4. Calabar
Photo credit: Deal Dey
Calabar is the capital city of Cross River state deep in the lush rainforests of southern Nigeria. The city is adjacent to the Calabar River, which pours in from the inland delta. Efik is the local language, but English is also widely spoken as a lingua franca.
City administrators fondly refer to Calabar as the tourism capital of Nigeria, and the annual Calabar Christmas Carnival (pictured below) is one of the biggest events on the Nigerian tourism calendar.
Photo credit: Nairaland
The city served as an important trading post during the TransAtlantic Slave Trade, with slave ships coming from Spain as well as Bristol and Liverpool in the United Kingdom.
Today, Calabar boasts an internationally recognized sea port, a university, an international museum, a slave history park, a free trade zone, amusement parks, and several world-class hotels.
In addition, the Obudu Cattle Ranch and the Tinapa Resort are just a couple of kilometres away from the city center.
