Dawn over a desolate lake full of flamingoes on the wing is unforgettable. The black lava fields, weird natural chimneys blowing steam and the burning, endless plains are deserted. Diving and snorkelling around Red Sea coral reefs is fabulous. The town of Djibouti is a boisterous blend of colonial French and modern Arabic, and what it lacks in major attractions it makes up for in buzz. The city is crowded with Arab and African cultures jostling each other's prayer mats, and travellers are often regarded as curios and treated to traditional African hospitality.
Visitors also require evidence of a yellow fever vaccination.
There is no currency exchange at the airport, and banks in central Djibouti are only open from 7.30 am to 1.30 pm. You'll get a better exchange rate on travellers' cheques and cash for French francs or US dollars than for any other currency. Most of the larger and western shops, restaurants and hotels in Djibouti city accept credit cards, but you'd be better off to rely on cash in the smaller towns. Bargaining is normal in the markets, and even in some places to stay, but not, of course, in top of the range hotels. Scarcely 100 years old, the capital is home to two-thirds of the nation's population.