igeria promotes itself as “The Giant in the Sun”, The country has seen few tourists in the last decade, but that is changing as the Giant wakes up! With 15% of Africa’s total population, its cultural diversity alone marks Nigeria’s great potential. You arrive in Lagos, a pulsing metropolis of markets and museums. Tour the principal landmarks of Tinubu Square and the old Brazilian Quarter before traveling north into to the heart of Yorubaland. You pass through the city of Abeokuta – the home of Adire cloth - and then on to Osogbo, where the fertility goddess Oshun dwells. You enter Abuja, a modern capital carved out of the plains – with its imposing cityscape of bold new architecture, and a cross-section of Nigeria’s many cultures. Just outside of town is Zuma Rock, one of Nigeria's best known landmarks. It is even featured on the national currency. From here you fly north to Kano, the industrial and cultural center of  the Islamic north.

Visit the Palace of the Emir, the Kurmi Market, the indigo dye pits - and dance to the rhythm of  Hausa drums. Each spring, Kano and neighboring Katsina host a Durbar of royal palace guards and warriors mounted on horseback - in a medieval display of pomp and pageantry to celebrate Eid.

Returning to Lagos you visit Badagry, once a center for the export of slaves. Tour the slave relics museum, memorials recently built by the government and the UN, and learn about the Slave Route that led to neighboring Benin. Returning to Lagos, there is time to visit the The National Museum and exhibits of Nigeria's ancient civilisations. Later, visit Jankara Market on Lagos Island, where you can bargain for indigo cloth, handwoven textiles, leather goods and a huge selection of carvings, masks and beads. You bid farewell to Nigeria with a scenic boat ride on the Lagos lagoon.

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