The Fathala Wildlife Reserve is located 12 kilometres north of the Gambia-Senegal border in Senegal. You will be picked up early in the morning from your hotel and head to Banjul, the capital city where you'll board the ferry to Barra and experience the hustle and bustle with the local people. After approximately one hour cruising on the River Gambia, you reach Barra to continue driving through numerous villages before reaching Amdalaye/Karang, the Gambia-Senegal border for passport formalities.

From there you enter Senegal to drive for approximately 30 minutes to reach the Fathala Park. At Fathala, a 4x4 ex-army truck will be waiting for you to start a 2-hour safari within the park. In the reserve, you can enjoy the natural environment of the bush and get the chance to spot animals as zebras, rhinoceros, giraffes, monkey and many more. After that you can enjoy a nice pizza lunch of your choice and a drink before departing back to the border to catch the ferry to Banjul.

Great guide, good knowledge and experience. Ferry service great on the new ship, old ship not so great and a long wait at security

Felt like the guide just wanted to get back home and all felt very rushed

Having to wait 2 hours for the ferry

We were collected from the hotel at 7 am, breakfast wasn’t served until 7 which TUI would have known. It took 5 hours to reach the safari park where we then started the 2 hour safari. We did see most of the animals in the park and the tour itself was ok. We were then finally given some food - pizza!! We are in The Gambia - why not something slightly more authentic. It then took a further 3 hours to get back to our hotel. We came away from the very long trip feeling like we had wasted a day.

The hotel was lovely the room great food nice. Staff friendly. Trip well worth it especially the safari. AirPort terrible what a shambles people pushing shoving shouting. No organisation at all utter chaos. Why you have to put cases through a scanner before exiting airport is beyond me no one checked them just seemed to be a pointless exercise to cause mayhem. people pushing, pushing in, shouting abuse at people. Just to get cases on and off not a good first impression of Gambia

Guide was very knowledgeable and helpful

Why you’ll love this…

Take your trip off-road aboard a 4x4 jeep
Feel the thrill of seeing wildlife up close
A perfect experience for kids - spark their imaginations

Important to know

Remember to bring:

It is recommended to bring water, wear sunglasses, sunscreen, a hat, and comfortable shoes
You will need to present a valid passport
Yellow fever vaccine proof is a must

Cancellation policy

Receive a 100% refund if you cancel up to 48 hours before the experience begins.

What’s included

Entrance fees
Lunch
Guided tour
Transportation in air-conditioned coach
Hotel pick-up and drop-off

Booking fee

Good news! No extra fees are applied to this booking.

Location

Meeting point:

Pick-up available from selected hotels in Serrekunda. You'll meet the driver outside the reception area at the scheduled time. The first pick-up will be from Coco Ocean Hotel at 6.25 am followed by the next stops every 5/10 minutes: Holiday Beach Club 6.35 am, Senegambia Beach Hotel 6.35 am, Bamboo Garden Resort 6.45 am, African Princess Beach Hotel 6.50 am, Tamala Beach Resort 6.50 am, Sunset Beach Hotel 7.00 am, Bakotu Hotel 7.00 am, Kombo Beach Resort 7.00 am, Ngala Lodge 7.10 am, Ocean Bay Hotel & Spa 7.15 am, Sunbeach Hotel & Resort 7.15 am.

Provider

Gambia Tours

What people say about this experience

4/5

All reviews are verified

Based on 70 reviews

Review categories

Safety

5/5

Service

5/5

Staff

5/5

Value for money

5/5

All ratings (70)

5 stars (24)

34%

4 stars (30)

43%

3 stars (12)

17%

2 stars (3)

1 star (1)

M
Maria and Tony
Travelled as a couple
23 April 2026
4.2
United Kingdom
Great guide, good knowledge and experience. Ferry service great on the new ship, old ship not so great and a long wait at security
L
Liam
Solo traveller
18 April 2026
2.2
United Kingdom
Felt like the guide just wanted to get back home and all felt very rushed
R
Ry
Travelled as a couple
22 March 2026
4.6
United Kingdom
Having to wait 2 hours for the ferry
S
Sarah
18 February 2026
1.8
United Kingdom
We were collected from the hotel at 7 am, breakfast wasn’t served until 7 which TUI would have known. It took 5 hours to reach the safari park where we then started the 2 hour safari. We did see most of the animals in the park and the tour itself was ok. We were then finally given some food - pizza!! We are in The Gambia - why not something slightly more authentic. It then took a further 3 hours to get back to our hotel. We came away from the very long trip feeling like we had wasted a day.
S
Suzanne
Travelled as a couple
16 January 2026
5
United Kingdom
The hotel was lovely the room great food nice. Staff friendly. Trip well worth it especially the safari. AirPort terrible what a shambles people pushing shoving shouting. No organisation at all utter chaos. Why you have to put cases through a scanner before exiting airport is beyond me no one checked them just seemed to be a pointless exercise to cause mayhem. people pushing, pushing in, shouting abuse at people. Just to get cases on and off not a good first impression of Gambia
J
Jobro62
Travelled as a couple
10 January 2026
5
United Kingdom
Guide was very knowledgeable and helpful