Travel/Tourism
6 Ways To Save Money At Lagos Hotels
By Nkem Ndem
Lagos City can feel extremely expensive, at least compared to anywhere else in Nigeria. When vacationing in the city, it is easy to overspend and forget about your budget, especially if you are staying in any of the many hotels in the city.
Hotels can exhaust your travel funds more rapidly than most other vacation expenses, as paying too much for lodging is one sure fire way to bust your budget.
Actually, when taking a break from the real world, money should be the last thing you want to worry about. To help you strategize smartly so that you do not end up spending your entire budget with half your stay remaining, Jumia Travel, Africa’s No.1 online hotel booking portal shares tricks on ways you can save money on Lagos hotels. That way, first or second-time visitors to the city can maximize enjoyment and minimize expenses.
DO stay outside of the Island or Ikoyi area
Assuming this is your first visit to Lagos, or maybe your second, where you stay can honestly make or break your trip. If you just search for “Lagos” hotels at the Jumia Travel site, you’ll find that all the cheapest ones are either on the mainland or further down the Lekki Peninsula while the luxurious and exquisite ones are within Ikoyi, Victoria Island, and Lekki axis. Resist the temptation to book at one of these places. Aside from those hotels being expensive, transportation, dining and basically fun activities around those areas, though bountiful, can be cash-draining as well.
Choose the season you visit
Room rates in Lagos hotels can vary dramatically—by thousands of Naira in some cases—depending on what time of year you visit. January 4 through mid-March, is best for bargains, November tends to be quiet and rather affordable too, but July–August, as well as holidays such as Easter, Christmas, New year etc are the busiest and most expensive seasons, as despite the many “holiday deals”, you still get to pay top dollar then. Also, when there are major events and the city fills up, lesser quality hotels will often charge prices that are equal to or even higher than the luxury hotels. If you are looking for savings, keep in mind that timing is everything.
Look Out for Deals and Coupons
You certainly can save money when you book your hotel through an online portal like Jumia Travel, but getting creative with your other expenses can save you, even more, money. Before you leave on your trip, do an online search for coupons for places near your hotel destination to unearth deals and discounts. Consider signing up for money-saving sites like DealDey or searching for coupons or online promotional codes for transportation, attractions, restaurants, shopping etc. around your hotel of choice.
Look for a hotel with Wifi
In-room bills for phone calls in most Lagos hotels, especially if they are international calls, are rather exorbitant. Rather than set yourself up for such extra costs, opt for hotels that offer free Wifi to guests. With Wifi, you can access internet phone services such as Skype etc that way you can stay connected to any other part of the world without running up your hotel bills.
Eat at least one meal per day outside the hotel
It is no secret that hotel food in Lagos is way more expensive than eating at regular restaurants, bukas, mama puts and the many other eating options available within the city. Rather than eat at the hotel all day, you can decide to cut the cost for dining by eating outside at least once a day. Most hotels would offer free breakfast. You can have that, then for lunch or dinner, you hit the streets for any of the local restaurants or you opt for street food. By doing this, you not only save money, you’ll be in good company with all the locals as well. If you do not feel comfortable eating outside the hotel, you can buy food outside and take a pack back to your room.
Use UBER
Some hotels would include transportation in your package, however, if you do not have such a package and you have to organize transportation on your own. Your best bet is to use UBER Lagos. Their rates are usually cheaper than whatever taxi company that would be offered by the hotel and their prices are consistent. Also, they are safer than the random taxis you may find on the streets of Lagos. All you need to do is download the app on your phone or tablet and you are good to go.
Nkem Ndem, a PR Associate at Jumia Travel, writes from Lagos.
By Aduragbemi Omiyale
A travel card designed for tourists, business visitors, Diaspora returnees has been launched by Verve in partnership with Providus Bank.
Known as the ProvidusVerve Travel Card, the Naira-based travel card will allow inbound travellers to enjoy a smooth, secure, and convenient payment experience throughout their stay in Nigeria. It was powered by Verve’s secure.
Created to support the surge of tourists, expatriates, business visitors, conference delegates, and returning diaspora expected during the festive Detty December season, the ProvidusVerve Travel Card enables seamless payments for transportation, hotels, dining, shopping, entertainment, and everyday essentials nationwide.
The card also works on select global merchant platforms that accept Verve, including Netflix, Google Play, and other digital services, ensuring travellers enjoy uninterrupted access to familiar services.
The ProvidusVerve Travel Card eliminates the hassle of sourcing naira or converting foreign currency on arrival. It enables instant, secure transactions, reduces reliance on cash, and supports compliance with the cashless policy of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN).
