Cotonou, district by district

Where to set your bags down.

Cotonou is not lived the same way depending on the street you sleep in. Here is what each district is worth, honestly — including what may bother you.

Our districts

Fidjrossè

Cotonou's coastal strip: the ocean on one side, the beach restaurants and bars on the other. It is the district people come to for life outdoors, and the one where we hold the most addresses.

4 addresses

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Akpakpa

Across the bridge, Akpakpa is wider, greener and more discreet than the centre. Houses here have courtyards and walls, and it is where our only villa with a pool stands.

1 address

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Cadjèhoun

The airport and embassy district. Central, well kept, and the best address when you land late or leave early.

1 address

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Patte d'Oie

Residential, central and quiet, next to the clinics and the schools. This is the district of long stays: people coming for a month or a season settle here.

2 addresses

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Cocotiers

Tree-lined streets between the centre and the sea, known for its bakeries and small addresses. Walkable, which is rare in Cotonou.

1 address

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The other districts of Cotonou

Haie Vive

Cotonou's district of embassies, clinics and restaurants, east of the airport. We have no address in Haie Vive itself, but four homes in the collection are less than a kilometre away: Studio Le Savè on the edge of Cocotiers, Wakina and Ayaba in Patte d'Oie, Karaba in Cadjèhoun.

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Ganhi

Cotonou's administrative and business centre, between the railway station and Zongo: ministries, Bénin Télécom, the CHU HOMEL hospital on Avenue Delorme. People come to Ganhi for a meeting more than to sleep there.

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Zongo

A trading district in central Cotonou, organised around its central mosque and next to the railway station. Zongo-Ehuzu and Zongo-Nima are still marked by the presence of foreign merchants, who give the district its bustle.

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Gbégamey

Between Cadjèhoun and downtown, Gbégamey, 'in the great bush' in Fon, is a district of schools and neighbourhood life: the ENEAM business school, the Notre-Dame des Apôtres school, the Bourse du travail and Place Bulgarie.

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Vèdoko

North of the airport, Vèdoko is organised around its crossroads, in the 10th arrondissement, home of the Friendship Stadium: a district popular with students and lively in the evening.

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Kouhounou

The district of the Général Mathieu Kérékou Friendship Stadium, Benin's largest football ground. Around the stadium, dozens of restaurants and bars come alive every evening.

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Agla

One of Cotonou's largest and most populated districts, north-west of the airport: over 44,000 inhabitants in 2013 and seven sub-quartiers, including Agla-Les Pylônes, Agla-Petit Château and Agla-Akplomey.

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Houéyiho

Born shortly after 1960, when it marked Cotonou's western edge, Houéyiho, 'dusk' in Fon, is now a residential district north of the airport, with its housing estate, its leisure square and its market gardens.

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Jéricho

At the junction of Avenue de l'Ouémé and Avenue de la Libération, Jéricho Nord and Jéricho Sud form a central business area with moderate rents: banks, telecom branches, schools such as HECM.

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Dantokpa et Missèbo

Cotonou's trading heart: Dantokpa, the city's largest market with more than 15,000 shops, and Missèbo, the big second-hand clothing market. You can find everything there, from wholesale food to wax fabric, spare parts and vodun ritual objects.

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Ménontin

A residential district of the 9th arrondissement, in the north-west of the city, next to Kouhounou and the Friendship Stadium. The 9th is one of the arrondissements where many civil servants live, close to government offices.

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Godomey

At Cotonou's north-western exit, Godomey is a populous arrondissement of the commune of Abomey-Calavi, known for its interchange and for Le Centre, an arts venue opened in 2015 that houses the Petit Musée de la Récade.

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Sainte-Rita

Served by Avenue du Renouveau, the Sainte-Rita area brings together Agbodjèdo Sainte-Rita and Houénoussou Sainte-Rita, in the 8th arrondissement: a residential district close to government offices, where many civil servants live.

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