Lagos is an amazing place! It has rich scenery and the Algarve Coast is a place like no other! The amazing limestone cliffs tower over the crystal clear water making it an incredible coastal holiday destination in summer.

The peak season in Lagos lines up with European summer, the best months to visit are between June and early September, although the water gets a lot warmer at the end of the summer. If you are an avid surfer you can find some great surf spots near Lagos, however, the best time for surfing is outside of the peak season as the swell usually picks up in winter.

In this travel guide, I will go through where to stay, how to get around, what to do, where to eat and where to gout in Lagos.

Where to stay in Lagos?

Lagos has an incredible Old Town which is the hub of the city, so when deciding on a hostel, make sure you are looking into the location.

• Rising Cock Hostel - Is the biggest party hostel in Lagos, although it does book up a couple of weeks in advance so make sure you book it as soon as you know you are going to be there!

• Olive Hostel Lagos - They don’t have activities set up for guests however if you are looking for a comfy and not party hostel, this place is perfect for you!

• Cloud 9 Hostel - This hostel has a gorgeous rooftop bar where you can get a pretty incredible view of the sunset! The hostel itself has a pub crawl you can join for a fee, it makes it super easy to meet other travellers.

How to get around Lagos?

Getting to and from Lagos depends on where you are coming from, I took a Flix Bux from Sevilla, Spain. I got dropped at a bus stop in the old town so I was able to walk to my hostel.

The old town itself, is incredibly walkable, although there are a couple of hills (in true Portuguese style)

What do I do in Lagos?

Lagos really is a backpacker’s paradise an there are some amazing activities to keep you entertained, these activities are the best I found for a backpacker on a budget. Granted these prices are based on 2023 summer and may have gone up since. Here are some of my favourite things to do in Lagos!

1. Kayaking tour

The kayaking tour around the cliffs of Lagos is the best kayaking I have ever done! It’s super easy to get on the tour (usually you don’t have to book in advance) and you shouldn’t really be paying more than 20£ for your tour (based on 2023 summer). There are many different kiosks set up on the waterfront in front of the Castle of Lagos. The tour is around 2 and a half hours long and you are in 2 seated kayaks. Make sure to head to the kiosks around 30 mins before the tour to get your dry bags (provided by the tour companies) and to meet the other person you are in the kayak with (if you’re travelling solo).

2. ‘Rising Cock Hostel’s’ boat party

The rising cock boat party is easily one of the most fun boat parties I have been on. You don’t need to be staying at the Rising Cock hostel to book this boat party, you just have to head to the hostel (in the old town) and book it at the reception. It is £40 for 3 hours of partying on the boat and this includes unlimited beer and sangria as well as shots. I won’t lie every gets a bit messy on the boat seeing as its free-flowing drinks but it’s an amazing experience and a great way to meet other travellers! Once you get on the boat you grab a drink, head out to the swimming spot and you can jump off the boat and swim around for around 2 and a half hours while the staff are coming around with shots for everyone. After the swim time you head back to the dock and most people on the boat will head out in the old town for the rest of the night!

3. Walk around the old town

The old town of Lagos is gorgeous! It’s incredibly bright and lively, especially at night. Pretty much all hostels will have a free walking tour of the old town, however I chose to just dilly dally all around listening to music. The old town is quite hilly so get ready for a little workout while you’re walking but it’s not as intense as other places *cough cough Lisbon*. There are some beautiful shops and down the main road there are plentiful restaurants that can suit any budget

4. Get crazy at the pizza party bush doof

I heard about the pizza party from the receptionist at my hostel, to be honest, its more of a word of mouth kind of situation. Every Friday night there is an incredible festival-like party that honestly goes off. It’s quite far from Lagos itself, however with so many people heading there it’s really easy to find people who are going out there to split an Uber or a Bolt with. When you arrive at the pizza party, it’s £10 entry to the party and the drinks are pretty expensive, however between you and me it’s pretty easy to sneak in alcohol. I believe it starts at around 4 PM and there is actually free pizza until 9 PM hence the name pizza party. We didn’t arrive to the party until 10 PM as we were having pre’s in our room and it took 45 minutes to get there. Once you are inside there are multiple stages as well as random little parties. Keep in mind you are in the middle of a farm/bush so there are animals and insects so make sure you have mozzie repellent! You won’t have any phone reception while at the party so you can either pre-book an Uber or you can grab a taxi as there is usually a line of them out the front.

5. Walk along the boardwalk

The coastal walk in Lagos is a stunning picturesque walk along the cliff-filled coastline of the Algarve coastline. It is the perfect place to catch the sunset or the sunrise (whether that’s you waking up early or heading to the beach after a night out that is totally up to you). The boardwalk is along the coastline so to start just head over to the beach right in front of the old town. You can see the amazing beaches along the way and some of the beaches are accessible by stairs, so make sure you pack your swimmers and towel!

6. Visit one of the amazing beaches

The beaches in front of the old town are incredible! They are all connected by doorways naturally built into the cliffs. These beaches are some of the prettiest beaches I have ever seen. They are absolutely stunning at sunrise (after the pizza party kick on’s idea). My favourite beach of all has to be Praia da Batata. It has an incredible abandoned bridge connecting the mainland to a little island surrounded by cliffs. It gets super busy in the morning but in the afternoon when the sun goes behind the cliffs, it becomes a little bit quieter, however, my favourite time of the day was sunrise.

7. Do some cliff jumping

Now, cliff jumping can be incredibly fun but also extremely dangerous so it’s super important you are doing it responsibly!! There are lots of tours that you can take, you can book them through pretty much any hostel, where a guide will take you to many different spots along the coast where you can jump from all different heights. Again please make sure you do it with a guide and never ever do it if you don’t have travel insurance!!

Where to eat in Lagos?

Lagos has plenty of food options although can be quite expensive to eat out. I kind of threw my budget for food out the window here as I just couldn’t stick to it and I really wanted to try everything.

• Beats & Burritos - have great tex-mex food

• Illicit Burgers - have the best burger I have ever eaten in my life (no joke). You can swap the meat patty for a Beyond burger if you are vego, I got the Mexican burger and it was out of this world, I was in Lagos for 5 nights and had this 4 times.

• Nah Nah Bar - Had a great selection of food

• My Sushi - This is a great option if you are on a budget, they have an all-you-can-eat sushi deal for 11.50€ (lunch) and 12.90€ (dinner), and they also have cheap drinks here!

• La Foccacia - Great option for lunch a fairly cheap option for a meal, just a foccacia sandwich but it’s definitely delicious!

Where to go out in Lagos?

Eddies Bar - Great option to meet other travellers, although the drinks are quite expensive (9€ for a beer!!)

Three Monkeys Bar - They have a pool table as well as a dart board!

Nah Nah Bar - More of a dinner and drinks place

Lava Bar - Has a great underground dance floor, all along this street there are clubs with free entry!