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Somaliland travel guide

Best time to visit from the UK, weather, festivals, flights from London and FCDO travel advice.

Laas Geel
Laas Geel. Photo: Abdullah Geelah, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons
8hflight from London
Somaliland shillingcurrency
On arrivalfor UK passports
Type C, Gplugs

Some of Africa's finest ancient cave paintings

Don't miss

  1. Laas Geel
  2. Berbera
  3. Hargeisa market
Good forHistory & ruins

Best time to visit Somaliland from the UK

Best value: Oct–Mar. Oct–Mar; check FCDO advice.

19.5 C20°J21.3 C21°F23.8 C24°M25 C25°A25.7 C26°M25.6 C26°J24.8 C25°J24.9 C25°A25.6 C26°S23.5 C24°O21.1 C21°N19.4 C19°D
Best valueBusy and pricierQuietAverage temperature in Hargeisa, °C, 2001–2025 (NASA POWER).

Each bar is the average temperature in Hargeisa for that month, and its colour shows the season for visitors: best value (good weather, fewer crowds and lower prices), busiest and priciest, or quiet (off-peak, sometimes because the weather is poorer).

  • Our pick: March and OctoberThe warmest of the best-value months (24°C), with fewer crowds than peak season.
  • Quiet season: Apr–SepAround 25–26°C. The cheapest and least crowded time, though often because of rain or heat.
  • Warmest: May (26°C) · coolest: December (19°C)A 7°C swing between the warmest and coolest months.
Temperatures as a table
JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
19.521.323.82525.725.624.824.925.623.521.119.4

Festivals and events

  • Independence Day May · Hargeisa
  • Hargeisa Book Fair Jul · Hargeisa

Festival dates move from year to year: check before you book.

Getting there from the UK

Flight time
About 8h
Distance
6,160 km
Main airport
HGA

Flight times are straight-line estimates for a direct flight from Heathrow; journeys with a change take longer.

Add Somaliland to your bucket list Search flights to HGA

Practical info and travel guidance

Somaliland shillingCapital: Hargeisa
Type C, G · 220VUK plugs fit
Drive on the rightOpposite to the UK
888
EmergencyPolice, fire, ambulance
Drink bottledOr treated water
  • VisaVisa on arrivalVisa on arrival
  • HealthcareNo free healthcareYou pay for treatment, so travel insurance with medical cover is essential.
  • LGBT+ travellersSame-sex relations are illegal or prosecutedRead the FCDO LGBT+ advice before you go.
  • Women travellersNo specific FCDO warningTake the usual precautions.

For British passport holders, summarised from the FCDO's advice for Somaliland, checked October 2026. FCDO page last updated 4 June 2026. Rules change: read the official FCDO travel advice for Somaliland before you book and again before you go.

Open Somaliland on the map Log it as visited, drop pins for the places you went, or plan it as your next trip.