Love Letter to Beyin Beach Resort

Akwaaba! It is often said that sometimes the very best things come to us when we aren’t looking. Beyin Beach Resort is one such example of this, as all we were really looking for when we found it was a half decent lunch in a remote area of Ghana; what we found was an idyllic wedge of seaside heaven that will undoubtedly lead the list of favourite memories had under the Ghanaian sun. The resort’s owners, a couple with two children of their own (who became fast friends with our children over our first extended lunch!) have perfectly captured the easygoing, family-friendly ambiance that we crave when we travel. There was enough space not only for our children, but also for our noise, so that those with a more intimate, leisurely retreat in mind were not quietly muttering invectives every time our children squealed past (or so I'd like to believe)!

The beach is obviously the main attraction at the resort, and I cannot overstate how many things it has going for it. It is likely the most accessible bit of ocean in Ghana, as there is some sort of sand shelf that serves as a buffer for waves and undertow that drown more than a few people at other beaches every year. The resort is a good distance from the two nearest villages on either side, and both made for good barefoot trek destinations along the shore. The nearest village is also home to Fort Appolonia, another historic slave trade building that is in very good condition, which we were able to tour the inside of. We collected many unique shells, including dozens of sand dollars (we hadn’t found these elsewhere so the kids were especially enthusiastic about these) and the resort has a pretty impressive collection of their own that includes whale vertebrae! While we were too late for the nesting of sea turtles that happens in the area, we still managed to learn quite a lot as it is soon hatching time and the resort is also a dedicated conservation point for the turtles.

We stayed in one of the two cabana-style, thatched roof chalets, and paid a mere 70 Ghana cedis a night for both of the adjoining rooms in the unit. Each of the rooms had a four poster bed so huge that it comfortably slept our three oldest (no small accomplishment having Cohen and Bronte comfortably co-habitate!). The whole front wall of the room opened up via shuttered doors, to a small, private porch and a long view of the ocean. While our first night was a vomit-filled tribute to parenthood and our second a fanless dedication to the Electricity Company of Ghana, we still managed to survive thanks to ample space, comfortable digs, and generous breezes from the ocean.

As I originally suggested, we went there looking or a good meal some weeks ago when at the nearby stilt village of Nzulezo and were quickly taken with the simple, homey traveller’s retreat that was nestled behind the fence adjacent to tourism office. They had us at "Akwaaba!" and we settled into the open air restaurant for a hearty meal. As we were already booked into LouMoon (a gem in its own right, though in a much higher price bracket), we couldn't stop in longer, but we booked a couple of nights for the next bank holiday weekend. Needless to say, the menu is excellent as we not only managed to feed our gang of six for forty-eight hours, but we also did so with variety and food group representation! It didn't hurt that we all became seriously addicted to fresh-squeezed orange juice made from the locally grown, sinfully sweet fruit. My new adage is "Everything's better with garlic mayo (except my heart and my breath)!" We honestly did not manage to try everything on the menu that we wanted to and this is a tremendous accomplishment for any restaurant in Ghana!

The resort has beach volleyball, a separate playhouse and sandbox for the kids (next to the restaurant), DVD players and movies to rent, a well-stocked lending library, a couple of common areas for conversations, reading or board games (they have several to borrow), and there are also more rustic cottages for backpackers and NGO workers that run considerably less, but still have access to hot showers! If you are traveling in the area, you should stay at Beyin Beach Resort. If you are visiting the stilt village, you should eat there. If you have the luxury of time on your hands, you should book an extended stay and spend your hours imaging a life there (not unlike, I'm sure, the owners themselves did once upon a time). If it's your birthday while your there, like it was mine, call ahead and they might just bake you a cake and save you a hammock on the beach!