Things to do in Eritrea

Stroll along palm-lined Harnet Avenue to witness Futurist and Art Deco gems like the Fiat Tagliero and Cinema Impero, the core of Asmara’s UNESCO-listed modernist ensemble.

Marvel at the 1938 aviation-inspired concrete wings of the Fiat Tagliero, Africa’s most daring early modernist building, best seen in the golden evening light.

Catch a film inside this 1937 Art Deco theatre, still glowing with its original neon façade and sumptuous interior details.

Step inside this sprawling cathedral blending Eritrean and Italian architectural styles, adorned with vivid frescoes and a peaceful courtyard.

Wander the open-air stalls of Medeber, where aromatic berbere spice, incense, and handmade jewellery are traded amid a cacophony of colour.

Explore a vast field of rusting tanks, trucks, and artillery abandoned after decades of war, now a surreal open-air museum under the highland sun.

Roam the atmospheric Ottoman-Egyptian quarter of Massawa, with whitewashed coral buildings, ornate wooden balconies, and centuries-old mosques overlooking the Red Sea.

Plunge into crystal-clear waters to encounter untouched coral gardens, sea turtles, playful dolphins, and elusive dugongs in this Red Sea paradise.

Board a beautifully restored 1930s steam locomotive and chug along the cliff-hugging Eritrean Railway, through tunnels and over bridges to the mountain station of Nefasit.

Trek across a high plateau to the pre-Axumite city of Qohaito, exploring rocky pillars, ancient dwellings, and the enigmatic Egyptian Tomb at 2,600 metres.

Follow misty forest trails in the Green Belt escarpment, home to colobus monkeys, endemic birds, and spectacular valley views.

Wander the excavated ruins of this once-great Aksumite trading port, where palace walls and stone pillars still rise from the Red Sea coastal plain.

Visit Eritrea’s only brewery to taste the crisp, Italian-style Asmara Beer in the factory’s lively tasting area.

Sit down on low stools as green coffee beans are roasted, ground, and brewed in a traditional clay pot, filling the air with frankincense smoke.

Dig into fiery beef stew soaked up with tangy injera flatbread inside a bustling restaurant like Ristorante Alba.

Enter a cavernous open-air workshop where blacksmiths hammer old oil drums and scrap metal into pots, stoves, and household ware.

Charter a traditional dhow and battle trophy fish amid deserted atolls and brilliant turquoise flats.

Climb Eritrea’s highest peak (3,018 m) for sweeping views of the escarpment and ancient volcanic craters.

Study archaeological finds, ancient manuscripts, and ethnographic collections that trace the country’s rich cultural tapestry.

Visit the 1920s Romanesque-Revival Kidane Mehret Cathedral, whose campanile commands the city skyline.

Step into Asmara’s largest mosque, built in 1938 with striking geometric minarets, marble interiors, and a serene courtyard.

Take a steep trail from Nefasit to a 14th-century Orthodox monastery balanced on a jagged pinnacle with dizzying Red Sea views.

Glide above sunken Italian warships transformed into vibrant artificial reefs, encrusted with coral and patrolled by schools of fish.

Roll down the lanes at a perfectly preserved 1950s bowling alley, a curious relic of Italian-era leisure hidden in the capital.

Join the local passeggiata along Asmara’s main boulevard, pausing for gelato beneath fluttering Italianate lamp posts.