What to wear in Ghana

The mistake most visitors make

Visitors to Ghana consistently pack too little clothing and too much of the wrong kind, arriving with safari gear and beachwear for a country where people dress smartly, cover more than you expect and change clothes more often than you do at home. Ghana is hot, but it is not casual.

The standard in a Ghanaian city is neat. Office workers in Accra wear shirts and proper shoes in thirty-degree heat. Traders at Makola are well turned out. Going to church, to a funeral, to a government office or to someone's house in shorts and a vest marks you as careless rather than relaxed, and it changes how you are treated at the counter.

The second error is quantity. You will sweat through two or three changes a day in the humid months, and red dust will find every light-coloured item you own. Packing four outfits for a fortnight means doing laundry constantly, which is fine if your accommodation has housekeeping and awkward if it does not.

The third is fabric. Polyester and heavy synthetics are miserable here, and a lot of technical travel clothing falls into that category. Cotton, linen and light viscose move air and dry reasonably. That single substitution matters more than any brand of anything.

Heat, humidity and what fabric actually does

Choose loose, light, natural fabrics in light colours, because Ghana's heat is usually humid rather than dry and your clothes have to let sweat evaporate. Cotton is the default, linen is better still if you accept the creasing, and light viscose or rayon works well for women's dresses.

Loose beats tight for a physical reason: air moving between fabric and skin is what cools you. A close-fitting technical t-shirt in Accra humidity becomes a wet layer stuck to your back, whereas a loose cotton shirt keeps working. Ghanaian men's shirts are cut generously for exactly this reason.

Colour matters at the margins. Light colours reflect heat, but they also show the orange-red dust that gets on everything outside the paved cities. Mid-tones are the practical compromise. Pure white is for church and for funerals where white is being observed, not for a day in the Volta Region.

Air conditioning is the thing nobody warns you about. Offices, hotels, banks, restaurants and long-distance buses run their air conditioning hard, and the step from a thirty-degree street into a sixteen-degree bus is severe. Carry a light long-sleeved layer or a scarf in your bag every day. On the Aburi and Kwahu ridges, and on harmattan nights in January, you will want it outdoors as well.

Dust, rain and the two seasons of clothing

Ghana's dry and wet seasons ask for different things from your wardrobe, and the change is about dust and drying time rather than temperature. From roughly December to February the harmattan carries fine Saharan dust that settles on clothing, coats shoes and turns collars grey within a day.

During harmattan, darker and mid-tone clothing stays presentable longer, and a scarf that can cover your nose and mouth on a dusty road is worth carrying. Skin dries out badly, so long sleeves are comfortable rather than hot in the evenings, and moisturiser matters more than usual.

In the rains, the constraint is drying. Humidity is high, laundry hung indoors takes a long time, and anything thick stays damp and starts to smell. Pack thinner items and more of them rather than fewer heavy ones. A small umbrella beats a rain jacket in this heat every time, because a waterproof shell in tropical humidity simply moves the wetness from outside to inside.

Footwear takes the worst of both seasons. Red laterite dust stains permanently, and wet-season mud on unpaved roads will end white trainers. Take shoes you are prepared to see ruined, and one clean pair kept back for church, a funeral or dinner.

What to wear day to day in Accra and Kumasi

For ordinary days in the cities, aim for smart-casual in light fabrics: trousers or a long skirt or dress, a shirt or blouse, and closed shoes or decent sandals. That single template covers markets, restaurants, offices, taxis and most of what you will do.

Shorts are the recurring question. Men in shorts are increasingly seen in Accra, particularly among younger people and in Osu, East Legon and the beach areas, but they still read as leisurewear and are out of place in an office, a bank, a church or a chief's compound. Women in short shorts attract more attention than most visitors want, particularly in markets and in the north.

Sleeveless tops are fine in Accra for women and less so elsewhere. Knees are the more reliable line: covered knees will not cause comment anywhere in the country, and that is the simplest rule to travel by.

Markets deserve a specific mention. Makola, Kejetia in Kumasi and the big lorry-park markets are crowded, hot and physical, with narrow lanes, open gutters, porters carrying loads at head height and uneven ground. Wear closed shoes, carry a cross-body bag in front of you, and skip anything loose, dangling or expensive-looking. Dress for the physical reality of the place rather than for a photograph of it.

Shoes, and why sandals are not always the answer

Bring one pair of comfortable closed walking shoes, one pair of good sandals and one smart pair, and expect the closed shoes to do most of the work. Ghanaian pavements are inconsistent — high kerbs, missing slabs, open storm drains at the edge of the road, sand, gravel and mud — and open toes take a beating.

