CityBuddy
Laas Geel
Best time to visit
Early morning (around 8:00) or late afternoon, when the sun illuminates the paintings at the right angle and the colors stand out fully.
Budget tips
Entrance fee is approximately 10 USD per person, paid in cash (US dollars or local shillings). Bring plenty of water with you, there is no refreshment stand at the site.
Recommended for
Lovers of prehistory and archaeology, Photographers and travelers seeking unique experiences, Adventurers looking for places off the main tourist trails
Plan your visit
1-2 hours
About
Quick facts: Under these granite overhangs in the Somaliland mountain range lies one of the best preserved collections of cave paintings in all of Africa. Ancient artists immortalized cows in ceremonial robes, people with outstretched arms, and mysterious domesticated animals with unusual neck shapes here 5,000 to 9,000 years ago.
Highlights: The paintings show cows adorned with a kind of ritual cloak, a motif not found elsewhere in northern Africa. Archaeologists discovered this site only in 2002, when local herders alerted a French research team to "rocks that tell stories."
Insider tips
- Hire a local guide from Hargeisa who knows the exact spots where the sun hits the paintings at the right time.
- A camera with zoom is essential; you are not allowed to get closer than two meters to the paintings.
- Light clothing and a cap will protect you from the harsh sun, but the shade under the rock is pleasantly cool.
- The drive from Hargeisa (about 50 km) takes 45 minutes by off-road vehicle; we do not recommend a regular car on the dirt road.
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