to adapt to you -- you're in a different country for the cultural experience so enjoy it & find out what makes them tick. Standards of conduct differ & compared to many other African countries I've been to the Gambians are far & above the nicest. That said, my only complaint was that the food was below average when they tried to cook what one would expect to see in Britain or other areas of Europe. When you ordered the local food (or the local food was on the buffet) it was exquisite. On my next trip I will spend my entire trip at this hotel.

I think there must be two Corinthian Atlantic hotels in Banjul, as I have just returned from a shabby place where you could not even go on the beach for bumpsters trying everyway possible to get money from you, it was impossible to leave the hotel without paying someone to go with you, and there was not anywhere around that you would want to go anyway. The hotel staff seemed to be constantly argueing among themselves and didn't have much time for the few guest's that were in the hotel. I don't know if it would be that much better in the high season, seemed like the hotel mainly catered for business men that tourist's. I certainly wouldn't want to go back there and as for the 4* rating I think it should be more like 2*.

This is the 2nd year running that we have enjoyed holidaying at this hotel. We arrived on March 16th 06 and It is fantastic, the staff, especially Malang, Yancouba and all the entertainment Team are brilliant. Can't wait to go back as I have never enjoyed a hiliday so much. Love you all Beve & Gordon Turke & Wendy & Melvyn Kettel

I have just returned from a week at the Corinthia Atlantic hotel and can honestly say it was one of the best holidays I have ever had. What made it great was that it was so different. It was my first time in the Gambia (I went with my mum) and I had absolutely no idea what to expect. Of course I had read a lot of reviews on this website but I don't think anything can prepare you for the Gambia experience! Firstly, May is an extremely good time to travel there. They call it the low-season (high-season is in December/January) but the weather is just fantastic (33 degrees every day) and you don't get hoardes of other people crammed around the hotel swimming pool. The rainy season doesn't start until June, which is when the weather gets extremely humid and unpleasant, but May is just perfect. The one disadvantage, perhaps, of going in the low season, is that there are extremely slim pickings for the bumsters outside the hotel, and thus there is likely to be a scramble for your attention/conversation every time you step ouside. Do NOT let this put you off. I would like to reiterate what many people on this site have said and that is that the bumsters are not threatening in any way. Yes, they might want to make a bit of money out of you, but if they end up doing something useful for you during your stay then there is no harm in that. Generally, they are full of life and laughter and never stop smiling. I took the advice of people on this site and went to a juice bar on the first day. There, we made friends with two bumsters (though they frown upon that term as they are employed as juice makers!) Boucarr and Sanchez. I think we were lucky as these guys turned out to be incredibly helpful and informative about all aspects of life in the Gambia. Boucarr even invited us to his compound where we met and ate with his entire family. They also took us to the Albert Market in Banjul (a must, where you can snap up wood carvings, khaftans, african print hand bags, cocoa butter body creams, wonderfully fresh fruit and lots lots more) and accompanied us to James Island. We travelled with the Gambia Experience who offer the Roots (aka James Island) trip for £37 each. We ended up paying about £17 all in and were safely chaperoned by Boucarr and Sanchez. We did also try one of the hotel's official guides, who you can hire for a whole (about £6) or half a day (£3), but we found him rather objectionable and not particularly interested in showing us around so we decided to stick with the bumsters! We also, thanks to this website, had taken pens and paper etc with us and wanted to take them to a school where it would really make a difference. We ended up going to church there - a fantastic and uplifting experience , especially if you want to meet genuine Gambians - and were recommended a school, JCF primary, by the priest. The kids there were so excited to see us and the teachers were delighted with our donation. We felt sad that we could not give more, but every little helps. The one disadvantage of staying in the Atlantic - where the swimming pool, table tennis, tennis, beach, pool, gym, beauty salon and numerous other facilities are all first class - is its location. Despite being the captial, Banjul is hardly the heartbeat of the Gambia, with only 50,000 residents. Most people tend to live in Serrekundar, which is only 20 minutes away by bush taxi (again, take a couple of friends with you or you would never make it!) and has a population of about 300,000. There is only one restaurant outside the hotel which is worth mentioning and that is Michel's, about a 10-minute walk away, but you will find the novelty soon wears off. We visited the tourist area of Senengambia on a couple of evenings, which is much more what you would expect of a resort, with numerous cafes and bars and a much more cosmopolitan feel. Beers here are only 25 dalassis (50p) and a litre of wine was 200 (£4!) so it's definitely worth a visit. If you don't want to take a bush taxi, you can always hail a tourist taxi from outside the hotel, the rates of which are listed in reception so as to avoid any rip-off attempts. Think it was about 500 (£10) there are back from the Atlantic, whereas the bush version are only 5 dalassis. Neither my mum or I suffered from the dreaded Banjul belly and had no side effects from our malerone tablets. Gambian food is delicious, typical dishes are domada (chicken, beef or fish in a peanut sauce served with rice) or benachin (rice with vegetables and meat all boiled together in one pot). The breakfast at the hotel was also impressive and I can highly recommend the omlettes! If you want to and are brave enough to try the more exotic range of local food there are a plethora of street-food stalls in and around the market. Perfect climate, wonderful people, stunning scenery, delicious food, first class hotels, the Gambia has a lot to offer and I hope you enjoy it as much as we did.

