6 Tips for Braiding Your Hair In West Africa

On my first visit to Senegal six years ago, I figured it would only be right to have my hair braided there. It seemed so obvious that I could find the dopest hair braiders and be charged way less than the steep prices one pays in the U. S. or the decent prices in the Caribbean. Still, I had my reservations. However, too many of my experiences at African hair braiding salons (in Atlanta and Harlem) had been unpleasant. I had begun to question if convenience and dope hairstyles were worth head-aches and damage to my hair. Added to that braiding trauma, I did not speak Wolof and my French was not as strong as I thought necessary.

Fortunately, I was visiting my dear friend who is Senegalese & Malian. With her help (and some polishing of my French), I entrusted my hair to the hair braiders' hands again. After walking away with a style I was very pleased with, headache free, I began a travel tradition of having my hair braided whenever I visited West Africa. Since then, I have come up with a few suggestions that will hopefully help if you are interested in getting your hair done while travelling to Senegal, Ghana, Nigeria or elsewhere.