2017 has come to an end, 2018 is finally here…

2017 has been an exciting year. It was a year of many firsts for us. We planned our first international trip to Rwanda, we bagged our first sponsored gig, we got our first all-expense paid trip, we made our first TV appearance, first time on radio and got interviewed by prominent newspapers in the country! We also found our voice/niche and we are rolling with it come 2018.

With humble hearts and extreme gratitude, we say a huge thank you to everyone who has made this journey possible. Special shout out to those that started with us from our wordpress.com days. It’s been over two years (we turn three in April) of fun fun and more fun! We eat, breathe and sleep travel/tourism and we are happy to be in this space; encouraging people to step out of their comfort zones, take the plunge and see the world. We understand how limiting that can be with our GREEN PASSPORT (the Nigerian passport) and all our bookable trips (group trips, customized trips and ala carte packages) will be focused on green passport friendly destinations.

However, our website and social media pages will cover tons of travel content from all over the world. We are switching things up in the content area and even moving to a new home. Expect daily posts and tons of digital content from us. It’s going to be a huge challenge for but with hard work, support and perseverance, we know we can make it work!

So, without further ado, here’s how our 2017 went (if you are here for details of the 2018 group trips just scroll all the way down)! …

2017 IN A NUTSHELL

ADVENTURES

• We met up with Alice of A New Being and finally climbed the longest canopy walk in Africa.
• Explored the Sugbon Eredo Moat in Ijebu-Ode, Ogun State with Fola and Ugochi.
• Surfing at Takwa Bay with God’s Power of GP surfing. You can take surf lessons at Takwa Bay in Lagos, Nigeria.
• Tried outdoor camping in Nigeria for the first time and camped at Omo Forest Grove with our travel sister, Unravelling Nigeria. It was a one of a kind an adventure. Tents, bushes, campfire all the works.

• Did a Lagos Island Walk-About with Bids in Graceland.
• Attended a burlesque class in Lagos and tried my hands-on roller skating (failed woefully at it)!
• Visited a kid’s friendly beach in Lagos

• Took a girl’s day trip around Lagos with Maggie.
• Attended an art pop up by Kuma Nation
• Canoed across Epe Mangroves 3 times!

• Finally visited Kajuru Castle and had the Abuja/Kaduna train experience.
• Tried our hands on Adire making.

• Decided to be extra adventurous and went Para gliding, Hot air ballooning and swimming in milky pools of pamukkale in one trip.
• Travelled and explored solo for the first time.
• Slept in a cave hotel

• Hiked Idanre hills…twice!
• Visited the largest palace in Africa, the Olowo of Owo’s palace.
• Attended a block party in Lagos.
• Explored Lagos with the famous spin instructor, Keith Thompson.

• Toured a coffee factory and tried Ethiopian cuisine, Injera

• Experienced the world’s fastest roller coaster.

ORGANIZED GROUP TRIPS

• Valentine’s Day trip to IITA and Agodi Gardens in Partnership with Picnic by the beach.
• Glamping at beach cabins in Takwa Bay, Camp Nomads.
• Nomads in Rwanda: a five night trip to the land of 1,000 hills.

• Mangroving Nomads: Canoed across the mangroves and tried Adire Making
• Nomads in Ondo: Independence Day weekend at the Smokin Hill’s Golf Course, Ilara Mokin
• Organized pre-and post conference tours for participants at the Breast Cancer Association of Nigeria 20th anniversary symposium.
• Lagos Day trip with doctors from Seattle.
• Planned a Beach trip (girls only) with Unravelling Nigeria

COLLABORATIONS AND SPONSORSHIP

• Instagram Take over with lost in Lagos for  a camping experience
• Instagram Take over with Nothing to do in Lagos for Children’s Day.
• A Travel Start Collaboration to Abuja
• All-expense paid trip to Turkey for a medical tourism conference.
• Keexs Tribe sponsorship
• Worked with invisible borders on their recently concluded transnational trip across Nigeria
• Part of the PR ten leveraging awareness of MTN’s initiatives online.
• Worked with Kale Konak Hotel in Cappadocia, Turkey.

• Got invited for a family lunch at Thai Thai.
   
• Worked with Breast Cancer Association of Nigeria on their 20th anniversary. We were in charge of the pre and post tours for participants of the conference.
• Invited by City heights hotel to celebrate their 1st anniversary.
• Collaboration with Megasea foundation, an NGO focused on bringing clean water to communities across Nigeria and Africa.

