What it is
A city of somewhere between fifteen and twenty million spread across a lagoon, islands and mainland. Victoria Island, Ikoyi and Lekki hold most hotels and restaurants. Lagos Island is the old commercial core. Ikeja, on the mainland, has the airport and the New Afrika Shrine.
Why go
Music and art, at the source. The New Afrika Shrine in Ikeja is run by the Kuti family and plays live most weeks; Felabration, around Fela Kuti's October birthday, is a week of it. The Nike Art Gallery in Lekki holds several floors of Nigerian work and is free to enter. Lekki Conservation Centre has a canopy walkway inside the city. Boats from Victoria Island reach Tarkwa Bay and the Ilashe beaches in half an hour, which is the only fast way to move in Lagos. Food, tailoring and nightlife are all better here than anywhere else in the region.
When to go
December if you want the season and will pay for it; January to March if you want the same city at a workable pace and price. Plan around traffic rather than distance: a 12 km crossing can take two hours at the wrong time, and the bridges between the island and the mainland are the bottleneck. Nothing starts early at night.
Most people stay 4-5 nights.