{"id":39920,"date":"2023-03-22T18:19:51","date_gmt":"2023-03-22T16:19:51","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/againstthecompass.com\/en\/?post_type=country&p=39920"},"modified":"2026-04-20T15:18:51","modified_gmt":"2026-04-20T13:18:51","slug":"eritrea","status":"publish","type":"country","link":"https:\/\/againstthecompass.com\/en\/country\/eritrea\/","title":{"rendered":"Eritrea"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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Popularly known as the North Korea of Africa, Eritrea is the most hermetic country in the continent and the most repressive dictatorship but, paradoxically, this is a surprisingly chilled-out and tourist-friendly destination, filled with kind-hearted people, huge diversity, and loads of unique things to do.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Read my travel guide to Eritrea<\/a><\/strong>.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

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need to know for traveling in Eritrea<\/mark><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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Quick facts<\/h5>\n\n\n\n

Capital: Asmara<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Population<\/strong>: 5.7 million (116th)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Language<\/strong>: Tigrinya (from the same family as Arabic & Amharic, the main language in Ethiopia) is the most common language, but many other languages are spoken.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Area<\/strong>: 117,600km\u00b2 (97th largest country)<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

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Visa<\/h5>\n\n\n\n

You can either get a visa from your closest embassy (slow and unreliable process) or, you can get a visa on arrival if you travel there as part of a group. Check our expeditions<\/strong><\/a> for more. <\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

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Access internet<\/h5>\n\n\n\n

Internet in Eritrea is one of the worst in the world and even if you manage to connect, you’ll need a VPN in most cases.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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get expressvpn<\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n
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Travel Insurance<\/h5>\n\n\n\n

IATI Insurance<\/a><\/strong> is one of the very few that covers travel in Eritrea.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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GET A QUOTE<\/strong><\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n
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Tours for Eritrea<\/mark><\/h5>\n\n\n\n

Against the Compass has several scheduled expeditions to Eritrea every year.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

November 10th to 17th, 2026<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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CLICK HERE TO LEARN MOR<\/strong>E<\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n
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Money<\/h5>\n\n\n\n

The official currency is the Eritrean Nafka<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

1 USD = 15 ERN<\/p>\n\n\n\n

There are no ATMs and cards aren’t accepted. Bring all your money in cash.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Budget:<\/strong> starting at $50 a day for budget backpackers (accommodation and food can be pricey).<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

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Permits for traveling around Eritrea<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
\"Eritrea<\/picture><\/figure>
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A special permit is needed for visiting any place outside of the capital, a different one for each and every town. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Most permits can be obtained at the tourism office, dates must be specified and they can’t be changed afterwards.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Hotels outside of Asmara will ask for these permits.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n

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Top experiences in Eritrea<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
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Keren animal market<\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

A very traditional livestock market takes place on Monday.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

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Massawa<\/strong><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Ottoman architecture and buildings destroyed by the war.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

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Italian Heritage<\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Eritrea was an Italian colony from the end of the 19th century until WWII. Italian architecture can be seen all across the country.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

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Foro market<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Super offbeat Thursday market where many different ethnicities attend.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

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tips for Eritrea<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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Accommodation<\/h5>\n\n\n\n

Hotels are pricey, usually basic, and can’t be booked online.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In my Eritrea travel guide<\/a><\/strong> you can see different options.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Getting in<\/h5>\n\n\n\n

Asmara has an international airport with flights from Addis Ababa, Cairo, Dubai and Istanbul. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

All land borders are closed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Update: <\/strong>Ethiopian Airlines has stopped flying to Asmara, effective October 1st, 2024.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

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Transportation<\/h5>\n\n\n\n

As a foreign traveler, you can take the public bus, and most cities and towns are connected by either coach buses or mini-vans.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

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ALL MY ARTICLES ON ERITREA<\/h3>\n\n\n","protected":false},"featured_media":40836,"menu_order":0,"template":"","meta":{"_acf_changed":false},"categories":[],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-39920","country","type-country","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/againstthecompass.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/country\/39920","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/againstthecompass.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/country"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/againstthecompass.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/country"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/againstthecompass.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/40836"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/againstthecompass.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=39920"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/againstthecompass.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=39920"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/againstthecompass.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=39920"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}