Are you a high-quality tourist? That’s currently the question on many politicians’ lips, with countries around the world rushing to stipulate that they no longer want riff-raff crossing their borders. The edict isn’t only being handed out to stags in lobster costumes at Luton Wetherspoons, but to all entrants to The Gambia.
“What we want is quality tourists,” Abubacarr Camara, director of its tourism board, explained this week. “Tourists that come to enjoy the country and the culture, but not just tourists that come for sex.”
With the greatest of respect to Mr Camara, I can attest that there’s not an abundance of riches for visitors to enjoy in his country – and watching pairs of disturbingly age-gapped couples walk down its streets is one of fairly few things to look at. It’s unseemly, certainly, but so common as to have become a fixture in souvenir shops, with wooden figurines depicting wrinkled incomers hand-in-hand with smoothly carved young locals.
Not that I’m an expert in sex tourism you understand but isn’t The Gambia a place where it’s our ladies of and age who go to share their young men?
Ah, yes. Turning your country into a totalitarian hellhole for two years is sure to attract big spenders.
Though, it might attract a few like-minded people.
I had no idea about Gambia.
This reminds me of the mayor of Amsterdam trying to “clean up” the place by getting rid of the sex clubs, red light district and places to buy weed but the fact is that there really isn’t much else to do in Amsterdam. There’s the Anne Frank House which takes about an hour, the Nightwatch and a Rijstaffel and that’s it.
Other than hot weather and whores what does The Gambia have?
It’s not the healthiest destination for sex tourists….
While HIV prevalence among the general population in the Gambia is estimated at 1.8 percent, it remains high among key populations – 15.9 percent and 8 percent respectively among female sex workers and men who have sex with men.
Thailand has been banging the same drum for decades. There’s no real reason why the up market tourist should come here as there are no high end facilities for them to enjoy. The way things are going they’ll be lucky to get the steerage class punters back.
Yes TW you are quite right about that.
Not just our wrinkly slappers. There’s Sweden’s, Germany’s and others.
Other than hot weather and whores what does The Gambia have?
It’s donkey’s years (calm down, Rocco) since I went but the eponymous river was lovely and a few days on a river-boat from the coast into what passes as the interior – in reality just a nibble into Senegal- was lovely. At some point in the colonial past, France offered Britain Gabon in exchange for the irritating splinter sticking into their colony.
I wouldn’t come to Africa – the scenery and wildlife are great but it’s way too hot and the natives are more murderous than a South London wannabe DJ/footballer/rapper.
While HIV prevalence among the general population in the Gambia is estimated at 1.8 percent, it remains high among key populations – 15.9 percent and 8 percent respectively among female sex workers and men who have sex with men.
1.8% is high. 15.9% is astronomical. Incidence of HIV in Europe & N.America is 0.3%
I went to Wiki for HIV incidence in Europe. Except they don’t seem to want to tell you. Every country you look at gives you an different basis. Numbers in 10,000. Numbers in 100,000. With some it’s total number of cases & leaves one to look up the population & calculate. It’s also unclear in many cases whether the numbers are cumulative or current.
It’s almost as if the people who curate the entry don’t want you to know the prevalence or to be able to compare country with country. I wonder why? Next time I’ll go straight to the CIA. You can trust the CIA.
Friend of mine went back in the 90’s, but he was more interested in the wildlife (butterflies) than the sex industry.
Perhaps we should try sending boat people to Gambia rather than Rwanda.
Talking of wildlife, the Gambian 1 Dalasi coin is splendid.
but the fact is that there really isn’t much else to do in Amsterdam
Tour the mosques?
I’ve never been to Sub-Saharan Africa, but if I did I’d go hoping to find some old forgotten words or ancient melodies.
Isn’t most of the population of The Gambia descendants of slaves liberated by the West Africa Patrol? They couldn’t be returned home as they’d just be re-captured by the African slave traders who’d originally taken them, so by neccessity to preserve their liberation they were taken to British possessions.
Swedish documentaries about sex tourism in Gambia mention only Swedish men buying sex. And I’m sure it happens. But Swedish women going black is against the narrative so not useful for propaganda purposes.
Kjerulf – Swedes are masochist perverts tho. A fatwa on the lot of them.
Brit grannies told to stop holidaying in Gambia and look for toy boys elsewhere
https://www.mirror.co.uk/news/world-news/brit-grannies-told-stop-holidaying-27773296
Only been to the capital – faded British colonial plus slums, but lovely beaches. Ten years ago there was nothing to do away from the hotels except a huge market (best tie-dye anywhere) and a kind of petting zoo for fat lethargic crocodiles (much nicer than the lean, hungry ones, I guess). Visible sex trade seemed all gray haired European ladies and strapping 20-something male locals, hand-in-hand on the beach. Overall, and assuming you’re not a 75 year old German woman, it wouldn’t be worth the journey, or even the detour, but if you have business there and don’t mind a peaceful weekend, it’s all right.