Luanda

Get around

thumb|right|250px|Congestion is a fact of life in Luanda. (Av. dos Combatentes)

See

thumb|right|550px|Bahia de Luanda, the beautiful natural harbor Luanda surrounds, as seen from the fort.

Buy

thumb|right|300px|Luanda skyline

Eat

The majority of restaurants are on The Marginal or on Ilha de Luanda, where Luanda's elite go to dine and have fun. Be careful: when eating out, do not drink the tap water.

The Belas Shopping mall has a food court with a variety of options from local foods to pizza and burgers.

Drink

Luanda is highly influenced by Portuguese culture. Portuguese beer is widely consumed, although Heineken and Carlsberg make an appearance. Super Bock, Sagres and Cristal (most popular) are popular beers from Portugal. Local beers such as Nocal, Cuca (the most popular, especially the excellent draught version, or "fino" in Portuguese) and Eka. Try Portugalia (Portuguese Beer House) at the beginning of the Ilha, or either of the two boat clubs just on the Ilha for a nice sundowner (Clube Nautico and Clube Naval).

Also, there are some excellent Portuguese wines widely available.

Stay safe

Safety in Luanda is average for safety among African cities. Don't venture into the slums. Don't go out at night alone. Keep your car doors locked at all times. Violent crime has been on the rise, but it is mostly in the slums. The colonial part of the city is safe from violent crime; but like most African cities, pickpocketing or muggings are a fact of life. You will greatly reduce your chances of such if you stay low key: no fancy clothes or car, use a money belt, etc. The city is an expensive place to live and Angolans have realized that most expats in the city are high-salaried employees from large corporations, so you should especially avoid business attire.

Do not give beggars money; if you do, you will soon have a lot of them surrounding you.

This is Central Africa: many police in Luanda are very corrupt. Check for their identity number (should be located on an arm band near the shoulder) and you may present charges against any abuse. As a visitor, it's important to carry an authorised photocopy of your passport at all times. Otherwise, you will get an on the spot fine or worse, courtesy of the police. Do not carry your original; the police may ask for it and keep it until you pay a "fine".

Go next

Go a bit south of Luanda and you will find the outstanding Parque Nacional Da Kissama (also spelled Quiçama in Portuguese), home to elephants, antelope, exotic birdlife, ostriches, zebras, wildebeest, and giraffes, which are still thriving in great numbers but because tourism is just beginning to start in Angola, it still has a bit of a wild side to it. It is also very beautiful with spectacular views.

When leaving the country do not take more than 50,000 kwanza to the airport as it is illegal to try to take more kwanza out of the country; you may be stopped by the fiscal police and receive a heavy fine (all your kwanza taken and most of your other money) or imprisoned.