Djibouti (جيبوتي) is the capital city of Djibouti and has a population of around 400,000.
Understand
The city was founded in 1888 and was designated the capital of French Somaliland three years later. Nowadays the parliament and the presidential palace is located in the city. The city centre is compact with a number of small shops, some restaurants en bars and local hotels. Adjacent to the centre the permanent market or souk is located. The city has some beaches along its eastern shore and close to Kempinski hotel. Towards the south on the half-isle Heron the embassies are located, among residents of wealthy Djiboutien and expats.
Get in
By plane
Ambouli Airport (JIB) serves the city, and there are regular flights by Air France (to Paris-CDG), Ethiopian Airways (Addis Ababa) and Kenya Airways (Nairobi via Addis Ababa) flights. There are also regular flights with Fly Dubai (to UAE-Dubai-DXB terminal 2). Dubai Airport has direct flights to most European capitals. Emirates has regular flights between Amsterdam and Dubai.
By train
Train services have resumed with two weekly services from Dire Dawa, with a connecting bus from Addis Abeba. Journey times are long, up to 20 hours. A first class ticket sets you back around 150 bir.
Get around
Get around by Green TaxiCabs. Some people will tell you to avoid the taxis with the drivers chewing khat. Khat is not a narcotic, but a stimulant (milder than meth or coke). It gives the local Djiboutians and Somalis something called Merran (the Somali word for ‘energy’). In Europe khat is considered a hard drug and illegal.
Taxis range from 500FDJ to any amount, depending on how far you go. For example: Hotel Kempinski to Downtown 1,000FDJ.
Again, negotiate and you may get a lower price, but there are better things to do than to argue over 500FDJ (2 Euro).
Note that the fee is for the ride, indepandant the amount of persons in the taxi. All cab rides are different (none is the same). Make sure you go with someone who knows the city; otherwise, you will pay way more than needed. Discuss the fee in advance. Only enter the taxi once agreed on the price.
See
•Beaches on the eastern shore
•Cathedral of Our Lady of the Good Shepherd
Do
•Aden Bay Casino, ☎ [tel:+253-356549 +253-356549]. Open Fri-Wed 6PM-4AM, Thu 6PM-5AM. This casino in the Sheraton Hotel sports 40 poker machines, black jack, poker and roulette tables.
Eat
•Melting Pot is a fusion cuisine restaurant located in Heron not far from the port. On the menu, camel meat, sushi, sashimi, fish, lobster, crab, and best steaks in Djibouti. Cold beers, fresh mojitos. Nice atmosphere with outdoor and indoor setting. Organizing events like all you can eat sushi night, welcoming big groups. For more information check Email: mp@meltingpotdj.com Phone +253 21350399
•La Mer Rouge Restaurant [1], Ambouli, Nelson Mandela 11-23. La Mer Rouge is the seafood restaurant in Djibouti.
With a great location, not far from airport and BA188. Nice outdoor and indoor settings. On the menu live crabs, lobsters, fresh fish, clams and many treasure from the Red Sea. Choose your fish and have it cooked in a traditional Yemenite clay oven, on acacia wood. Try a surf and turf, or a grilled calamari. Check the menu on the website http:/ / lamerrougedj. com Email at lamerrougedj.com Call at +253 21340005 4$up.
•Restaurant Saba, Avenue M. Lyoutey. Good local food for a fair price. Fresh fish, seafood, crab, good steaks and hamburgers. Yemenite and Djibouti style food. Fresh fruit juice, no alcohol. Call +253 21354244
Drink
•Club Hermes. Underground club, low key. Good security at the door. 1,000 Djiboutian francs per beer.
•Sham’s. Decent DJ, small dance floor. 1,000 Djiboutian francs/beer and 1,500 Djiboutian francs for mixed drinks.
•Club Menelik. Inside the Menelik Hotel, security is good here. Drinks are 1,000 Djiboutian francs/beer & 1,500 Djiboutian francs/mixed drink. The music here ranges widely, but often times consists of ’90’s to current hip-hop & R&B.
•La Mer Rouge, Ambouli (near airport), ☎ [tel:+253340005 +253 340005]. For genuine seafood lovers, a new restaurant specialized in seafood: crab, fresh fish (snapper, king fish, shark, grouper, etc.), live lobster, clams and mussels.
•La Galette. La Galette. Wonderful Underground Club… 1,000 Franc Beers, 1,500 Franc Mixed Drinks and 1,000 Francs for sheesha (hookah).
•La Oasis. Nice place with a second, smaller bar upstairs. •Le Maries. Nice place with a dancefloor in the front alongside a bar. In the back are a bunch of couches where all the Sheesha smoking takes place (again, 1,000 francs to participate).
•Golden Club. This place could hold a special place in your heart… 1,000 Franc Beers, Pool for 500 Francs and a dancefloor. The best sheesha in Djibouti here also (of course, for 1,000 francs). No trip is complete without stopping in there.
•La Mer Rouge Restaurant [1], Ambouli, ☎ [tel:+25321350299 +25321350299]. 11-23. La Mer Rouge is the seafood restaurant in Djibouti.
References
[1] http://www.lamerrougedj.com
[2] http://www.kempinski.com/en/djibouti/
Djibouti Guidebook 