.
Nigerian passport holders require a visa prior to entry into a lot of countries and sometimes, these visas are extremely painful to get. Some embassies would deny you out-rightly if youโve never had a stamp on your passport, almost a case of the chicken or the eggโฆ
In any case, this shouldnโt be a reason for you not to travel if youโre interested in doing so. Currently, there are about 50 countries (including ECOWAS countries) a Nigerian passport holder can travel to without the need to get a visa prior to entry. I havenโt been to most but I sure hope that I get a chance to see them all.
PS: For a full list of visa-free countries for Nigerian citizens, see this post.
I got a positive insight into Iran when I met a beautiful Iranian lady a few years back. She convinced meย that Iran wasnโt as bad as the media plays it out to be. Every once in a while, Iโd look up tours that go there but so far, havenโt made up my mind to go. But itโs nice to know that I canย decide on the spur of the moment, pack up a bag and go. Iran offers a visa on arrival to Nigerian passport holders.
Maldives
Just look at this picture. Who wouldnโt want to be here? Away from all the madness of Lagos. The Maldives offers a visa on arrival for 30 days to Nigerian passport holders.
Other visa-free countries that offer a similar experience include Mauritius, Tanzaniaย (Zanzibar), Seychelles, Fiji Island, Barbados, Cape Verde and Vanuatu. If youโre a budget traveller like myself, then you should consider the flight ticket costs when choosing a destination. I think Zanzibar is the cheapest so far.
Kenya
Kenya offers a visa on arrival for 90 days. A good way to maximize your visit to this Eastern African country is to combine it with its equally appealing neighbours. Tanzania, Rwanda, Uganda are all options you can combine. And the new East African visa just makes life less complicated for us.
Ghana
Ghana might be the cheapest option on this list. This ECOWAS country requires no visa and the trip can be made by road. If you do plan to make this trip by road, you have to be mentally prepared for hassles at the borders (especially the Nigeria โ Benin border at Seme).ย
Tanzania
Tanzania also offers a visa on arrival for Nigerian passport holders. This costs $50 (at the time of this writing). You can read all about my Tanzanian experience here
*Tanzania no longer offers visa on arrival to Nigerian citizens.
What visa-free destinations have you been to or are planning to visit? And which others do you recommend?
