A beach break in Nigeria's Lagos is becoming too expensive for many

Fri, 04 Sep 2026 11:47:14 +0000

(24 Jul 2026)
FOR CLEAN VERSION SEE STORY NUMBER: 4674281

ASSOCIATED PRESS
Lagos, Nigeria - 28 June 2026
1. Surfer at the beach
2. Mukthar, a beachgoer, running into the ocean
3. SOUNDBITE (English) Mukthar Oladunmade, Beachgoer:
“The commercialization of these beaches is definitely creating a class barrier where people can; there are people that can unplug from the stress of Lagos. They can go to beaches, they can go to very expensive restaurants, go around and just try to deplug from everything, whereas there are people that can't do that. The minimum wage here is around 70,000 Naira, and today alone I've spent more than half of that just coming to the beach for one day out of 30 days in the month. So, it's definitely creating a class barrier where there are people that can experience the nature and the beauty of Lagos, and there are people that can't definitely experience it.”
4. Various of Mukthar buying a coconut
5. Beachgoer in the ocean
6. Various of Mukthar exercising at the beach
7. Various beachgoers engaging in sporting activities
8. SOUNDBITE (English) Mukthar Oladunmade, Beachgoer:
“I think it's very important that every Nigerian should experience the beach because for me personally, it helps with my mental health. Anytime I'm working and it gets too much, it gets a lot, I come here to the beach, stand in the water, and it reminds me that I'm a very small piece of a big planet that don't need to worry about too many things. Besides that, it's really, really useful to come and see other people enjoying themselves. It also transmits happiness from one person to another.”
9. Various beachgoers engaging in sporting activities
10. Mukthar standing in the ocean
11. Various of beachgoers dancing at the beach
12. Beachgoer learning to surf
STORYLINE:
Weekends for Mukthar Oladunmade typically featured a visit to the beach since he was a child. In the ceaselessly bustling city of Lagos, he prefers to unwind on the breezy Atlantic shoreline that surrounds the city.

But these days, going to the beach in Lagos has become increasingly expensive. It now involves a spreadsheet of expenses from pricey gate fees to pricey awnings and chairs, food, drinks, and activities.

“It costs a lot of money for the average Nigerian to come here,” Oladunmade, the 27-year-old writer, said at Takwa Bay, an island near the Lagos harbor, in late June.

For work, he travels regularly across West Africa, and in the evening, his favorite pastime is walking across the road to relax at the beach, whether in Accra, Cotonou, Dakar, or elsewhere in the region. It's only in Lagos that it is not possible.

Over the years, Lagos has become an outlier along the Gulf of Guinea as most parts of its 180-kilometer-long coastlines are being privatized for land reclamation, exclusive urban residence, and public-private enterprise.

What used to be free public spaces have mostly become ticketed spaces, ranging from 2,000 naira ($1.50) to 60,000 naira ($44), as the state government has licensed them to individuals or businesses who have transformed them into concession facilities or private resorts.

In addition to the ticket, a peculiar economy has grown around Lagos beaches, where items are priced steeply as the beaches are privatized.

“On average, I spend 25,000 naira ($18.24) whenever I think of coming to the beach. So, having to factor that into my expenses, it makes it difficult to want to get up in the morning to come to the beach,” Oladunmade said.

AP Video by Dan Ikpoyi

===========================================================

Find out more about AP Archive: http://www.aparchive.com/HowWeWork
Twitter: https://twitter.com/AP_Archive
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/APArchives ​​
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/APNews/

You can license this story through AP Archive: http://www.aparchive.com/metad....ata/youtube/3f74155e