Flip-flops are for the house, the compound and the beach, and Ghanaians treat them that way. Wearing them to a restaurant or an office is noticeable. Proper leather or woven sandals, of which there are excellent locally made ones in Accra and Bolgatanga, are perfectly smart for a hot day.

The heritage sites and hills need real shoes. The stone stairs inside Cape Coast and Elmina castles are worn, uneven and slippery in places. The Kakum canopy walkway approach is a steep uphill forest path before you reach the bridges. Boti Falls is a long flight of wet steps. Wli involves a forty-minute walk on an uneven trail, and the upper falls are a serious climb.

Shoes come off at the door in many Ghanaian homes, at mosques, and in some traditional settings, so slip-ons are practical and shoes needing laces and a chair are not. Socks without holes suddenly matter.

Dressing for church

Dress properly for church in Ghana: men in a shirt with a collar and long trousers, women in a dress or skirt below the knee with shoulders covered, and everyone in clean shoes rather than sandals. Ghanaian congregations dress well, and a visitor in holiday clothes is conspicuous in a way that embarrasses whoever invited them.

Services are long — two to three hours is ordinary and longer is common — so comfort matters as much as formality. Churches are often warm, ceiling fans do the work, and you will stand and sit many times. Women frequently carry a wrapper or a shawl, which doubles as a cover, a cushion and a fan.

Many churches have a colour for particular Sundays, and members wear white for thanksgiving services, harvest, Easter Sunday and watch-night on 31 December. If you have been invited, ask what is being worn that week; the answer is specific and people are pleased to be asked.

Head coverings vary by denomination. Some Pentecostal and orthodox congregations expect women to cover their heads, others do not. A scarf in the bag resolves it without any discussion, which is the general principle for most of this article.

Funeral dress, which has real rules

Ghanaian funerals have specific colour conventions and getting them wrong is one of the few dress mistakes that genuinely causes offence. The standard is black, or black and red together, worn by mourners. Where the deceased was elderly and the funeral is celebrating a long, completed life, black and white or all white is worn instead.

The family decides which applies, and the information is usually on the funeral poster or passed by word of mouth. Ask the person who invited you rather than guessing, and ask early enough to buy or have something made. Adinkra-printed cloth in black and red, and the dark-brown kuntunkuni cloth, are traditional Akan mourning cloths and are sold ready to wear as well as by the yard.

Ghanaian funeral dress is formal. Men wear cloth wrapped over one shoulder in traditional style, or a black or dark shirt and trousers, or a tailored black outfit. Women wear kaba and slit — a fitted top and long wrapped skirt made from the same cloth — or a wrapped cloth. Bright colours, prints unrelated to the occasion and casual clothing all read as disrespect.

The practical difficulty is time. A funeral invitation often arrives with a few days' notice, and having an outfit made takes longer than that during busy periods. Buying ready-made black and red from a market stall is entirely acceptable and is what many people do. Our article on Ghanaian etiquette and greetings covers the rest of the conduct at one.

Palaces, durbars and traditional settings

Visiting a chief's palace or attending a durbar requires your best clothing, covered shoulders and knees, no hat and no sunglasses, and bare feet or shoes removed where you are told. Chieftaincy is a living institution in Ghana and the courtesies around it are taken seriously.

Men should wear long trousers and a proper shirt, or traditional cloth if you have it and know how to wear it. Women should wear a dress or skirt below the knee, or kaba and slit. Shoulders stay covered for everyone. Removing your hat and sunglasses before entering is not optional, and neither is standing when the chief enters.

At a durbar — the public gathering where chiefs appear in state under umbrellas, carried in palanquins, with drumming and dancing — you are an onlooker at somebody else's formal occasion. Dress as you would for a wedding. Do not stand in front of the chiefs to take photographs, and ask your host before photographing anything.

In the north, the smock, known as fugu or batakari, is the traditional men's dress and is entirely acceptable formal wear anywhere in the country. Buying one in Tamale or Bolgatanga and wearing it is welcomed rather than resented, provided you wear it properly and not as a costume.

Mosques, Zongo neighbourhoods and the north

Dress more conservatively in Muslim areas of Ghana than elsewhere, which means covered shoulders and knees for everyone and a scarf carried by women for mosque compounds. That applies in Tamale, Wa, Bolgatanga and Yendi, and in the Zongo quarters of southern cities such as Nima and Mamobi in Accra and Aboabo and Asawase in Kumasi.

