You'll need your own car to get there, but Cap Verga has one of the best beaches in Guinea, about half way between Boffa and Boké. You can rent a hut for about US$1 a day, and you can arrange reasonably priced meals with local people. The nearest place for provisions is Kakadie, about 5km (3mi) along the beach. Cap Verga is deserted for most of the week, but comes alive at weekends with expatriates working the bauxite mines inland.The beach is about 150km (93mi) north-east of Conakry, and you need your own 4WD to get there as the road is rough and no buses even try it.

Sometimes called Mali-ville to distinguish it from the country, Mali is the highest town in the Fouta Djalon. It has cool temperatures and exquisite views, and is ideal for hiking. Mt Loura (1538m, 5044ft) is 7km (4.3mi) north of town and worth seeing, and so is La Dame de Mali, a legendary rock a few km further on.Mali is 120km (74mi) along an unmade road from Labé, and you get there by bush taxi. It is about 400km (248mi) north-east of Conakry.

In the far south-eastern corner of Guinea, nuzzling up to the border with Liberia, Nzérékoré is a major city in Guinea's forest country. It's also a smuggler's paradise and an important transport hub, with connections to Liberia (don't go until the war's over) and Côte d'Ivoire. Around the market are most of the black-market money changers, but there is a bank if you want to do it legit.Nzérékoré is about 800km (496mi) by sealed and unsealed road from Conakry, and about a day's travelling to Man in Côte d'Ivoire.

The town of Foroknia, just north of the Sierra Leone border, is only 7km (4.3mi) from the source of the Niger. The river flows north from here to Bamako before doing a giant arc through Mali and Niger to finally dip to the south through Nigeria and on to the sea. Reaching Foroknia, though, is not easy, and until recently locals even used Sierra Leonean money as they had more contact with Leoneans than with Guineans. Public transport is still limited, even though the dirt road has been upgraded. The border region is potentially sensitive, and the whole area is sacred to local people. Usually, a local guide to take you to les sources costs around US$2.Foroknia is 72km (44.6mi) from the main road between Faranah and Kissidougou, about 550km (341mi) from Conakry. Your best chance of getting there is via truck from Faranah market.