Also in this section:

Before you go

Transportation

Money

Communication

Travel agencies

Health and Safety:

Two vaccinations are required to enter Benin: yellow fever and cholera. The average traveller will also need to be immunized against hepatitis and typhoid. Depending upon your length of stay and travel plans, you may want to consider vaccinations against tuberculosis, tetanus, meningitis and polio. For information from the CDC (Center for Disease Control and Prevention) on vaccinations for American travellers, click here. Travellers should also take precautions to guard against malaria while in West Africa; ask your doctor to obtain preventive medication.

Foreign travellers to Benin should be aware of basic precautions they can take to ensure their good health. These include drinking bottled water only, unless it has been boiled; bottled water is available readily in most locations throughout Benin. If you are traveling in more remote locations and can't find bottled water, the water should be boiled for at least three minutes before drinking, or it can be purified with iodine tablets. Ice should be avoided, as you can't be sure it has been made from boiled water.