Ivory Coast: Need to Know Facts

Public Holidays

The public holidays in the Ivory Coast are –

Date 2004         Occasion
January 1             New Year's Day
February 2           Tabaski Eid Al Adha*
April 11                 Easter
April 12               Easter Monday
May 1                  Labour Day
August 7               Republic Day
November 1          All Saints' Day
November 15        Peace Day
December 7          National Day
December 25        Christmas Day
*Muslim Feast
Weekend Saturday, Sunday

Customs & Duties

The following goods may be imported into Côte d'Ivoire by passengers over 15 years of age without incurring customs duty: 200 cigarettes or 25 cigars or 250g of tobacco or 100 cigarillos; 1 bottle of wine; 1 bottle of spirits; 0.5 litres of toilet water and 0.25 litres of perfume.
Items that are prohibited include sporting guns (may only be imported under licence) and certain personal effects.

Electricity

220 volts AC, 50Hz. Round 2-pin plugs are in standard use.

Weights & Measures

The Metric system is followed in the country.

Post & Communications

Post: Airmail to Europe takes up to two weeks. Post office opening hours: 0730-1200 and 1430-1800 Monday to Friday. International telecommunications are available in major towns/centres. Telephone: IDD is available. The country code is 225. There are no regional codes. The outgoing international code is 00.

Tipping

If a service charge is not included, foreigners and tourists are expected to give a cadeau (gift) of a tip. Although Africans generally do not tip rampantly, a tip of 10% at upmarket restaurants is more or less standard practice. Taxi drivers also expect about 10%, except for rides in shared cabs.

English Language Media

All newspapers in Cote d’Ivoire are in French. However, the Voice of America and BBC World Service are available.