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City, department and commune of the Republic of the Congo
Photo: David Stanley, Public domain via Wikimedia Commons
Pointe-Noire is the second largest city of the Republic of the Congo. It is a major sea port and a tourist destination. The town has a very French feel to it because of the colonial past and the large number of French expatriates and tourists.
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Musée du Cercle Africain de Pointe-Noire
A great repository of African masks, plus sculpture and painting. Souvenir shop is on the premises too.
Housed in a former royal palace, displays artifacts (weapons, baskets, etc) pertaining to tribal life and the history of the region of the Republic of the Congo.
Just outside Pointe Noire, there's the spectacular Diosso gorges. One can negotiate a taxi for the day to go there and forth. Local village boys have barred the route to the lookout point and ask about FCFA 2000 pp for entrance.
The premiere beach of Pointe-Noire with pretty sand but a little bit contentious as far as surf, theft, and safety (at night) go. Be careful going barefoot too due to broken glass.
Jane Goodall's chimpanzee sanctuary for rescued primates who have been caught up in illegal bushmeat trade. May be able to arrange tour.
A five-hour drive (in the dry season) North of Pointe Noire, near the Gabonese border is the vast and relatively scarcely visited national park of Conkouati-Douli. Elephants, gorillas and chimpanzees can be seen here. Be sure to strenuously ask your guide to do a tour of the Ngongo river as late as possible and to go down the river with the engine turned off to see elephants and gorillas.
Typical French patisserie, which has some excellent patisseries, cakes and fresh orange juice
Typical bakery that also serves shawarma, sandwiches and kebab, for good prices, Shawarma is around FCFA 2000, try the Chocolate Bread (Pain de Chocolat) ~ FCFA 500.
Home delivery and also sit-in restaurant. Very good pizza and Hamburger. The fish burger (as of 2012) is particularly good with a thick chunk of fresh grilled fish topped with cheese, tomato slice and lettuce. Ordering at home will cost you extra FCFA 2000 for shipment, they work very fast in about 20 minutes you have it at your door
Best place in town for eating, prices are very good about FCFA 5500 will give you the daily menu, It is mostly for oil industry people, but anyone can eat there. However, it does get crowded during meal times hence come early. Certainly a recommended place as of 2012.
Very good fish and chicken on a stick, French type on the sidewalk restaurant, very fresh and tasty food. Do not go to bathroom since it is dirty, chicken is clean.
ClubNautique
Restaurant co-located with the Pointe Noire Yacht Club. Covered terrace overlooking the water. Most of the patrons are expatriates. Large selection of pizzas, also meat and fish dishes. Nice atmosphere.
Reasonably good hotel with pool. Right next to the beach. Rooms in the old block start at FCFA 80,000, nearly double that in the new block. WiFi is available in some areas - FCFA 2000 per hour.
Beachfront hotel with popular bar-restaurant on ground-level with direct access to the beach. More formal restaurant on upper level. Large choice of pizza and pasta dishes as well as various fish and meat dishes. Extra charge for side dishes, such as vegetables (string beans), fried plantains or rice. Hotel rooms are comfortable, roughly equivalent to a two- or three-star hotel in Europe. Free Wi-Fi internet access for hotel guests. Listening to the waves crashing on the beach is a real pleasure. It is also fun to watch the surfers from the beachfront terrace.
By train
La Gazelle train links Pointe-Noire with Dolisie and the capital Brazzaville every other day.
By car
Roads inside the town are in good condition. However, outside of the town they may be impassible to anything less than a 4 wheel drive vehicle.
By bus
By boat
There are no scheduled passenger ferries to Pointe-Noire.
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Pointe Noire · International · PNR
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