Attractions in Eritrea

Tourists’ attractions in Eritrea have started attracting tourists from across the world. Travel to Eritrea has not been very easy previously. More recently, by the government’s efforts and Eritrea’s increasing popularity among the tourists for its natural beauty, cultural and archeological sites, more and more international airlines have started their flight services.

So, what are the major tourist attractions in Eritrea that the country is fast becoming a popular tourist destination? It is simply because Eritrea has too many diverse attractions, ranging from its unique fauna and flora, sea life, beautiful Archipelago formation, still functional remains of colonial era buildings, and above all, to its extremely rich archeological sites.

Asmara

Asmara is Africa’s one of the most beautiful and pleasant capitals. It is described as “A city above the clouds”. Asmara hosts most of the tourists’ attractions in Eritrea. The famous buildings such as Fiat Tagliero Building, Cinema Asmara (or the old Opera House), St. Mary’s Coptic Cathedral, Al Khulafa al Rashedin and many more are a beautiful blend of western, African, and Islamic style of construction.

Massawa

Massawa is the pearl of the Red Sea. Its beauty, geo-strategic location, and as base-camp for visiting Eritrea’s archeological sites, the Dahalak Archipelago, and nearby white sandy beaches make Massawa an important travel destination.

Ancient Port of Adulis

The ancient port and archeological sites of Adulis make Eritrea the most popular country for archeologists. Adulis is 59 kilometers south of the modern sea-port Massawa. The ancient port of Adulis, in the 3rd century A.D, was one of the busiest ports linking the Greek, Roman, Byzantium Empires of the north to Africa, Arabia, India and China in the east.

Zula and the Gulf of Zula

Zula is a small town near the archeological sites of Adulis. Adulis, the gulf of Zula, agricultural town of Foro, The Aligede River between two large Mountains, the mangroves on the coast are very popular tourist attractions in Zula.

Dahlak Archipelago

The Dahlak islands, nearly 200 in numbers, are the jewel of Eritrea. They rank at the top of all the archipelago in the world for their natural beauty, calm, transparent lagoons with blue water, wonderful sea life, numerous species of nesting sea birds, and safe waters for scuba diving. The

best thing about the islands is that they are in their natural form, not spoilt or modified by human activities.

The Danakil Depression

Part of the great East African Rift Valley, Danakil depression is one of the strangest and hottest places in the whole world. It is famous for its inhospitable climate, colorful land structures because of sulphur and sulphuric acid, vast lands with no sign of life ever, and the legendary Afar nomads of the region. If anywhere in the whole world, planet earth is most unearthly, it is the Danakil Depression.

Qohaito and its surrounding Archeological Sites

Qohaito, Adulis, Keskese, Toconod, and Matara are more famous of Eritrea’s more than 2,000 archeological sites. Among these Qohaito, Keskese is located in Debub region of Eritrea. Qohaito hosts the world’s famous rock paintings of Adi Alauti cave dating from fifth millennium BC.

Eritrea travel is not just about visiting these places. It is also about learning an African culture which is not entirely African. The culture has influences from as far and as back in history as Roman, Greek, Byzantium and Egyptian Empires of the ancient world. The Arab influence from across the Red Sea also enriches the Eritrean culture. The Afar nomads, the Saho people still have in their roots the culture of those ancient humans who colonized and populated the whole world.