Nigeria

Understand

History

The pre-colonial era The Nok culture of northern Nigeria flourished between 1000 BC and 500 AD producing life-sized terracotta figures which are some of the earliest known sculptures in Sub-Saharan Africa. Tiv culture in the north central region of Nigeria dates to 6 BC. Some of the famous bronze terracotta sculpture heads from this culture have been shown around the world. In the northern part of the country, Kano and Katsina have recorded history which dates back to around 999. The kingdoms of Ifẹ and Oyo in the western block of Nigeria became prominent about 700–900 and 1400 respectively. The Yoruba mythology believes that Ile-Ife is the source of the human race and that it predates any other civilization. Another prominent kingdom in south western Nigeria was the Kingdom of Benin whose power lasted between the 15th and 19th century. Their dominance reached as far as the well known city of Eko, later named Lagos by the Portuguese. Benin City, the capital of the Kingdom of Benin, grew into one of the most impressive cities in pre-colonial Africa, with its city walls said to be four times the length of the Great Wall of China. However, little of its former glory remains as it was razed to the ground during the British invasion in 1897, with only one building surviving the invasion. Its artworks were looted by the British and can now be seen in the British Museum and various museums in Europe and the United States. In southeastern Nigeria the Kingdom of Nri of the Igbo people flourished from around the 10th century until 1911 and the city of Nri is considered to be the foundation of Igbo culture. In northeastern Nigeria, the Kanem Empire ruled from the 8th century to 1376 and was succeeded by the Bornu Empire, which was a powerful Islamic monarchy until it

See

Lagos: There are different beach fronts, like Oniru Beach, Landmark Beach, Badagry Beach, Tarkwa bay Beach. Lekki (suburb of Lagos): Lekki Conservation Center - a nice little fenced-off and interesting tropical rainforest reserve with wooden walkways, located on the outskirts of the city on the Lekki Express Way, just before the second toll gate. Lekki Beach, Eleko Beach Plateau: Hiking and sightseeing the Riyom rocks. Enugu: Hiking the old coal mines, and cultural events, e.g. New yam and atilogwu dancers. Calabar: Harbour where you can get boat rides, a nice cinema, sit-out parks and slave monuments in the Marina Resort located in Calabar; also there is Tinapa, a little drive outside the city. Obudu: Small town a few hours to the north from Calabar very close to the Cameroon border - rent a car from Calabar airport (comes with driver) and ask the driver to take you there via Tinap

Getting there

Entry requirements Nigeria isn't a country you can just waltz into. There are few visa-free arrangements in place, and almost everyone requires a visa in advance to enter the country, unless they're citizens of Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS). Nationals of Kenya are allowed to get a visa on arrival in Nigeria, though. If you’re coming for less than 30 days, getting a “Visa on Arrival” is almost always the way to go. However, “Visa on arrival” is kind of a misnomer because you must apply for it beforehand, no sooner than two weeks before your trip. Once you land, you’ll go to the airport’s visa on arrival office so they can take your biometrics and put the visa in your passport. At the Lagos airport, this can take a few hours depending on how backed up they are. While annoying, this route is almost always far easier than dealing with your local embassy. To get the Visa on Arrival pre-approval letter, you’ll just need a passport scan, passport photo, flight booking, and invitation letter from a local company. Since 7 May 2023, the Nigerian Immigration Service has moved to a new website. You can apply for a visa through their new visa application page. Whether the new website's payment portal is working has yet to be tested. Alternatively, you can try to apply for a tourist or business visa through your local consulate or embassy. However, many Nigerian consulates and embassies don't process visa applications directly and will require you to use a 3rd party processing service like OIS. You'll often need to travel to one of their centers in-person and present a valid passport, a completed visa application form, two passport-sized photographs, a letter of invitation (a hotel reservation may suffice), proof you have funds to cover your travels in Nigeria,

Getting around

If you're located in a major city like Lagos or Abuja, taking ride-sharing services Bolt and Uber is usually the easiest way to get around. However, if you're traveling outside major cities you'll most likely want to hire a car and driver. The road systems in Nigeria are relatively poor compared with North America or Europe, but often still passable. The "okada" (motorcycle) is not for the faint-hearted (there used to be no helmets but as a law the rider is required to have two helmets for himself and a passenger, although very few okada riders adhere to this rule.) and should only be used for short distance journeys. "Okadas" will get you to where you want to go quickly and you will get there in one piece. In Lagos, there are lots of buses and taxis. There are two main types of buses, the molue (an old 911 Mercedes Benz truck turned into school-like bus and the danfo (a Volkswagen Kombi bus turned into an eight-seater minibus). Most smaller cities have more taxis than buses, and they are quite affordable. For travelling from one city to another, you go to the "motor park", find the taxi that's going to your destination, and wait until it "fills up". The price is fixed, you don't have to negotiate. Some drivers may have a risky driving style however - practically this means that the only rule consistently adhered to (by cars, not necessarily motorcycles), is keeping to the right.

By car Nigeria is not part of the most standard international Road Traffic Convention and as such will require either the Nigerian driving license or a special International Driving Permit valid only for driving in Nigeria, Somalia and Iraq – not the common IDP. Driving in Nigeria (especially Lagos) is somewhat unique, vaguely resembling driving in Cairo. If mastered, you should however be