Much has been said and written about Nigeria, her peopleand culture, economy and politics, that sheds light on thetremendous potential of this African Giant. However, little isknown to the outside world about the many exciting touristattractions available in Nigeria: Historic sites nestled amidrivers and rain forests, breathtaking mountain vistas, remotecreek villages, miles of pristine beaches and exotic nationalwildlife reserves. There are also museums, festivals, musicand dance, a rich cultural melange right down to everydaytraditional markets. These are just some of the spectacularsights and sensual delights awaiting the traveler to Nigeria.

Nigeria has the largest population of any country in Africa(about 120 million), and the greatest diversity of cultures,ways of life, cities and terrain. With a total land area of923,768 sq. km. (356,668 sq. mi.) Nigeria is the 14th largestcountry in Africa. Its coastline, on the Gulf of Guinea,stretches 774 km (480 mi.). Nigeria shares its internationalborder of 4,470 km (2513 mi.) with four neighbors: Chad,Cameroon, Benin, and Niger. Until 1989 the capital was Lagos,with a population of about 2,500,000, but the governmentrecently moved the capital to Abuja.

CLIMATE AND WEATHER

Nigeria lies entirely within the tropics yet there are wideclimactic variations. In general, there are two seasons, dryand wet, throughout Nigeria. Near the coast, the seasons areless sharply defined. Temperatures of over 900F are common inthe north, but near the coast, where the humidity is higher,temperatures seldom climb above that mark. Inland, around thetwo great rivers, the wet season lasts from April-Oct. and thedry season from Nov.-March. Temperatures are highest fromFeb-April in the south and MarchJune in the north; they'relowest in July and Aug. over most of the country.