Overview
Introduction
This island group near Conakry includes beautiful Roume (Ile Roume)—rumored to be the inspiration for Robert Louis Stevenson's Treasure Island. Roume was once a slave-trade headquarters; later, the British mounted an antislavery campaign against it.
On the 5 mi-/8-km-long island of Kassa, one can hike to secluded sandy beaches; its small strip of restaurants and bars offer a surprising variety, a testimony to the island's mix of populations, including fishermen from Ghana and Sierra Leone. The nearby island of Tamara once a penal colony (the old penitentiary is still standing) is perhaps the quietest of the three. Unless you catch one of the daily public ferries, you'll need to charter a pirogue (dugout canoe) to get there—be sure to bargain and set the price before you embark. 3 mi/5 km offshore from Conakry.