Kano is the largest city in northern Nigeria and one of the most interesting in the country. Its history dates back to the 9th century AD, making it the oldest city in the region. It used to be an important trading place on the crossroads of various trans-Saharan trade routes.
Large parts of the old mud city walls have disappeared, but some of the original entry gates still exist and are nowadays protected as national monuments. Some of the more interesting gates include Kofar Na Isa, Kofar Dan Agundi and Kofar Sabuwar. The Kofar Mata Gate is the main entrance to the old city. It leads to the beautiful Central Mosque and the massive, mud-walled Emir's palace, built in Hausa style. Opposite the palace is the Gidan Makama Museum, housed in a 15th century building that was a palace itself, complete with its own dye pits. More famous are the Kofar Mata indigo-dye pits. They are the oldest ones in Africa and some of them are still in use. You can have your own clothes dyed with real indigo there.
The dye pits, the central mosque and the Emir's palace are all southeast of the Kurmi Market. The ancient market is a huge maze of alleyways and you will find good bargains there. North of the market is Dala Hill. You can climb it for excellent views over Kano.
There is a whole score of guesthouses, hostels and hotels scattered all over the city. Restaurants and bars are widely available in Kano. There are two motor parks in Kano; Zaria Road, south of the center, for destinations to the south and east and Katsina Road in the northwest of town, for northern destinations. The railway station is east of the city center. The best way around the city is by taxi.
Kano is 840 km northeast of Lagos and 350 km northeast of Abuja, on the edge of the Sahel.
Hours from UTC: 1
Daylight savings time: n/a
City phone code: n/a
Country phone code: 234
Find a flight to Kano