Bissau Safety Guide
Health, security, and travel safety information
Emergency Numbers
Save these numbers before your trip.
Healthcare
What to know about medical care in Bissau.
Public hospitals lack supplies. Private clinics in Bissau offer basic care but no complex surgery.
Clinic Somer on Avenida Brasil has 24-hour ER and English-speaking doctor. Hospital Nacional Simão Mendes downtown handles trauma but bring your own sheets and medications.
Pharmacia Popular near Bandim Market stocks anti-malarials and rehydration salts. Open weekdays 08:00-18:00, closed Sundays.
Not legally required. But evacuation cover is strongly advised.
- ✓ Pack a personal sterile kit: needles, syringes, IV set, clinics in Bissau often run out.
- ✓ Start malaria prophylaxis one week before arrival; Bissau is high-risk year-round.
Common Risks
Be aware of these potential issues.
Pickpockets work crowded minibuses and the cramped alleys of Bandim Market where sweat-slick bodies press together.
Anopheles mosquitoes bite from dusk to dawn, during May-November rains when puddles glisten like mirrors.
Unlit scooters swerve around potholes the size of serving bowls on Avenida Amílcar Cabral.
Scams to Avoid
Watch out for these common tourist scams.
Uniformed men wave down taxis leaving Osvaldo Vieira Airport, demand to see passport and invent a €50 fine for missing vaccination card.
Vendors at Bissau bus station sell 'activated' SIMs that expire in 24 hours.
Safety Tips
Practical advice to stay safe.
- • Leave Bissau nightlife by 01:00; after that, lone drunks stagger along cracked pavements and taxis vanish.
- • Agree taxi fare with driver while still under the neon glow of disco signs, dark streets erase bargaining power.
- • CFA francs only. No ATMs accept foreign cards after 22:00. Withdraw before sunset at Ecobank on Avenida Brasil.
- • Count cash openly at the bank counter, tellers sometimes short-change distracted travelers.
- • Ask before photographing soldiers at Bissau presidential palace. Cameras can be confiscated.
- • Avoid pointing lenses toward the port where fishing boats offload at dawn, crews suspect espionage.
Information for Specific Travelers
Safety considerations for different traveler groups.
Bissau is relatively safe for women. But local men may hiss compliments. Persistence fades if ignored.
- → Sit next to other women on toca-toca minibuses; Bissau women will shoo away unwanted male attention.
- → Carry a light scarf to cover hair when entering mosques in Bissau's Pluba neighbourhood.
Same-sex relations legal since 1993, age of consent 16.
- → Book twin beds instead of doubles in smaller Bissau guesthouses to avoid awkward questions.
- → Use dating apps discreetly. Meet dates inside hotel bars like Hotel 24 de Setembro rather than public squares.
Travel Insurance
Protect yourself before you travel.
Medical evacuation from Bissau to Dakar costs more than a mid-range wedding. Insurance avoids upfront payment.