The heritage of Benin
Royal palaces, places of memory of the slave trade, temples, museums and lake towns: the historic monuments of Benin, town by town, with their history and visiting tips.
AbomeyZou · 2 monuments
Capital of the Kingdom of Danxomè (Dahomey) from the 17th to the 19th century, on the Zou plateau.
Royal palace · 17th-19th century (1625-1900)
Royal Palaces of Abomey
The earthen palaces of the twelve kings of Danxomè, World Heritage since 1985 and home to the Abomey Historical Museum.
Monument · Statue from the late 1970s
Goho Square and King Béhanzin statue
In Abomey, the statue of King Béhanzin, hand outstretched, recalls Danxomè's resistance to the French conquest of 1890-1894.
OuidahAtlantique · 6 monuments
Former trading post on the Slave Coast, a major place of memory of the slave trade and of vodun.
Place of memory · 18th-19th century, trail laid out in 1993
Slave Route of Ouidah
A memorial trail of about four kilometres, from the auction square to the beach, in the footsteps of deported captives.
Place of memory · 1995, rebuilt in 2025
Door of No Return
The memorial arch on Ouidah beach, last stage of the Slave Route, built in 1995 and rebuilt in 2025.
Museum · 1721, museum since 1967
Portuguese Fort and Ouidah Museum of History
The fort of São João Baptista de Ajudá, built in 1721 and Portuguese until 1961, houses the Ouidah Museum of History.
Place of worship · Cult recorded since the late 17th century
Temple of Pythons
The shrine of Dangbé, the sacred python, on Place Agoli, opposite Ouidah's basilica.
Place of worship · 1903-1909
Basilica of the Immaculate Conception, Ouidah
Neo-Gothic church built between 1903 and 1909 opposite the Python Temple, raised to minor basilica status in 1989.
Place of worship · Xwéda tradition (kingdom of Savi)
Kpassè Sacred Forest
Sacred grove in Ouidah where, according to tradition, King Kpassè became an iroko tree, filled with statues of Vodun deities.
Porto-NovoOuémé · 4 monuments
Benin's political capital, the former Kingdom of Hogbonou, shaped by Afro-Brazilian architecture.
Royal palace · 19th-early 20th century
King Toffa's Palace (Honmè Museum)
The former palace of the kings of Hogbonou, where Toffa reigned from 1874 to 1908, a museum since 1988.
Place of worship · 1910s-around 1935
Great Mosque of Porto-Novo
A mosque with the façade of a baroque church, built by the Agudas after the churches of Salvador de Bahia.
Museum · Building of 1922, museum opened 1966
Alexandre Sènou Adandé Ethnographic Museum
Gèlèdè masks, instruments, weapons and objects from all of Benin's cultures, in a colonial building of 1922.
Museum · House of 1890, museum opened 1998
Da Silva Museum of Arts and Culture
An Aguda house of 1890 that became, in 1998, a museum of Afro-Brazilian memory and the slave trade.
CotonouLittoral · 2 monuments
The economic capital, where recent monuments tell the national story.
Monument · 2019-2022
Amazon Monument
A 30-metre statue unveiled in 2022 on the Esplanade des Amazones, honouring the agojie women warriors of Danxomè.
Monument · 1979
Place du Souvenir (formerly Place des Martyrs)
Square in Cotonou inaugurated in 1979 in memory of the seven Beninese killed in the mercenary attack of 16 January 1977.
GanviéAtlantique · 1 monument
A lake town built on stilts on Lake Nokoué, north of Cotonou.
Architecture · 17th-18th century
Ganvié lake village
A Tofinu fishing village built on stilts on the northern side of Lake Nokoué, listed as national cultural heritage in 2026.
AlladaAtlantique · 1 monument
Cradle of the Adja-Fon kingdoms, from which the dynasties of Abomey and Porto-Novo descend.
Royal palace · Kingdom recorded from the 16th century
Royal Palace of Allada
At Togoudo, near Allada, the royal palace carries on a kingdom conquered by Danxomè in 1724 and linked to the memory of Toussaint Louverture.
KétouPlateau · 1 monument
A former Yoruba kingdom on the plateau, on the border with Nigeria.
Architecture · Yoruba kingdom, before the 19th century
Akaba Idéna gate of Kétou
The old fortified entrance to the Yoruba kingdom of Kétou, whose two sacred doors, tradition says, watch over the town.
NikkiBorgou · 1 monument
Seat of the Baatonu kingdom in the north-east, where the Gaani is celebrated.
Royal palace · Kingdom founded in the late 15th century; new palace in 2025
Royal Palace of Nikki
Seat of the Sinaboko, sovereign of the Baatonu (Bariba), the royal palace of Nikki hosts the Gaani festival every year.
AtacoraAtacora · 2 monuments
Mountains and savannahs of the north-west, home to the Tata Somba and Pendjari park.
Architecture · Living tradition, since the 6th century
Tata Somba of the Atacora
Earthen tower-houses of the Batammariba in the heart of Koutammakou, a cultural landscape whose Beninese part became World Heritage in 2023.
Natural site · Reserve in 1954, national park in 1961
Pendjari National Park
A large savannah park in north-western Benin, part of the W-Arly-Pendjari Complex, a World Heritage site since 2017.
Travelling to Benin?
Apply for your visa online before departure. Our guide covers health, flights, money and budget.