Malaria advice covers all of Togo. In Lomé, the dengue mosquito breeds year-round.
- Travel clinic CDC recommends medicine or vaccines for some areas · which ones
- No CDC travel notice for mosquito-borne disease
The CDC recommends malaria prevention medicine for every part of Togo, Lomé included, and Togo checks for yellow fever proof from every arriving traveler 9 months and older. Grand Lomé was the center of a large dengue outbreak in 2024, so repellent goes on by day as well as at dusk.
Are there mosquitoes in Togo? Yes, in every month, and the CDC recommends malaria prevention medicine for the whole country, from Lomé and Kpalimé to Kara and Koutammakou. Togo also requires proof of yellow fever vaccination from every arriving traveler 9 months and older. For a family visit to Lomé or an aid or mission posting up-country, the clinic visit comes first.
Malaria and yellow fever: the clinic visit
The CDC's wording is "CDC recommends that travelers going to Togo take prescription medicine to prevent malaria." Transmission occurs in all areas, mostly Plasmodium falciparum resistant to chloroquine, with no exception for Lomé, a family home or the dry season. The CDC notes that people visiting friends and relatives are at higher risk because they often skip prevention medicine. Malaria mosquitoes bite from dusk to dawn, so repellent at sunset, long sleeves after dark and a screened or air-conditioned room or a bed net cover that shift.
Togo's yellow fever rule covers a direct flight from the US, so carry the yellow International Certificate of Vaccination with your passport. WHO counted 3 confirmed cases in 2025, all linked to forest exposure, and lists Togo among 14 countries at heightened risk of a resurgence.
What we suggest you do with this: the CDC recommends malaria medicine for all areas of Togo, and for yellow fever, "Vaccine is recommended for all travelers ≥9 months old." Togo's entry rule is "Vaccine is required for all arriving travelers ≥9 months old." Book a travel-medicine appointment 4–6 weeks before departure and bring your full route. Ask about meningococcal vaccine, which CDC recommends for meningitis-belt areas of Togo in the dry season, roughly December to June. Togo was added to CDC's Global Polio Level 2 notice in September 2026, so ask too about the single lifetime polio booster for adults who had the childhood series. Our malaria-zone checklist covers the rest.
Dengue in Lomé, in both seasons
The CDC lists dengue for Togo. Africa CDC counted more than 2,000 cases in 2024, the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control reported, in an outbreak centered on Grand Lomé. A 2025 study found Aedes aegypti, the day-biting dengue mosquito, breeding in all 13 communes of Grand Lomé in the dry season as well as the rains, so repellent goes on in the morning as well as at sunset. At a family home, empty or cover buckets and stored water. Our dengue & Zika routine has the schedule.
The CDC also lists leishmaniasis, spread by sand flies that bite from dusk to dawn, which the evening routine covers. CDC says schistosomiasis is found in Togo, so don't swim in rivers, lakes or waterfall pools.
When to go
The dry season, roughly December to March, tends to be the lightest for mosquitoes, though dengue mosquitoes keep breeding in Lomé. The main rains tend to be the worst, roughly May to July in the south and July to September in the north. Malaria medicine applies in every month.
Where you're going
The State Department advises against travel to the northern border region near Burkina Faso and to areas north of Kandé, as reported; check the current advisory before planning a trip to Koutammakou.
Lomé
Inside CDC's malaria advice with no city exception, and the center of Togo's 2024 dengue outbreak. Dengue mosquitoes breed across Grand Lomé in the dry season too, so wear repellent by day as well as at sunset.
Kpalimé & Mont Agou
Forested hills and waterfalls in the Plateaux region, where shaded trails tend to suit day-biting mosquitoes. Repellent before the hike, a fresh coat at dusk, and no swimming in the falls' pools.
Koutammakou
The Tamberma tower-house landscape near Kandé. CDC's malaria advice applies, and CDC recommends meningococcal vaccine for meningitis-belt areas in the dry season, so check its map with the clinic. Village stays call for treated clothing and a net.
Crossing to Accra or Cotonou? Ghana and Benin also require yellow fever proof from every arriving traveler 9 months and older, and our Ghana and Benin briefings have the details.
The Togo kit
- Picaridin 20% travel sprays: odorless in the heat and layers over sunscreen for the morning coat. One 3.4 oz bottle covers about a week of daily use for one person.
- A full-size backup in the checked bag for a long family stay, since daytime spraying empties a travel size fast.
- Permethrin 0.5% for clothes: for village stays and the Kpalimé trails, treat a long-sleeved shirt and trousers at home 48 hours before you fly. Clothing only, never skin.
One more rule outlasts the trip. Any fever during or after your trip means a doctor visit, and you tell them you were in Togo. Malaria can show up weeks later.
Traveler questions
Do I need a yellow fever vaccine for Togo?
Togo requires proof of it. The CDC's recommendation is "Vaccine is recommended for all travelers ≥9 months old," and Togo's entry requirement is "Vaccine is required for all arriving travelers ≥9 months old." That applies on a direct flight from the US, so carry the yellow International Certificate of Vaccination with your passport. WHO counted 3 confirmed cases in Togo in 2025, all linked to forest exposure. Book a travel clinic 4–6 weeks before you fly.
Do I need malaria pills to visit family in Lomé?
The CDC recommends malaria prevention medicine for all of Togo and makes no exception for Lomé, a family home or the dry season. CDC notes that people visiting friends and relatives are at higher risk because they often skip prevention medicine. Which medicine fits you is a call for a travel clinic, made 4–6 weeks before departure with your full route. Our malaria-zone checklist covers the rest of the preparation.
Is there dengue in Lomé?
The CDC lists dengue for Togo, and Africa CDC counted more than 2,000 cases in 2024, the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control reported, in an outbreak centered on Grand Lomé. A 2025 study found the dengue mosquito breeding in all 13 communes of Grand Lomé in both the dry and rainy seasons. Togo isn't on the CDC's Global Dengue list. The mosquito bites in daylight, so repellent goes on in the morning as well as at sunset.
Is there Zika in Togo?
The CDC's Zika page puts Togo among areas with mosquitoes but no reported Zika cases, and Togo's destination page doesn't list it. For those areas, CDC's advice to pregnant travelers is "Prevent mosquito bites during and after travel."
Sources
Health authorities, surveillance reports and news coverage of official bulletins used for this briefing, last checked October 2026. Traveler reports are linked where they appear. This page summarizes public-health guidance and is not medical advice.
- CDC destination page for travelers
- CDC Travel Health Notice
- World Health Organization
- European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control
- European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control
- World Health Organization
- Peer-reviewed study (PubMed Central)
- Peer-reviewed study (PubMed Central)
- fr.allafrica.com
- mesvaccins.net
- crisis24.garda.com
- European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control
- CDC Travelers' Health
- World Health Organization
- World Health Organization
- World Health Organization
- CDC Travel Health Notice
- World Health Organization
- World Health Organization