Nigeria 6 Day Itinerary (No Tourist Traps)

Heads up: some links here are affiliate links. Book or buy through them and we may earn a small commission at no extra cost to you. We only point you to things we would actually use.

Before you book: Nigeria’s Lagos, Abuja, and Cross River/Calabar circuit, the three bases in this itinerary, is workable with sensible precautions, but several other regions carry active “do not travel” or “reconsider travel” guidance: the northeast (Borno, Yobe, Adamawa, an active insurgency), the northwest and north-central Middle Belt (Zamfara, Katsina, Sokoto, Kebbi, Kaduna, Niger, bandit kidnapping), the Niger Delta (militancy and kidnapping around oil operations), and parts of the southeast (Anambra, Imo, Enugu, Abia, Ebonyi, separatist unrest). Check the current US State Department and UK FCDO advisories before booking anything. Even in the three cities below, use vetted transport over street taxis, don’t walk around at night, and skip airport ATMs. Between cities, this itinerary flies rather than drives, precaution-first, not a “just go” pitch.

Before you book anything else: Nigeria replaced visa-on-arrival with a mandatory e-visa in May 2025, and showing up without pre-approval now means getting turned back at the gate rather than paying a fee in the arrivals hall. Apply through the official Nigeria Immigration Service e-visa portal, budget roughly 48 hours for approval, and have your yellow fever certificate ready, it’s checked on entry. Only have five days? See the 5 day version, which drops Calabar; got a full week? The 7 day version adds a fourth stop.

Day 1: Lagos, Arrival and First Impressions

Land at Murtala Muhammed International Airport and plan for Lagos traffic to eat more of your day than any single attraction will. Check into your hotel, then head into Lagos Island’s commercial core, where Balogun Market sprawls across dozens of narrow lanes selling fabric, electronics, and pretty much everything else at prices that reward haggling hard. The National Museum in Onikan covers Nigerian history and holds a modest but genuine collection of Benin bronzes and Nok terracottas, worth an hour before the market crush. For dinner, go local: a proper plate of jollof rice and grilled suya from a reputable Lagos Island spot beats an international chain restaurant on a trip built around Nigerian food.

Day 2: Lekki and the Island Side

Spend the day at Lekki Conservation Centre for the canopy walkway, then the Nike Art Gallery, commonly free across its several floors of textiles and sculpture. If beach time appeals, Elegushi is the livelier managed option; Tarkwa Bay, boat-access only from Victoria Island, is calmer. Finish the evening with a live set at the New Afrika Shrine rather than a themed expat bar, it’s the honest version of Lagos nightlife.

Day 3: Abuja, the Federal Capital

Take a domestic flight to Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport in Abuja, a deliberately planned capital that feels almost suburban compared to Lagos’s density. See Aso Rock (viewing only, the presidential complex isn’t open to visitors), the National Mosque and National Christian Centre, built within sight of each other as a symbol of the country’s religious split, and Zuma Rock, the roughly 725-meter monolith about an hour northwest near Suleja, worth a short detour if time allows. Shop for crafts at Jabi Lake Mall, and eat at a proper local spot rather than a hotel restaurant, Abuja’s food scene outside hotel dining is underrated.

Day 4: Fly to Calabar

Fly from Abuja to Margaret Ekpo International Airport in Calabar, Cross River State, a straightforward domestic connection rather than an overland trip through less secure territory. Calabar bills itself as “the tourism capital of Nigeria” and was historically the country’s cleanest city, and it’s a former Atlantic slave-trade port. Pair the Slave History Museum with the National Museum / Old Residency, a former colonial-era building, for a grounded couple of hours on the region’s history.

Day 5: Obudu Mountain Resort

Obudu Mountain Resort, a highland plateau with a cable car and noticeably cooler air than anywhere else on this itinerary, is a genuine change of pace and worth the day, treat it as a full day rather than a rushed half-day given the drive up from Calabar. If you’d rather stay closer, Agbokim or Kwa Falls in the Oban Hills are a shorter alternative.

Day 6: Fly Back to Lagos and Depart

Fly back to Lagos (or Abuja, depending on your international flight) with real buffer time before your departure, use the morning for any last souvenir shopping, airport shopping options are limited by comparison to what you’ll find in the cities themselves.

Day Focus Key stops Est. cost (USD, per person)
1 Lagos arrival Balogun Market, National Museum, suya dinner $60-90
2 Lagos, Lekki Lekki Conservation Centre, Nike Art Gallery, New Afrika Shrine $60-90
3 Fly to Abuja Aso Rock, National Mosque, National Christian Centre, Zuma Rock $70-110
4 Fly to Calabar Slave History Museum, Old Residency $70-110
5 Obudu Mountain Resort Cable car, highland air $80-130
6 Fly back, depart Last-minute shopping, airport transfer $30-50

Book these before you go

Is three cities in six days too rushed?

It’s tight but workable because every leg is a domestic flight, not a road trip. Lagos to Abuja and Abuja to Calabar both run under two hours in the air against 10-plus hour drives, so the flying time itself isn’t what eats your schedule, arrival buffers and Lagos traffic are. Cut Obudu to a half-day if you need slack elsewhere rather than dropping a whole city.

Do I need separate visas or fees for each city?

No, one Nigeria e-visa and one yellow fever certificate cover the whole trip regardless of how many cities you visit inside the country. What does change city to city is the security picture, Lagos, Abuja, and Calabar are all part of the workable circuit, so no additional advisory-specific paperwork applies here, just the usual precautions.

Things to know: the currency is the naira, trading in the low thousands to the dollar and still moving, so budget in USD and treat any specific price as approximate. Power sockets are the British-style type G at 230 volts. English covers business and government everywhere; Yoruba, Igbo, and Hausa dominate daily conversation depending on region, and a greeting in the local language goes further than most guidebooks suggest. Domestic flights between these three cities run frequently on Air Peace and similar carriers, book a week or more ahead to keep fares reasonable, and use Uber or Bolt in-city over street taxis for both pricing transparency and reliability.