Audio walk · Monrovia
Broad Street and the waterfront
Put your phone in your pocket and walk. Your phone reads each stop aloud, then waits while you walk to the next one; tap “I've arrived” to carry on. Everything it says is written out below, so the walk works without sound too.
- 5 stops
- about 6 min of listening
- about 24 min between stops
- Cluster guide
5 stops · about 6 min listening · about 24 min between stops
Before you start
Voice and speed
The script is in English. On-device voices keep working with no signal once this page is open or saved.
Transcript
Everything the tour says, in order. Read it instead of listening if you prefer.
Before you start
Welcome to the Broad Street and the waterfront audio walk in Monrovia. 5 stops: Providence Island, Providence Baptist Church, Masonic Temple (Monrovia), National Museum of Liberia and Waterside Market. Morning-only cluster: the national museum and Providence Island in the old centre; busy, crowded streets, out before the afternoon.
Broad Street, Buchanan Street and the shore road to Providence Island. Underfoot: paved, broken pavements; slope: flat; shade: low.
Monrovia is a small, hard-working capital on the West African coast, founded by freed African Americans in 1822 and scarred by war in the late 20th century.
Before you start: Crowded streets and markets: keep bags in front and go with a guide or driver. Keep your eyes on the street, and pause the audio before you cross a road.
1. Providence Island
Stop 1 of 5: Providence Island. Arrival point: Waterfront, Broad Street side.
The small island where the first settlers from the United States landed in 1822: a short historical stop by boat or on foot from the waterfront; go with a guide and check access first.
Monrovia's beginnings date from 1822, when the American Colonization Society landed a group of free-born and formerly enslaved African Americans on Providence Island, a small island at the mouth of the Mesurado river. Its main thoroughfares, Broad Street, Ashmun Street and Randall Street, carry the names of settler-era figures and lead toward the waterfront and Providence Island. Providence Baptist Church, founded in the 1820s, is one of the oldest congregations in Liberia, and it reflects the importance of the church in settler life.
Quiet on weekday mornings. Shoes on.
Walk:Next, stop 2: Providence Baptist Church. This leg is usually a ride, not a walk: short car ride to the waterfront, about 7 minutes. The tour waits here. Tap I've arrived when you get there.
2. Providence Baptist Church
Look for
- Sanctuary
- Church grounds
- Exterior from the street
Stop 2 of 5: Providence Baptist Church. Arrival point: Broad Street area, downtown.
One of Liberia's oldest churches, in the old downtown near Broad Street: a short daytime stop for history, best with a guide or driver and outside service hours; ask before you take photographs inside.
Look for Sanctuary: Pews and a plain interior. Look for Church grounds: Short walk. For a photo: Exterior from the street, morning.
Plan downtown as a morning: begin at the museum at opening, visit a church or two, and finish at Providence Island before the heat and traffic. Plan two nights and three days: the museum and Providence Island in the morning of the first day, Ducor Hill and a hotel lunch on the second, a Sinkor lunch and the airport car on the third.
Dress modestly and cover shoulders. Quiet on weekdays; services on Sundays. Ask first. Founded in the 1820s by early settlers; the current building is from the 19th century (check the date on site).
Walk:Next, stop 3: Masonic Temple (Monrovia). This leg is usually a ride, not a walk: short car ride with your driver, about 4 minutes. The next stop is about 100 metres to the south. The tour waits here. Tap I've arrived when you get there.
3. Masonic Temple (Monrovia)
Masonic Temple
Look for
- Façade and gate
- Façade
Stop 3 of 5: Masonic Temple (Monrovia). Locally, Masonic Temple. Arrival point: Downtown, near Broad Street.
A 19th-century building in the old centre, a photograph stop on the history route; it is a private building, so look from the street unless your guide arranges a visit, and do not expect an opening time.
Look for Façade and gate: From the street. For a photo: Façade, morning.
The settlement was named Monrovia in 1824 for the American president James Monroe. Liberia declared its independence in 1847, and a constitution modelled on that of the United States was adopted, with Monrovia as capital. Monrovia grew fast: the Ducor Palace Hotel, opened in the 1960s, was one of the finest hotels in West Africa, and the city had a busy port and a lively nightlife.
Do not enter without permission. Quiet. Exterior only unless invited. An important building of the settler-era elite (check the history on site).
Walk:Next, stop 4: National Museum of Liberia. This leg is usually a ride, not a walk: short car ride with your driver, about 5 minutes. The tour waits here. Tap I've arrived when you get there.
4. National Museum of Liberia
Stop 4 of 5: National Museum of Liberia. Arrival point: Buchanan Street.
The national museum on Buchanan Street: an hour indoors on Liberian history and culture; hours and condition are not confirmed, so phone ahead through your hotel.
Walk:Next, stop 5: Waterside Market. This leg is usually a ride, not a walk: car to the market (daytime), about 8 minutes. The tour waits here. Tap I've arrived when you get there.
5. Waterside Market
Look for
- Cloth and lappa stalls
- Spice and dried fish rows
- Street snack sellers
- Cloth stalls
Stop 5 of 5: Waterside Market. Arrival point: Water Street and Broad Street, downtown.
The city's biggest market: go with a driver or guide for one hour before noon, hold your phone and bag close, and buy cloth, spices and street snacks; skip it after 15:00 and on rainy days when the aisles flood. On a first visit: Go with a guide.
Look for Cloth and lappa stalls: Bright printed cloth by the piece. Look for Spice and dried fish rows: Strong smells; a short pass. Look for Street snack sellers: Fried plantain, cassava and peanuts (check food safety). For a photo: Cloth stalls, morning.
Waterside Market, the largest market in the country, lies close to the water.
Ask before photographing people or stalls. Crowded from about 09:00; heaviest late morning; thin after 15:00. Ask first; some sellers refuse. Bring small US or Liberian dollar notes; cards are not used.
End of the walk
That's the end of the Broad Street and the waterfront walk. To carry on, Ducor hill is about 12 minutes away (car west). To carry on, Mamba Point is about 15 minutes away (car west).
Built from this site's place pages, walking times and city deep dive; nothing is added that isn't on those pages. Opening hours, prices and rules change: check each place page before you go. Walking times are typical (median) and assume a steady pace.