Nigeria · Southwest coast
Lagos
Where Fela invented Afrobeat, and where Africa's biggest music, film and art scenes now set the pace.
Lagos is one of Africa's largest cities, a hot, loud, magnetic sprawl of islands, lagoon and mainland that sets the pace for Nigeria's money, music and film. Fela Kuti invented Afrobeat here, and the city now sends Afrobeats, Nollywood and contemporary art out to the world. Visitors come for the energy more than set-piece sights: suya smoke and jollof, the canopy walk at Lekki, galleries and fabric markets, boats to quiet beaches, and nights that start late and run until dawn.
Suggested stay
3–5 days
Language
English
Currency
NGN
Timezone
UTC+1
Why you'll love Lagos
Music Fela Kuti's Afrobeat was born here, his old home is a museum and his sons still play the Shrine, while Afrobeats fills the city's clubs and concerts.
Food Suya grilled over charcoal, smoky party jollof, pepper soup, amala with ewedu and roadside boli with groundnuts are reasons to come on their own.
Art and style A serious art city of big private galleries and studios, with fabric markets selling Ankara, lace and aso oke by the length.
The water Lagoon, creeks and the Atlantic wrap around the islands, and boats run out to sheltered beaches the traffic cannot reach.
Best time to visit
Aug, Nov-Mar
28-32° days
6.455° N, 3.394° E
UTC+1 · Africa/Lagos
whenywhere contains ads and partner links that we think are helpful and that earn us a small commission at no extra cost to you.
Weather & when to go to Lagos
Month by month: typical highs and lows, rainfall and rain days.
✓ Best Aug, Nov-Mar
Watch for Jun monsoon flooding risk
Cards tinted by calculated verdict · big number = typical daily high, small = low · hover for conditions
When to avoid Lagos
June is the wettest month, when heavy downpours flood low-lying roads and make the notorious traffic worse still. The rains ease into a short drier spell in August before returning in autumn. November to March is the dry season, though Harmattan dust can haze the sky around the turn of the year, and December is the busiest month, when the diaspora comes home and rooms fill early.
Top things to do in Lagos
-
New Afrika Shrine - Afrobeat nights in Ikeja
nightlife music culture arts 👍 PopularThe successor to Fela Kuti's original Shrine, opened by his family on the mainland in Ikeja. On the big nights his sons Femi and Seun often take the stage with full horn sections, and the music runs long past midnight in a hot, smoky, sociable hall.
-
Kalakuta Republic Museum - Fela's house
history culture artsFela Kuti's home in Ikeja, which he declared an independent republic, is now a museum of his clothes, saxophones, album art and the room where he lived. He is buried in the front courtyard, and the rooftop bar looks out over the neighbourhood.
-
Lekki Conservation Centre - the canopy walkway
nature wildlife 👍 PopularA protected patch of wetland forest and swamp on the Lekki peninsula, run by the Nigerian Conservation Foundation. Boardwalks lead through the trees to one of the longest canopy walkways in Africa, swaying high above the forest floor, with monkeys and birdlife around you. Go early, before the heat.
-
Nike Art Gallery - Nigerian art floor by floor
culture arts shopping ⭐ Highly recommendedFounded by the textile artist Nike Okundaye, this Lekki gallery fills several floors with paintings, sculpture, beadwork and adire indigo cloth by artists from across Nigeria. Much of it is for sale, and the founder herself is often there to show visitors around.
-
Freedom Park - the old colonial prison
history culture artsLagos Island's former Broad Street prison, built under British rule, is now a park and arts venue where the old cell blocks frame gardens, a stage and food stalls. It hosts concerts, poetry and art events, and makes a calm break from the island's crowds.
-
Tarkwa Bay - by boat to the beach
scenic 👍 PopularA sheltered beach beside the harbour mouth, with no road access: boats run across from the jetties on Victoria Island and Ikoyi. The breakwater calms the water enough for a swim, and weekends bring beach shacks, music and Lagosians escaping the city. Wear the lifejacket.
-
Balogun Market - cloth on Lagos Island
shopping culture artsA vast, dense street market in the old commercial heart of Lagos Island, best known for fabric: Ankara wax prints, lace, aso oke and headwrap gele by the length, with tailors nearby. It is crowded and intense, so go with a local if you can and keep valuables close.
-
National Museum Lagos - Nok to Benin
history culture artsThe national collection at Onikan, on Lagos Island, holds Nok terracottas, Benin court bronzes and ivories, and masks and carvings from across the country's peoples. The building is dated and the displays modest, but the best pieces are of world rank.
-
Suya, jollof and the buka - eat like a Lagosian
food ⭐ Highly recommendedSuya, spiced beef skewers grilled over charcoal and wrapped in newspaper with onion and pepper, is the night-time essential. By day, eat at a buka, the city's canteens: party jollof, amala with ewedu and gbegiri, pounded yam with egusi, and pepper soup, with boli and puff-puff from the roadside.
Best areas to stay in Lagos
$ Budget $$ Mid-range $$$ Premium
Victoria Island
First-time visitors $$$Hotels, restaurants and the business district
Explore hotels in Victoria Island →
Ikoyi
Quiet and leafy $$$Leafy island of embassies and villas
Explore hotels in Ikoyi →
Lekki Phase 1
Longer stays $$Newer suburb of lounges, galleries and beaches
Explore hotels in Lekki Phase 1 →
Ikeja
Short stays and music $$Mainland hub beside the airport
Explore hotels in Ikeja →
Live nightly prices from Booking.com, Agoda and others, centred on Lagos
Getting to & around Lagos
Getting there
Fly into Murtala Muhammed International in Ikeja, on the mainland, then drive across the bridges to the islands.