At a mosque, shoes come off before you enter the compound area you are directed to. Non-Muslims are not admitted inside some mosques at all, including the historic mud mosques of the north, and the caretaker's decision is the answer. Long trousers for men rather than shorts, and a long skirt or loose trousers with a long top for women, cover every situation.

The northern heat argues for exactly the clothing that modesty asks for. Loose, long, light cotton is cooler in dry heat than exposed skin, which is why Sahelian dress across the region is long and flowing. The kaftan and the jalabiya are practical garments, not a compromise.

During Ramadan the same conservatism applies with a little more care, and it extends to not eating or drinking visibly in those neighbourhoods during daylight hours. Nobody will confront you about it; people will simply notice.

Beaches, pools and swimming

Swimwear in Ghana belongs at the beach resort or the hotel pool and nowhere else, and walking off the sand into a street or a restaurant in it is not done. That line is firmer here than in most beach destinations.

At a private resort or a hotel pool, ordinary swimwear including bikinis is normal and unremarkable. On a public beach, more coverage is usual and Ghanaian women often swim in shorts and a t-shirt rather than a swimsuit. Follow the room you are in; at Labadi or Kokrobite on a weekend you will see the full range.

Carry a cover-up — a wrapper, a kaftan, a long shirt — and put it on the moment you leave the sand. Bringing one is also the difference between being comfortable and burning, because the sun here is directly overhead in the middle of the day and does damage quickly even on overcast days in August.

Two practical warnings. The Atlantic along this coast has a strong undertow and most beaches have no lifeguards, so what you wear matters far less than where you swim. And bring a rash vest or a t-shirt for children; a full afternoon in this sun on a beach with no shade is more than sunscreen alone can cover.

Having clothes made in Ghana

Having clothes made by a Ghanaian tailor is cheaper, better fitted and more interesting than buying at home, and it is one of the genuinely good reasons to leave room in your suitcase. The process is straightforward once you know the order of it: buy the cloth first, then take it to a tailor or seamstress, who charges separately for the sewing.

Cloth is sold by the yard at Makola and the surrounding streets in Accra, at Kejetia and the central market in Kumasi, and at every regional market. The wax prints most associated with Ghanaian dress are printed cloth, and quality varies enormously between genuine Ghanaian and Dutch-made wax and the cheaper imported imitations. Ask what you are buying; the trader will tell you, and the price difference reflects it.

Kente is different and is not everyday cloth. It is hand-woven in narrow strips and sewn together, most famously at Bonwire and the Adanwomase area near Kumasi and among the Ewe at Agbozume and Kpetoe in the Volta Region, and it carries meaning in its patterns. Kente is worn for major occasions rather than casually. Our guide to kente and Ghanaian textiles explains the weaving and the patterns.

Give the tailor time. A week to ten days is a realistic turnaround outside busy periods, and in the weeks before Christmas, Easter or Eid tailors stop taking new orders entirely. Go for a fitting if you can, be specific about what you want, and bring a photograph — describing a style in words rarely survives translation into cloth.

What to leave at home

Leave the heavy walking boots, the waterproof shell, the camouflage clothing and most of your synthetic travel gear behind, because none of it earns its place in Ghana. Camouflage in particular is restricted in Ghana and several neighbouring countries as military dress, and wearing it, including on children, can cause a genuine problem at a checkpoint.

Also unnecessary: a sleeping bag, a mosquito net if you are staying in hotels or air-conditioned accommodation, thick jeans, more than one jumper, and formal suits unless you have a specific reason. Heavy jewellery and obvious watches attract attention you do not want in a crowded market.

Things worth bringing that people forget: a light long-sleeved layer for air conditioning, a scarf that works for dust, sun, church and mosque, one genuinely smart outfit for a funeral or an invitation, more underwear and socks than you think, and a spare pair of glasses if you wear them. Sunscreen, insect repellent and any specific toiletries are available in Accra but at import prices and in limited ranges.

Leave real space in the bag. Cloth, sandals, a smock, beads from Koforidua or Krobo, a shirt made while you are there — most visitors go home heavier than they arrived, and the things they carried in unused are the things they resent. Our Ghana packing list sets out the rest of the kit in detail.

How we help with this

Ghana Travel & Tour gets asked about clothing more than almost anything else, usually a week before someone flies, and we answer it honestly for the specific occasion — the funeral, the church service, the palace visit, the two weeks in the north. Our guides know which market sells good cloth and which tailors work quickly. Our furnished homes in Kasoa include housekeeping, which solves the laundry problem that a fortnight in this humidity creates. Quotes for stays, transfers and tours are itemised and come from one named trip manager you can reach directly.

Questions people ask