TRAVEL WRITING

This year, our work was featured on Bella Naija Online, Guardian Life and Kitchen Butterfly.

INTERVIEWS

We were in the media a couple of times this year. We’ve been interviewed on Ajala Nene, Unravelling Nigeria, Kacheetee, daily post, punch, guardian, pulse Ng and this day. We also had our first live TV interview on Arise TV and our first Radio Interview on Kiss FM.

2018 GROUP TRIPS

We know we promised a booking platform, but the wait has been stifling several our plans. Please bear with this “temporary home” to get information and sign up for our 2018 group trips. We will migrate this information to our booking platform when its ready (hopefully in the next couple of days). We do hope you can join one or more of our trips for 2018!

THINGS TO NOTE BEFORE YOU SIGN UP*

Travel costs money…but you cannot put a price tag on Naija Nomad experiences. Our nomad trips are one-of-a kind experiences and our itinerary will cover every aspect of travel from food, leisure, culture to adventure, business and even volunteering.  We hope to use our platform to encourage you to see travel as an impactful mind-blowing experience as opposed to a luxury you cannot afford. We want you to see traveling as an avenue to learn something new that could be brought back home. We want you to see travel as empowering, educative and an investment in yourself. We want you to appreciate and explore green passport friendly destinations! SAY NO TO VISA STRUGGLES! And finally, together we will disrupt the perception of the country and also open our minds to see people beyond stereotypes.

ACCOMODATION:Most of our accommodation will be in Guest Houses, AirBnB’s, small hotels. Prices listed are for shared accommodation. If you would like a room of your own, please send us an email tagged “SINGLE ACCOMODATION ENQUIRY FOR ******* TRIP”. We will respond within 48 hours.

FEEDING:Our prices will cover breakfast throughout the trip and one fancy dinner on our last night at the destination. All other feeding expenses will be borne personally.

TOURS/LOGISTICS: Our prices covers tours and logistics as stated in our itinerary. Nomads that have confirmed and paid for any of the trips will receive a full itinerary in our NOMAD INFORMATION GUIDE. Cost of tours outside the stated itinerary will be also be borne personally.

FLIGHTS:Please ensure to get to the airport 3 hours before departure time. If you are departing from Nigeria, the departure airport will be the Murtala Muhammad International airport, Ikeja Lagos. Nomads will be responsible for transporting themselves from their current location to Murtala Muhammad airport. Naija Nomads will not be responsible for any missed flights or no shows.

VISAS:For Nomads traveling from Nigeria, all visa fees are covered in the cost of the trip. Nomads traveling from outside Nigeria will be responsible for their visas and flights.

COSTS:All our costs are in USD. If you’ll be paying in Naira please use abokifx.com as your conversion tool. The rate will be the current BDC selling rate on abokifx.com at the time of payment. This is our only acceptable conversion rate.

HEALTHY AND SAFETY POLICY:Naija Nomads has a health and safety policy. Please send us an email if you’ll like a copy of it.

CANCELLATION POLICY:Please request for our cancellation policy before payment for a trip. We’ll email that too.

DESTINATION I: MOROCCO

DATES: 29th March – 3rd April 2018.

TRIP HIGHLIGHTS:Morocco is surely the most sought-after destination for most travellers both home and abroad. It’s vibrant culture, food, confusing medinas, gorgeous architecture, pristine beaches and endless deserts; spending Easter in Morocco is just what you need to fuel your wanderlust. Expect a rustic desert camping experience, exploring the city of Marrakesh and its medinas, a trip to an Argan oil factory and spending a night in Essaouira, a beach town at the south of Morocco. We will also be trying out 3 means of transportation; train, camels, public luxurious bus and our tour bus. Our adventure starts right as we land at the Mohammed V (Casablanca) airport so get ready for 5 nights of explosive adventure.

BEST SUITS: An adventurous Nomad

COST OF TRIP (FROM NIGERIA): $1,300

COST OF TRIP (OUT OF NIGERIA):$850 (flights and visas excluded)

AVAILABLE SPOTS:15 NOMADS

*Please note that part payment is available for this trip. Payment can be made in two parts; first instalment ($650) on or before 31st January 2018 and the final instalment ($650) on or before 1st March 2018. Payment deadline is 1st March 2018. A nomad information guide containing details of our itinerary will be mailed to confirmed nomads.

