Kololi

The longest-established of the resorts fringing The Gambia's sun-bleached Atlantic coastline, Kololi is a mixed bag of dignified, low-rise hotels and rustic guesthouses jumbled together with tourist-trap restaurants and brash nightspots. The quarter known as the Senegambia area, a development hotspot, is the hub of The Gambia's mainstream tourist industry; in peak season its main road is busy with vendors, taxi drivers and touts, all vying for the attention of the sunburnt tourists who come here to eat and drink. A little inland is quiet, leafy Kololi Village, and to the north is the Palma Rima area, with a great beach and more tourist hotels.

Kololi is one of The Gambia's most popular holiday resorts, attracting sunseekers of all ages - particularly British singles and couples on package tours, but also Germans and Scandinavians. November to March are the busiest months.

Situated on the Atlantic coast, 13km (8 miles) from the airport, Kololi is west of Banjul, the capital, and Serrekunda, the largest town. To the north are the towns of Kotu, Fajara and Bakau, while the area to the south is dotted with quiet rural villages.

Kololi's beach is a generous sweep of sand that's almost entirely man-made: tidal erosion sweeps away sections of the shore on a regular basis. Gambian beaches are common ground and sunbathers share the sand with local youths fishing, jogging, working out or peddling fresh juice; there's plenty of room for all. The beach hotels provide sun-loungers, shades and attendants for their clientele and tend to keep their patch clean. Powerful currents occasionally make the sea unsafe for swimming: it's important to heed local advice.

Kololi has a tiny nature reserve, the Bijilo Forest Park, graced by attractive palm trees and dense shrubs. Red colobus and vervet monkeys are easy to spot here - they're wild but surprisingly tame, thanks to thoughtless tourists feeding them titbits. On a sandy backstreet in Kololi Village is the Village Gallery, an interesting, right-on local venture which showcases art and photography from The Gambia and elsewhere in West Africa.

All the main resort hotels have outdoor swimming pools and basic childcare facilities and Gambians are extremely welcoming towards youngsters, but nonetheless Kololi is best suited to families who can make do without an abundance of conventional child-oriented attractions.

Most of Kololi's shops and mini-markets are unashamedly touristy but among the tacky souvenirs you may find some interesting beads, jewellery and locally-made clothing. Look out for the books, albums and greetings cards made from recycled paper by an Anglo-Gambian craft cooperative. The craft market in the Senegambia area is a good place to browse for drums or batiks or to commission a tailor to make you an embroidered shirt or dress.

Kololi's Senegambia ‘strip' is the closest The Gambia gets to a nightlife hotspot, with a clutch of late-opening bars, many of them with tiny, sweaty dancefloors. You could never call it classy but if a loud night out is your kind of thing, it's a lot of fun.

Kololi has a range of tourist-oriented restaurants offering everything from pizza to Thai curry; most are reasonably priced and one or two are excellent. New places open fairly frequently but all too many of them compromise on quality: if you're handed a long menu of cheap international-style dishes, don't expect too much. For the freshest food around, head for one of the beach bars where the fish is bought and cooked to order.

Kololi is easy to explore on foot but minor roads are not well lit at night so it's best to have a reliable local guide escort you. Alternatively, take a cab: the main hotels have ranks from which you can hire a ‘tourist taxi' for a fixed price, including wait-and-return if required. On the main highway you can sometimes flag down a ‘local taxi': these operate like buses, covering fixed routes and picking people up on request. Local taxis also take private bookings.

Head down to Tanji, where you can watch fishermen haul their brightly-painted canoes onto the shore, or follow the coast south to explore the attractive beaches near Gunjur, Sanyang and Kartong. The wetlands and palm groves of nearby Kotu are excellent for birdwatching, and nature-lovers should also try an early-morning visit to the Abuko Nature Reserve or Pirang Forest Park, both a short journey away. Local tour operators offer enjoyable day trips to James Island and the Makasutu Culture Forest, cruises through the mangrove creeks near Lamin, and eye-opening visits to local villages, schools and clinics.

The Coconut Residence (Kerr Serign), one of Kololi's top-end hotels, is a little oasis of grandeur set well back from the beach. The restaurant here is one of the country's best, and definitely worth a splurge. Or swap the busy resort area for a luxury wilderness retreat: treat yourself to a stopover at Mandina Lodge near Brikama or enquire about Sandele, the new high-spec eco-lodge near Kartong.

Banjul International Airport, Yundum (BJL)