Conakry has a strong African flavour. If you stroll around the streets on a Sunday you're likely to come across a street celebration, with groups of men playing local instruments and people dancing. The city squats on a narrow peninsula, which puts the sea very close on three sides, but gives it no room to grow. Consequently, its northern spread makes it difficult to travel from one end to the other, particularly as the traffic is heavy. The main north-south street is the Autoroute, called the Route du Niger closer to the centre and the Ave de la République in the heart of town. It's been attractively landscaped, and clustered around it are the banks, airline offices and plenty of restaurants.The Musée National has a reasonable collection of masks, statues and musical instruments on display in one large room, with free entrance. The Palais de l'OUA was going to be the venue for the OAU conference until Sekou Touré died, and it now serves as the office of the president. Don't go near it at night as you're not allowed there and the guards on duty are reportedly quick to shoot. Opposite the palace are 50 identical moorish-style villas, now used as offices by international organisations like UNICEF, the IMF and the World Bank. The Palais du Peuple is a huge, Chinese-built auditorium at the northern end of the Route du Niger, and is the home of the two national ballet troupes.The Îles de Los are a group of small islands five to 10km (3 to 6mi) south-west of town, and are popular on Sundays and public holidays. You can hire a motorised pirogue from the beach near the Novotel to get there.There's little in the way of cheap accommodation in Conakry (it starts at about US$25 per person), and the few attractions may not hold your interest for long. Street crime in Conakry has also increased considerably, particularly around the central Marché du Niger, so you should always be on your guard. Unfortunately, the Marché is one of the best places to get street food, although there are several budget restaurants around the centre of town. If you decide to skip Conakry altogether, Coyah, about 50km (31mi) to the north, has reasonable rooms and generally lacks the hassle of the capital.

At night Faranah comes alive with several cafes and restaurants serving drinks and cheap meals. President Sekou Touré was from the area and the town benefited immensely from his patronage. It has wide boulevards, and he had built a conference centre, a large mosque and an impressive private villa, (now used as a hotel, and it's very good value). On Mondays the large market is particularly lively. Faranah is only 150km (93mi) from the source of the Niger River. The town is about 420km (260mi) east of Conakry by sealed road, and the best way there is by bus.

This plateau is in the heartland of Guinea's Fula population, and is an area of beautiful green hills and 1000m (3280ft) peaks. It is far cooler than the lowlands and is one of the best places for hiking in West Africa. The town of Mamou is sometimes called 'the gateway to the Fouta Djalon', and is small and lively and has an open-air cinema. The vicinity of the theatre is also a great place for good street food.Dalaba is on the main route from Mamou and an excellent base for day hikes into the surrounding country. It was a therapeutic centre for the French because of its fresh, 1000m (3280ft) altitude, and on the outskirts of town is the Centre d'Accueil where the hot and bothered colonials would go to put their feet up and sip cool drinks. It's the best place for information on hikes in the surrounding area.After Dalaba is the small town of Pita, where the major attraction is the chutes de Kinkon, waterfalls that are worth visiting for the lovely walk through small villages and hills. The town of Labé is at the end of the tarred road from Conakry, and is Guinea's third-largest town. Its centre is on a hill, where the market and most of its stores are.The Fouta Djalon begins at Mamou, 220km (136mi) north-east of Conakry by good sealed road. The best way to get there is by bus or bush taxi, and the journey takes five to six hours.

Guéckédou is near the borders of Sierra Leone and Liberia and is a major smuggling centre. The Wednesday market is enormous, with traders from all over Guinea as well as from Sierra Leone, Liberia, Côte d'Ivoire and Mali. You can buy virtually anything there and exchange several types of currency, and the market is unique in that it has the only functioning public toilet in Guinea. The town itself is not much to speak of, but it has several reasonable hotels.Guéckédou is around 700km (434mi) south-east of Conakry. The road is tarred all the way, and you can go by bus or bush taxi.

Not a naughty French dance but Guinea's second city, Kankan is also a spiritual home to Guinea's Malinké (Mandinka) people. Even as far away as Senegal and the Gambia, the Malinké see it as a sort of capital, and many have relatives there. It was capital of the former Mali Empire, but these days it's very quiet. The main sights are the open market with its arched entrances, the covered market and the Grande Mosquée. The caretaker will show you around the mosque for a small fee, and you should visit the small sculpture workshop opposite. Also worth a look is the old presidential palace overlooking the Milo River.Kankan is 500km (310mi) east of Conakry, and you can make the journey by bus in one run or by bush taxi in stages.

Kindia is a good one-day excursion from Conakry if you have your own wheels, but a possible stopover if you're on public transport. Strip-cloth weavers work in the area, and you can visit their workshop behind the old railway station. Nearby is an indigo dyeing centre and a cloth market, one of the largest in Guinea. The Bridal Falls (La Voile de la Mariée) is the main attraction at Kindia, 14km (8.6mi) outside of town, but is only worth visiting during the rainy season, when the flowing water resembles a bridal veil. You can get meals for around US$5 at a small restaurant nearby and can rent a bungalow there as well.Kindia is about 140km (87mi) from Conakry. The road is paved all the way, and buses and minibuses ply the route regularly.