It also mitigates the risks associated with carrying physical cash such as loss, theft, or fraud, offering a safe, regulation-aligned option for both online and in-person payments.
“The ProvidusVerve Travel Card is a timely solution for inbound travellers seeking reliability, security, and simplicity while navigating Nigeria.
“Together with Providus Bank, we have created a product that eliminates the friction traditionally associated with accessing local payments.
“Whether for tourism, business, or festive activities, this card ensures a smooth financial experience from the moment visitors land,” the Vice President for Issuing and Acquiring Management for Africa at Verve International, Mr Paul Ohakim, stated.
On his part, the Divisional Head for Product Management and Solution Delivery at Interswitch, Mr Ademola Adeniran, described the partnership as a reflection of “Verve’s commitment to designing products that respond to real user needs.”
“The ProvidusVerve Travel Card supports everyday experiences — from booking rides and hotels to shopping, streaming, and dining. It provides inbound travellers with a secure, compliant, digital-first way to experience Nigeria without financial barriers,” he added.
By Adedapo Adesanya
The Minister of Aviation and Aerospace Development, Mr Festus Keyamo, has disclosed that the federal government may recover and sell the assets of Dana Air to refund passengers and travel agents whose funds remain trapped following the suspension of the airline’s operations.
The Minister disclosed this in Abuja on Tuesday at the Ministry’s fourth quarter stakeholders’ engagement to enhance governance for effective service delivery in aviation.
Speaking at the event themed “leveraging public feedback to drive excellence in aviation services, the Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) will be directed to probe why funds trapped by the airline are yet to be refunded.
He revealed that the authority suspended the operations of the airline as a matter of choice between safety and disaster.
“For Dana, the problem is that it was a choice between safety and disaster. So we didn’t take the commercial thing as priority. The priority was safety, and we all looked at the damning reports that we had met on the table.
“It was a decision of the NCAA to suspend them, but I pushed them to say, look, these are the reports we are seeing on the table about safety record, about lack of standards that put the lives of Nigerians at risk. If they continue flying, I don’t know whether most of us will be here. Many of us would have been victims of one of those flights. God forbid.”
According to him, “I have asked Najomo (NCAA director general) to dig deep to find out how those passengers and agents will be refunded. He has to dig deep on that.
“One solution will also be that if that same individual or those entities are trying to come back to aviation under any guise, whether to go and register a new AOC or use any business within the aviation sector, they have to go and settle their debts first.
“We should look at their assets. There are assets that are still available. Let them sell their assets. Let’s cannibalize their revenue and pay people. Let’s find a way to go after their assets and get money to pay Nigerians who are owed.
“NCAA should do that because they can’t get away with it.”
By Adedapo Adesanya
The Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) said it has imposed a N5 million penalty on Qatar Airways for consumer protection violations.
The announcement was made on Wednesday by the NCAA’s Director of Public Affairs & Consumer Protection, Mr Michael Achimugu, on X, adding that there may be other sanctions depending on how the airline treats other cases.
“Glad to announce that, today, the NCAA has sanctioned @qatarairways to the tune of five million naira being penalty for consumer protection-related infractions. In addition, the letters of investigation (LOI) written to the airline over other cases may lead to further sanctions if not treated satisfactorily,” Mr Achimugu wrote.
The fine followed an incident when a Nigerian passenger was accused by a Qatar Airways cabin crew member of sexual harassment during boarding in Lagos for a flight to the United States via Doha, Qatar.
The allegation was only reported in Doha, where the passenger was arrested, detained for 18 hours, fined, and compelled to sign a document written solely in Arabic.
Qatar Airways allegedly refused to continue his journey, forcing him to purchase another ticket at considerable financial and reputational cost.
The NCAA said it invited Qatar Airways’ country manager to a meeting over the incident, but he failed to attend, sending subordinates instead.
“I understand that some countries do not have advanced aviation consumer protection regulations like Nigeria does. In certain cases, some countries don’t even have any. This creates a situation where airlines operating out of those countries (mostly national carriers) act with disdain towards consumer protection enforcement in Nigeria.
“This is not a situation that we would accept here. It is against the law for ANY Airlines not to respond to the NCAA. It is against the law to provide false information to the NCAA. It is against the law to fail to comply with the provisions of Part 19 of the NCAA Regulations 2023,” Mr Achimugu said in an earlier post.
In September, the NCAA accused Qatar Airways of mistreating Nigerian passengers and failing to comply with consumer protection regulations under Part 19 of the NCAA Regulations 2023.
The regulator then threatened stiff penalties against the airline for repeatedly disregarding its directives.
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