I have been travelling for 9 months, and this is one of my absolute favorite places I have visited! The whole set up is so great. Near the small village, the people of the village build 7 round stone houses where you can spend the night. They are basic but provide you a good bed and matrass, a muskitonet and windows in every room. In the lodge a total of 30 people can stay, but when we were there we were the only ones (november 2015). There are shared running (cold) showers and western toilets. In the logde 7 people are working, kind of representing each of the 7 families that live in the village. All the money that you spend while being there goes directly back to the people and is being shared with all the families. The food is absolutely delicious as Mire is a great cook. Kebba, Alima, Alim, Bas, Sidu and Mussa all welcomed us when we arrived. We went to the village from Kololi by public transport, which was a very nice experience in itself. It took us about 1,5 hours to get there (cost 48 dalasi / 1,2 euro), last 30 minutes beautifull walk.
Then you can swim there in the half salty river creek (so no parasites etc), you can do a village tour where you can meet the people and see how they live. Kebba explained so many things to us, about the traditions, the language, the school (that we also visited), all the groing crops and you can also make a boatride in the early morning! We were even invited to join a wedding and the lend us their beautifull dresses!. If you want to see a beautifull part of The real Gambia, please visit this beautifull village and support our new friends! website: www.tumanitenda.co.uk
The last great thing is that it is possible to reach James Island from the Tumani Tenda Eco Lodge (the historical site where many slaves were traded in the past). That way you can combine relaxing in a real Gambian village with the crowd of this special historic place. To do this you should call 3 days in advance to the following phone numbers:

00220 9903662
00220 6540115
00220 9840308
00220 7915080