Why the future of Tourism is Makoko in Lagos – Travel Advisory

Why the future of Tourism is Makoko in Lagos – Travel Advisory

the fisayo, thefisayo, best travel blogger in Nigeria, The future of Lagos Tourism is Makoko- Find out why, makoko, makoko community, the city of lagos, lagos community, Makoko village, Lagos Makoko, travel blogger, travel vlogger. iwaya,iwaya makoko, iwaya community

It was a Sunday afternoon, I took my bag, my camera kit, and I phoned Uche (a travel blogger– ) to join me on an adventure to Makoko Nigeria – a community that resides in the heart of Lagos, on top of water, just right in the middle of third mainland bridge (the longest bridge in Africa).

This community is popularly known for the Makoko floating school.

the fisayo, thefisayo, best travel blogger in Nigeria, The future of Lagos Tourism is Makoko- Find out why, makoko, makoko community, the city of lagos, lagos community, Makoko village, Lagos Makoko, travel blogger, travel vlogger. iwaya,iwaya makoko, iwaya community

I journeyed to Makoko in Lagos with little or no knowledge of the community. “It was going to be fun, I was going to make an awesome video for my Youtube fam” (that was my thought). I never knew I would learn so much from a community that seems so little and neglected.

Uche took me to see the Iwaya community before we got into Makoko, and it was there that I got to see the true definition of a community.

This bridge below might seem like nothing to you, but it represents love, sacrifice and patience. Prior to my visit to this community, I always wondered what their lifestyle was like whenever I looked the fisayo, thefisayo, best travel blogger in Nigeria, The future of Lagos Tourism is Makoko- Find out why, makoko, makoko community, the city of lagos, lagos community, Makoko village, Lagos Makoko, travel blogger, travel vlogger. iwaya,iwaya makoko, iwaya communityOver 3rd mainland bridge during a go-slow, and it was amusing to know that they had a normal lifestyle like every other Lagosian… or at least that is the way they see it.

the fisayo, thefisayo, best travel blogger in Nigeria, The future of Lagos Tourism is Makoko- Find out why, makoko, makoko community, the city of lagos, lagos community, Makoko village, Lagos Makoko, travel blogger, travel vlogger. iwaya,iwaya makoko, iwaya community

Back to the bridge. Note that without this bridge, if you cannot swim, you cannot get from point A to point B. This to me seems like what connects the floating community to the land, it connects the buyers to the sellers, it connects the adventurer to the heart of the community. And this bridge was built with the donations of money, time, and labor from the people in the community and regular visitors or rather compassionate visitors.

It was interesting to also hear how they built a primary school that is being run by themselves to help any interested child get basic education to get them ready for the higher institution. All these stories just revealed to me that when there is love, there is a way.

the fisayo, thefisayo, best travel blogger in Nigeria, The future of Lagos Tourism is Makoko- Find out why, makoko, makoko community, the city of lagos, lagos community, Makoko village, Lagos Makoko, travel blogger, travel vlogger. iwaya,iwaya makoko, iwaya community

This is a community of people from different parts of West Africa whom have come together to create what they refer to as “a home”. They live in a community with very poor hygiene, yet you could see their faces filled with so much joy and happiness, you could tell that their joy came from being one, from being “together”.

 

 

The funny thing is, they are also part of the daily Lagos grind and hustle, I got to speak to one of the locals there about the conditions of the environment, and he said “it is something they are trying to improve, however, they would love the assistance of the government”. He also mentioned they were tired of being used as a tool for political campaign every year.

However, one the contrary, I hear some of the locals are pretty comfortable with the community lifestyle, and they do not want anything to change.

the fisayo, thefisayo, best travel blogger in Nigeria, The future of Lagos Tourism is Makoko- Find out why, makoko, makoko community, the city of lagos, lagos community, Makoko village, Lagos Makoko, travel blogger, travel vlogger. iwaya,iwaya makoko, iwaya community

I understand that some of them feel this way because this is what they were raised up with, and this is all they know, so they cannot imagine life outside water, just the way a fish would not want to dream of staying on land (just imagine that for a second), hence, a few might be ignorant to the murky environment.

Take a look at the picture below, these are houses made of wood and plants on water, just like the one in Makoko, except that this is in Thailand. You can see how urban and neat this is, and this is what most people travel to Thailand to experience, we can replicate this, all I am trying to say is that we can make their community more habitable and tourist friendly.

the fisayo, thefisayo, best travel blogger in Nigeria, The future of Lagos Tourism is Makoko- Find out why, makoko, makoko community, the city of lagos, lagos community, Makoko village, Lagos Makoko, travel blogger, travel vlogger. iwaya,iwaya makoko, iwaya community

The way I see it, what should be done is to improve on the existing environment and conserve its heritage so it is marketable to tourist. The government does not necessarily have to move them away from there, because the people of Makoko have already made the place their home. All that needs to be done is some modernization and environmental sanitation, and boom the journey of being the megacity would be elevated even more.

By the way, I connect tourists to tour guides in Africa, if you are interested, CLICK HERE.

Follow me on Twitter  @TheFisayo

Follow me on Instagram @TheFisayo 

What do you think?

I am TheFisayo, the award-winning travel blogger! Click the picture to find out more about me :)

AD: BUY THIS TRAVEL BOOK

Archives

TravCP: Your Plug To Africa

TravCP, Travel culture, travel places, your plug to Africa, travel Africa, travel Nigeria, visit Nigeria, visit Africa, Nigeria, Africa

15 Comments

  1. I just hope the government looks into investing here. Well done Fisayo!

    1. thefisayo

      I know right, thank you dear!

  2. Good right up @fisayo. I hope somebody relevant up there is listening. There is a floating village also in Ganvie-Benin Republic which also confirms the Thailand model you suggested. They have monetised the place and tourists flood the place paying good money. I just hope somebody will take this information you have put here for good use. Hope those area boys didn’t disturb you .

    1. thefisayo

      Thank you! I hope they do!
      Lmao, you would hear more about the area boys in my next post!

  3. Reading this article just makes me want put my shoes and head back down to Makoko just like the other day… It would be the greatest thing ever if Makoko could be transformed into that type of tourist site in Thailand. Good job Fisayo. PS: looking forward to the next post.

    1. thefisayo

      Hehe, ikr, Thank you for joining me on the journey!

  4. This is great, I hope the government will look into this. Well done Fisayo ??

    1. thefisayo

      Thank you dear! I hope they do.

  5. Great information about the Makoko community. I do hope for better improvement of the community.

    1. thefisayo

      Same here! Thank you Nene!

  6. Great idea Fisayo. It’d be amazing if it gets implemented.

    1. thefisayo

      Thank you Bola!

  7. P. Preye

    Corruption wont let the GOVT see the true potential of this place.. I’m glad you told their story, its articles like this that’ll eventually make a difference.. well done!

    1. thefisayo

      Thanks alot dear!

  8. […] the city, right in the middle of the longest bridge in Africa (3rd mainland bridge). If you read my PREVIOUS POST,  on Makoko, you would already have a little understanding of the community and its […]

Leave A Comment

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Select the fields to be shown. Others will be hidden. Drag and drop to rearrange the order.
  • Image
  • SKU
  • Rating
  • Price
  • Stock
  • Availability
  • Add to cart
  • Description
  • Content
  • Weight
  • Dimensions
  • Additional information
Click outside to hide the comparison bar
Compare