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Island in the lower Gambia River
Photo: Jose Canedo, CC BY-SA 1.0 via Wikimedia Commons
Kunta Kinteh Island, formerly called James Island, is an island in the Gambia River, 30 km from the river mouth. The island and some nearby areas are on the UNESCO World Heritage List because they have important relics of the West African slave trade. In Alex Haley's book and TV series Roots, Kunta Kinteh is brought by slave ship from this island to Maryland in the US.
You are most likely to visit the island as parts of a "Roots" tour. You can go there on cruise up the centre of the wide Gambia river, towards the former French trading post of Albreda and the village of Juffureh.
Read in the guideThe island is small and, alas, getting even smaller, so you will get around on foot.
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Banjul (Yundum) · International · BJL
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