Tamale is the capital of the Northern Region. For many travelers on their way to Mole National Park, a stop in Tamale is part of the journey before they continue to the West Gonja District. Those considering Tamale Municipal as an overnight destination can look at its city highlights separately from the wider regional context: arts and crafts and the market sit alongside the Northern Region’s natural and historical features.

Art, Market and Crafts in Tamale

The Centre for National Culture is located in Tamale’s Central Business District and features exhibitions of local art and crafts. Tamale Central Market offers traditional crafts, clothing and local cuisine. Together, the exhibitions and market offer different cultural perspectives: local art and crafts in one place, goods and food in another.

A distinctive craft tradition in Tamale Metropolis is Zanamat mats. During the rainy season, they are made from naturally growing tall grasses. The mats are used for roofing and fencing. The seasonal material and the two uses offer a concrete insight into the connection between craft and everyday life in the community.

The Tamale Metropolis budget for 2024 also names a smock and crafts centre and the German Cemetery as tourist attractions. At the same time, it records the Metropolis’s hope of developing the sites listed. The Ghana Tourism Authority also lists a Zoological Garden in Tamale as an attraction.

One biographical connection to the city is the artist Ibrahim Mahama, who is behind Red Clay Studio: he was born and educated in Tamale.

Landscape and History of the Northern Region

Beyond Tamale, grassland, baobab and acacia trees shape the savanna landscape of the Northern Region. The Gambaga Escarpment and the Nakpanduri cliffs are also regional landscape features. The Tamale Metropolitan Assembly is located in Ghana’s savanna woodland zone. There, low trees are scattered in small groves; tree species include dawadawa, neem, acacia, mahogany and baobab.

The traditional Damba festival, with music, dancing, horsemanship and courtly pageantry, is part of the Northern Region’s cultural context. It was originally held to mark the Prophet Muhammad’s birthday. Fugu textiles are made in production centres in Temale, Gushiegu and Yendi. Together, these examples show the breadth of regional culture, from festival traditions to textile crafts.

The history of the slave trade is also connected to places in the Northern Region. In Yendi, Babato’s grave and the remains of his army are part of this historical context. In Salaga, wells recall that their water was used to bathe enslaved people before they were sold; the residence of slave traders is also located there. These places add a distinctly different historical perspective to Tamale’s urban cultural highlights.

Discover more destinations: Tamale

For the broader travel overview: Northern Region.