Keypoints:
- Somalia sees strong growth in foreign visitors
- New eVisa launch hampered by political disputes
- Security threats remain severe despite rising demand
SOMALIA, a country long associated with conflict, piracy and political crisis, is witnessing a steady and surprising rise in foreign visitors. While the numbers remain small by global standards, the growth marks one of the clearest signs that a cautious niche of travellers sees opportunity in Somalia’s fragile stability.
For decades, Somalia has been regarded as one of the world’s most dangerous places. Since the outbreak of civil war in the early 1990s, Western tourists have largely stayed away. Yet Somalia’s Department of Tourism says about 10,000 visitors arrived in 2024, representing a 50 percent increase from the previous year. For a country better known for violence than vacations, this uptick is significant.
Adventure travel companies echo the trend. James Willcox, founder of the specialist operator Untamed Borders, told CNN Travel that demand for trips to Somalia — particularly to the capital, Mogadishu — has grown sharply. His company organised 13 group tours to the city in 2024, compared with just two in 2023. Many clients, he said, are travellers focused on completing visits to every UN-recognised country or exploring extreme destinations few others dare to visit.
Government push faces political obstacles
Encouraged by the rising interest, Somalia’s federal authorities launched an eVisa programme on September 1, 2025. The initiative was marketed as a modern, streamlined entry system intended to attract more visitors and present a more stable national image.
But the launch sparked immediate political resistance. Somaliland and Puntland — the autonomous regions that operate with significant independence from Mogadishu — announced they would not recognise the new visas. Their refusal exposed the limits of federal authority and underscored the longstanding fragmentation that continues to shape Somalia’s governance.
A capital city still defined by heavy security
Visitors entering Mogadishu encounter one of the most fortified capitals in the world. The sense of risk is pervasive, according to Swiss traveller Karin Sinniger, who visited in 2020. She told CNN: ‘Mogadishu is dangerous. You feel it as soon as you land.’ Foreigners typically stay within the tightly guarded ‘Green Zone’, where diplomats and aid workers live behind reinforced barriers. Even within this enclave, attacks have occurred.
Moving beyond the perimeter involves heavily armed escorts and detailed security planning. Sinniger described travelling in police and military convoys, yet she also found moments of calm on Lido Beach, where the city’s tension briefly fades into the rhythm of the sea.
Western governments remain firm in their warnings. The UK’s Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office cites a ‘high threat of kidnap’, while the US Department of State maintains its most severe advisory: ‘Level 4: Do Not Travel’. Militants from Al Shabab continue to conduct attacks in and around the capital, including several deadly incidents in early 2025.
What draws travellers to Somalia?
Despite the dangers, the country attracts a select group of determined visitors. Sinniger’s journey was part of her mission to visit every UN member state and to scuba dive in each one. When her equipment failed to arrive, a lobster diver from Lido Beach improvised a ‘hookah’ breathing system — a hose attached to an air compressor — so she could complete her dive.
Willcox said many of his clients are similarly motivated by personal milestones or the appeal of confronting extreme environments. ‘Mogadishu is the most high-risk destination Untamed Borders operates in,’ he told CNN. Despite the real threat of violence, his company has run tours there for more than a decade without major incidents. He emphasised, however, that hotels accommodating foreign guests remain prime militant targets.
One recent visitor, retired British sewage engineer Peter Bullock, travelled to Mogadishu in November 2024 as part of his goal to visit all 54 African countries. Under tight protection, he explored the fish market, the waterfront and the ruins of Mogadishu’s once-grand cathedral. Bullock told CNN that the experience was unlike any he had known, yet he never felt unsafe. He even praised the departure process at Mogadishu’s airport, saying it was smoother than many European hubs, including London Heathrow.
Tourism rises alongside Somalia’s deep humanitarian crisis
The growth in tourism contrasts sharply with Somalia’s ongoing humanitarian strain. The UN Refugee Agency reported that more than 550,000 people were displaced across the country in 2024 due to conflict, political instability and climate-related emergencies, adding to nearly three million internally displaced people. Piracy in the Gulf of Aden and the Indian Ocean, though reduced from past highs, remains a concern. Al Shabab continues to control pockets of territory and limits the government’s reach.
‘Some parts of Somalia are incredibly dangerous,’ Willcox warned. ‘There are places where it would be incredibly foolish for an international person to go.’
Somaliland markets itself as a safer alternative
For travellers interested in the region but unwilling to face Mogadishu’s risks, Somaliland — the self-declared republic that has operated autonomously since 1991 — presents a contrasting experience. The territory has its own security forces, elected government and currency, and is widely regarded as far safer than Somalia proper, even though it lacks international recognition.
Tour guide and entrepreneur Deke Hassan Abdi, one of Somaliland’s pioneering female guides, told CNN that many foreigners mistakenly assume it shares Somalia’s security profile. She believes tourism is crucial for correcting this misconception and supporting Somaliland’s campaign for global recognition. Highlights include ancient rock art, nomadic culture and pristine beaches. Her favourite destination is the bustling Hargeisa market, where visitors can wander freely without armed escorts — a stark contrast to Mogadishu’s restrictions.
A fragile but meaningful shift
Somalia’s growing tourist numbers remain vulnerable to shifts in security and political cohesion. Yet the rise reflects a cautious but genuine curiosity about the country. For Somalia, even a modest revival in tourism carries symbolic weight, suggesting that despite ongoing risks, its image abroad is beginning to shift — however slowly, and however precariously.