DESTINATION II: LEBANON

DATES:13th June – 19th June

TRIP HIGHLIGHTS:Beirut, Byblos Baalbeck and all the beautiful places in between, the nomads will experience Lebanon like never before. We’ll explore the real Lebanon, different from what the media portrays and come back with memories to last a life time. Lebanese wedding ✔️authentic Lebanese cuisine ✔️, partying at one of the best clubs in the Middle east ✔️, first hand exploring the famous Cedars of Lebanon ✔️, trip to the magical Jeitta Grotto, one of the new 7 wonders of nature and the longest cave in the Middle East ✔️. Lebanon, we are so ready for you!

BEST SUITS: A history buff. A party animal.

COST OF TRIP (FROM NIGERIA): $1,200

COST OF TRIP (OUT OF NIGERIA):$800 (flights and visas excluded)

AVAILABLE SPOTS: 12 NOMADS

*Please note that part payment is available for this trip. Payment can be made in three parts; first instalment ($500) on or before 30th March 2018, second instalment on or before 30th April 2018 ($500) and final instalment by 15th May 2018 ($200). Payment deadline for this experience is 15th May, 2018. A nomad information guide containing details of our itinerary will be mailed to confirmed nomads.

DESTINATION III: RWANDA

DATES: 22nd August – 27th August

TRIP HIGHLIGHTS:Second home to Naija Nomads, the 1,000 hills in Rwanda are  calling and we must go. Having explored the country twice, Rwanda is so remarkable we had to go again! You know what they say about 3rd time being a charm. You’ll definitely be charmed at  the cleanliness and orderliness of the country. It’s no wonder Kigali is named the cleanest and greenest city in Africa. Besides admiring the beauty, we’ll also be visiting the Akagera national park where we can site the big five. Lake Kivu, one of Africa’s greatest lakes, will not be missed on of the itinerary. Here we will experience the traditional intore dance, get a hot spring pedicure and sail across the lake.

BEST SUITS:A nature junkie, wildlife lover.

COST OF TRIP (WITHIN NIGERIA): $1,100

COST OF TRIP (OUT OF NIGERIA): $750(flights and visas excluded)

AVAILABLE SPOTS:12 NOMADS

*Please note that part payment is available for this trip. Payment can be made in three parts; first instalment ($400) on or before 30th May 2018, second instalment on or before 30th June 2018 ($400) and final instalment by 30th July 2018 ($300). Payment deadline for this experience is 30th July, 2018. A nomad information guide containing details of our itinerary will be mailed to confirmed nomads.

DESTINATION IV: TANZANIA

DATES: 30th September – 5th October

TRIP HIGHLIGHTS:snorkeling in clear blue water, swimming with dolphins, exploring stone town by foot, swimming with turtles are a few activities to be explored during the trip. We will also take a ferry from Zanzibar to Dar and check out a few attractions in Dar Es Salam. Tanzania is perfect if you love beaches and relaxing vacations.
 

BEST SUITS: An adventurous Nomad, Leisure seeker

COST OF TRIP (FROM NIGERIA):$1,350

COST OF TRIP (OUT OF NIGERIA): $900(flights and visas excluded)

AVAILABLE SPOTS: 12 NOMADS

*Please note that part payment is available for this trip. Payment can be made in three parts; first installment ($500) on or before 30th May 2018, second installment on or before 30th June 2018 ($500) and final installment by 30th July 2018 ($350). Payment deadline for this experience is 30th July, 2018. A nomad information guide containing details of our itinerary will be mailed to confirmed nomads.

DESTINATION V: MOZAMBIQUE

DATES: 22nd to 27th December

TRIP HIGHLIGHTS:To be communicated by 30th January, 2018

BEST SUITS:Leisure seeker

COST OF TRIP (WITHIN NIGERIA): To be communicated by 30th January, 2018

COST OF TRIP (OUT OF NIGERIA):To be communicated by 30th January, 2018

Payment information:**All payments should be made to the following accounts.

NAIRA ACCOUNT: THE TRAVELING NOMAD, DIAMOND BANK 0074142070

DOMICILIARY ACCOUNT: Please send us an email on naijanomads@gmail.com
 

Please use *your name + trip you are paying for as reference. i.e. “TolaMorocco” if Tola is paying for a trip to Morocco.Please send an evidence of payment to email: naijanomads@gmail.com or whatsapp: +2348168395792. We are out of office at the moment and will resume on the 8th of January, 2017.