Collines

Collines is one of the twelve departments of Benin. Collines was created in 1999 after the Benin government split up the former six departments of Atakora, Atlantique, Borgou, Mono, Oueme and Zou into twelve. Collinies was split from Zou. The capital of Collines hasn’t been chosen yet but will likely be Savalou. The departments that border Collines are Plateau, Borgou, Zou, and Donga. The total area of Collines is 13,561 km.² .

Collines is divided into the communes of Bantè, Dassa-Zoumè, Glazoué, Ouèssè, Savalou, and Savé.

Department Alibori

Department Alibori – is one of the 12 departments of Benin, located in the northern part of the country.

Border with Burkina Faso, Niger and Nigeria.

Bus

The journey by bus is quite straightforward. From Togo can be said about Kara after Djougou several times a day with a bush taxi. The crossing point at Lome to Cotonou is still better frequented, the north is preferable, however, partly because Lome is criminal.

From Burkina Faso is also easy entry, because now new tarmac bleeding from the north to the south lead. It buses and bush taxi from Tangieta to Cotonou. The connection from Niger is quite “simple” because buses. The entry about Nigeria can be dangerous.

Name

The name Benin has no proper connection to Benin City in modern day Nigeria, which was the capital of the Benin Empire. The name Dahomey was changed in 1975 to the People’s Republic of Benin, named after the body of water on which the country lies, the [[Bight of Benin] (which was named after the Empire of Benin. This name was picked for Dahomey due to its neutrality, since the current political boundaries of Benin encompass over fifty distinct linguistic groups and nearly as many individual ethnic groups.

The former name, Dahomey, was derived from the name of a former Fon Kingdom within modern-day Benin, and was determined to be an inappropriate name.

Grand Marché du Danktokpa

This huge must-see market sells everything from food, radios, waxed cloth, pottery and baskets to bat wings and monkey testicles. Hunt down a le fetiche d’amour (a love fetish). Rub it on your hands, whisper to it seven times the name of the desired one, then touch that person and they’re yours!

When to Go

If you don’t want to get wet, avoid Southern Benin’s rainy seasons in April to mid-July, and mid-September to late October. Northern Benin gets a soaking from June to early October. The hottest time of the year is from February to April when temperatures can soar to 46°C in the north (the coastal south is significantly cooler). Harmattan winds billow out of the Sahara between December and March, so November and February are your windows of opportunity for a pleasant stay.

Parts of the northern Atakora region occasionally receive heavy rainfall, and smaller roads throughout Benin may be impassable during the rainy seasons; notably those in the wildlife parks, particularly Parc Regional du W.

Porto-Novo

Porto-Novo (also known as Hogbonou and Adjacé (population 223,552 as of a 2002 census) is the official capital of the West African nation of Benin. It is a port on an inlet of the Gulf of Guinea, in the southeastern portion of the country. Porto-Novo is Benin’s second largest city, but the city of Cotonou is more important, culturally and politically. The region around Porto-Novo produces palm oil, cotton and kapok. Petroleum was discovered off the coast of the city in the 1990s, and has become an important export.

Porto-Novo is located at 6°28′ North, 2°36′ East (6.46667, 2.6). [1]

Benin

Benin, officially the Republic of Benin, is a country in Western Africa, (formerly known as Dahomey until 1975). It borders Togo to the west, Nigeria to the east and Burkina Faso and Niger to the north; its short coastline to the south leads to the Bight of Benin. Its capital is Porto Novo, but the seat of government is Cotonou.