Flight
Murtala Muhammed International Airport (LOS)
About 25 km by road to Victoria Island. Most visitors take a pre-booked hotel car or a ride-hailing app; the drive can take under an hour at quiet times and two hours or more in rush-hour traffic.
Train
Mobolaji Johnson Station, Ebute Metta
Standard-gauge trains run north from the mainland to Ibadan.
Coach
Jibowu and other mainland motor parks
Coaches arrive from across Nigeria, and along the coast road from Accra, Lome and Cotonou via the Seme border crossing.
Getting around
Ride-hailing
Uber and Bolt work across the city and are how most visitors get around, with the fare set in the app.
TBC
Ferry
Public and private boats link jetties around the lagoon, including Five Cowries near Ikoyi, and can beat the bridge traffic.
TBC
BRT bus
Bus rapid transit on dedicated lanes links the mainland with Lagos Island. Useful and cheap, but packed at rush hour.
TBC
Light rail
The Blue Line runs from Marina on Lagos Island west across the mainland.
TBC
Danfo and keke
Yellow minibuses and three-wheel keke cover every street. Crowded and hard to decode without local help. Pay in cash.
TBC
Day trips from Lagos
Badagry
Full daySlave-trade heritage town
A lagoon town near the Benin border that was a major port of the Atlantic slave trade. Museums and the Brazilian Barracoon tell that story, and a boat and a walk lead to the Point of No Return on the beach. Nigeria's first storey building, raised by missionaries in the 1840s, stands here too.
Getting there
car | tour
About two hours west by car, more in traffic
Abeokuta
Full dayRock and adire cloth
The Egba capital grew up around Olumo Rock, the granite outcrop that sheltered its people in the wars of the 1800s. Climb it for shrines, caves and views over the tin roofs, then shop for adire, the indigo tie-dyed cloth the town is famous for.
Getting there
car
About two hours north by car
Osun-Osogbo Sacred Grove
1-2 daysSacred forest shrine
A UNESCO-listed forest on the Osun River, sacred to the Yoruba river goddess, filled with shrines and sculptures created by the Austrian-born artist Susanne Wenger and her collaborators. One of the last sacred groves of its kind; best with a night in Osogbo.
Getting there
car
About four hours north-east by car
A little history of Lagos
Lagos began as Eko, a settlement of Awori Yoruba on the islands of the lagoon, which came under the sway of the Kingdom of Benin and became the seat of the Obas of Lagos, whose palace still stands on Lagos Island. Portuguese traders gave it its European name, and by the 1700s it was a major slave-trade port. Britain bombarded the town in 1851 and annexed it ten years later. Freed Africans returning from Brazil, Cuba and Sierra Leone settled on the island through the 1800s, bringing the Afro-Brazilian houses and churches that shaped its old quarter.
Lagos became capital of the amalgamated Nigeria in 1914 and of the independent country in 1960. The 1970s oil boom brought explosive growth, new bridges to the mainland and FESTAC 77, the pan-African arts festival for which the National Theatre was built, while Fela Kuti's Afrobeat made the city a byword for music. The federal capital moved to Abuja in 1991, but Lagos stayed the country's commercial heart, and its music, film and art now travel far beyond Africa.
A British naval force bombards Lagos and installs a new Oba.
Lagos is annexed as a British colony.
Northern and Southern Nigeria are amalgamated, with Lagos as capital.
Nigeria becomes independent, with Lagos as its capital.
Lagos State is created.
Lagos hosts FESTAC 77, the pan-African arts festival, at the new National Theatre.
The Third Mainland Bridge opens across the lagoon, linking Lagos Island to the mainland.
The federal capital moves from Lagos to Abuja.
Fela Kuti dies and is buried at his Kalakuta home in Ikeja.
Know before you go
Payment
Cash preferred
English
Everywhere
Wifi
Workable
Power
Type G
230 V, 50 Hz
Dialing
+234
Monsoon flooding risk in this window; check current conditions before you go.
The months our climate read flags to avoid: the wettest, lowest-rated weather of the year.
FAQs about Lagos
▸ When is the best time to visit Lagos?
Lagos is hot and humid all year. The dry season runs from November to March, with Harmattan dust hazing the sky around the turn of the year, and December is the busiest and most social month as the diaspora comes home. The rains peak in June, when downpours flood roads, and August usually brings a short drier break before they return.
▸ Is Lagos safe for visitors?
Many governments advise a high degree of caution for Nigeria and advise against travel to several states elsewhere in the country, so read your own government's current advice before booking. In Lagos, visitors generally stay on the islands, Lekki or Ikeja, use pre-booked cars or ride-hailing rather than street taxis, avoid driving late at night and keep phones out of sight in traffic. Police checkpoints are common on roads out of the city.
▸ How do I get from the airport to Victoria Island?
Murtala Muhammed International is in Ikeja, on the mainland, about 25 km by road from Victoria Island. Most visitors arrange a hotel pickup or book a ride-hailing car in the terminal. Allow at least an hour, and much more at rush hour or after heavy rain.
▸ How bad is the traffic in Lagos?
Famously bad. The go-slow on the bridges between the mainland and the islands can turn a short trip into hours, especially on weekday mornings and evenings. Group sights by area, travel outside rush hours where you can, and consider the lagoon ferries, which skip the bridges entirely.
▸ How many days do I need in Lagos?
Three days covers the Lekki canopy walk, a gallery or two, Balogun Market, the Kalakuta museum and a night at the Shrine. Allow four or five to add a boat day at Tarkwa Bay and a trip to Badagry or Abeokuta, given how much time the traffic eats.