A slow Saturday, Lagos style

Visitors often try to do Lagos the way you'd do London — three neighbourhoods before lunch. Lagosians know better. The city rewards staying close, starting late and leaving room for things to happen.

Morning

Start with breakfast at home, door open to the balcony, before the heat arrives. If you need to go out, go early. By ten the roads have opinions. A walk along the Lekki–Ikoyi Link Bridge at that hour is the closest the city gets to a calm morning, joggers and all.

Afternoon

Spend the middle of the day somewhere with walls and air conditioning. Nike Art Gallery can swallow two hours without you noticing — four floors of work, and usually someone happy to talk you through it. Terra Kulture is good for a late lunch and a look at whatever's on.

“The city rewards staying close, starting late and leaving room for things to happen.”

Evening

As the sun drops, the city changes temperature and mood. Dinner on Victoria Island, a drink somewhere with a view of the water, and then — this is important — home before the Saturday night traffic decides your fate.

It is not a packed day. That's the point. The best of Lagos tends to arrive when you've stopped chasing it.