just arrived home from the corinthia hotel and i would go back tommorrow if i could. the hotel is fantastic the staff are great, always happy to help and with a smile. the hotel is clean and the food is of a good standard. I travelled alone (female) and i was told by friends and family i was stupid before i went because i would not be safe.. WHAT RUBBISH... i felt safer in the gambia than in the uk.. ok the bumsters can be a bit of a pain but an easy tip is not to promise you will go and see them.. if its a no.. tell them and tell them why.. they soon get the message. top tip use the official guides they are great and they stop you getting any grief. I went out twice with Karamo and he was fantastic.. go up the arch if you can the views are amazing. The bush and beach trip which takes in a school and a village is a very hubling experience.. take pens and paper and even childrens books. a dont do.... dont stay by the pool all day its an amazing country with amazing people and its a crime to endure the long flight and miss all that.. i made some great friends and i had the best holiday ever the only problem i have now is how soon i can get back. Gambia is a very poor country 3rd world.. they need their tourist industry to grow so take that chance try somewhere different i dont think you will be disopointed.

Just returned from the Atlantic hotel in Gambia, and it definitely gets the thumbs up! The hotel is clean, pretty good food, and all the staff are extremely helpful and polite.What amazed me was the amount of people who just camped by the pool from dawn till dusk frying themselves by the pool in the glorious sun, thats fine if you want to pay all your money just to do that, but what a waste, there's so much to see and do and experience outside of the hotel. I have read reviews and heard people say the Bumsters on the beach and outside of the hotel are nuisances this, that and the other, if you let them annoy you that's your own fault! the bumsters are fine, they are part of the Gambian experience, if you take time to speak to them they are really just doing a job, you can banter with them, the only way they pester you is if you promise them, like you will be back later or see you tomorrow I promise! a promise is a promise to them! and believe me, they will remember what you said, your name, etc etc. I agree the best way if you want to explore around and about, is see one of the guys at the front of the hotel, they are what I would call 'Official Bumsters'they are employed by the hotel to look after guests when the guests want to go out and about and explore but can feel safe, they are easy to identify they usually are on the steps of the main reception entrance dressed in a yellow shirt and blue trousers. We hooked up with a guy called Speedy Seedy, he was a legend, very polite, good english and knew Banjul and Gambia for that matter, like the back of his hand. Speedy took us to Albert Market one morning about 10 mins walk for a real Gambian experience, and also took us on several trips that the holiday company didn't do, and he accompanied us on them all. Agree what you want to do beforehand, and agree a price, and agree the price is for everything, his fees, taxi, entrance to say the parks, Speedy always gave us an all in price, and we just paid him when we got back to the hotel. One trip we went on, was to 2 parks, and bit of a tour of th villages, all in all about 5 hours and it cost us about £25 all in, a bargain, and Speedy was like a tour guide pointing out things and was there to answer questions. All in all a great holiday and if you do anything, do the trip to the school, a very moving experience, including the journey to the school going through the local villages, just seeing the children running out of the homes or coming from side streets just to wave to you, will bring a tear to the eye, and I'm not an emotional person! So go, but get out of the hotel a bit and see an amazing country and the kindest people I have ever met in my life - All in all Loved it!

Hi All well just come back from Banjul earlier this morning and as i read a lot of reviews on this site before i left uk i thought i had better return favour and leave mine. Corinthia Atlantic- Lovely Clean Hotel the staff could not be more Friendly or Helpfull. I have read lots of reviews regarding Bar and Food are UK prices. CORRECT THEY ARE. Top TIP 1 ) Use the Mini Bar for some unknown reason the Mini Bar is cheaper by far than the bar Mini Bar for a bottle of Beer is 35D the Bars for same bottle is 80D. Same sort of differance for Soft Drinks and water. Top Tip 2 ) You may have read on other reviews that Michells (5 min walk from Hotel) is a lot cheaper for Food again it is run by lovely and freindly people but for about 250D extra you can eat a lovely meal in the hotel alcarte resturant who will look after you very well. We stayed for a week and took it turns between the 2 places. If you are on areal econamy towards the end of your stay i would advise that you use the room service meals and lunches at pool side are big servings. BUMSTERS vs Hotel Guides. You will get hassled by Bumsters (local unemployed) but they do not mean any harm and are friendly but me and the wife by the third day gota little bored of same conversations (Top Man, Boss Lady, where in uk you from, we love the english etc etc) We used both of the above during our stay and i would have to say the hotel guides are 100% better for 1/2 day it costs you 150d for hotel guide and for a full day it costs 400d. A bumster is looking for about 100-200d for abouta hours work. The bumster we used although very nice by the end of the holiday he became slightly overbearing and started begging for my t,shirt and jeans etc etc, Top Tip 3 Hotel guides although not paid by hotel have had a security check by local police and military to ensure they have no record and are checked on a monthly basis (sort of mystery customer thing) DO NOT BE SCARED BY BUMSTERS THEY WILL NOT HARM YOU. All on all Gambia is a beautiful cplace and is full of lovely happy people. although 3rd world by the way you are treated you would not guess it. Final Tip - Go on excursions to Schools and out of reach places you will see the real people but take lots of pens and pencils and lollys. Hope the above helps

My wife and I have just returned for a first visit to Gambia, staying at the Atlantic Hotel, Banjul. Overall the Hotel was good, but is more like a 3 star rather than it's 4 star rating. As expected we found the local "bumsters" a nuisance and the best way was to try and ignore them where possible - they're like mobile beggars. Movement for any distance outside the hotel needed a "guide" who was your minder and then you were not pestered. We went on two organised trips - "Roots" and a Bird watching trip. I'm not sure just how authentic the Roots trip was but was good to visit a local village. The bird-watching trip is excellent if you can get up early and you do see some unusual birds. Tips if you are going for the first time :- * Take lots of £1 and 50p coins for tipping especially when you arrive there. * Take football programmes and memorabilia - especially Premier League and you will be very popular. I took Man U programmes and should have taken more. * Take pencils, crayons and balloons for children.

Returned two days ago from the Corinthia Atlantic Hotel after my first trip to The Gambia. If you're looking for a relaxing, stress-free holiday then this is for you. I travelled with Manos (part of the Direct Holidays groups which includes Air Tours, Panorama etc) and although the flight was 6 hours from Manchester there was no entertainment on the Astraeus Boeing 737 - take a good book or sleep! The hotel is large and there are lots of places inside to escape the sun if you wish. They did try quite hard to put on events in the days for everyone -both young and older from pool aerobics to children's sand painting pictures. The rooms are well appointed and comfortable - all with air conditioning (no extra charge for this) and mini bar which you have to ask to be stocked upon arrival if you want to use this. I found it useful to keep bottled water cool. UK 13amp square pin plugs here although the power does goes off several times a day for a few minutes. Food is generally good and if you want the "English Breakfast" it's available each day with eggs cooked to order how you like them. I preferred the healthier option of the continental style buffet which offers fresh fruit, yoghurt, good brown bread ("plastic" sliced white also available). Dinner in the self-service restaurant varies each evening but there is always a good salad bar available along with a variety of hot dishes too. The a la carte restaurant is worth a visit also - air conditioned and quiet - and if you're on half-board they deduct 400 Dalasis (c£8.00) from the bill - try the Barracuda it's excellent! I went on two excursions - Roots River cruise; a whole day trip to Albreda, Juffureh and St James' Island(see other reviewer below for this too) and Breakfast with the Birds - this one's a 5.15am start from the hotel but well worth the adventure - being paddled up the river Gambia for an hour then breakfast in a wooden shack at Lamin Lodge - watch the Green Velvet Monkeys - they'll have your breakfast if you don't watch out! After breakfast you're taken on a walk around the rice paddy fields (dry in April) and see some of the bird life - this time I saw 3 kinds of Kingfisher, Beeaters, Vultures, Hornbills, Golden Oriole, Egrets, Senegal Parrots to name but a few. Overall, a great trip for those wanting some pure relaxation along with a couple of trips if you want. Don't be put off by stories of the Bumsters -I met one on my first day who walked and talked with me for over 2 hours showing me round Banjul - there was no hard sting or demand for money as such - he pointed out that he needed to buy powdered baby milk but couldn't afford today - a scam, sure, he never actually asked me for it - of course I gave him what he said it cost - 350 Dalasis (clearly not true) but I'd had a guided tour for two hours for about £9.00. His name was Bob (Abdul really) and on the following day when I went to the market for fruit he saw me and walked again - shooing away other Bumsters. After I'd got my fruit he took me back to the hotel - no charge this time - it seems that once you made a friend it last the whole time you're there - he even invited me to his house to see his new-born son. Do give The Gambia a try - they need the tourism - average wage is about £20.00/month.