Originally Posted by
nkclark
Is Lagos, Nigeria, a safe place to check luggage onto a flight?
No, it's not.
Originally Posted by
nkclark
As one whose checked baggage never made it from the Air France check-in to AF855 from Lagos, Nigeria, to CDG, and onward to ATL, I now am hearing rumours that checked baggage theft is a cottage industry at LOS,
Correct, but on a much larger scale than "cottage industry."
Originally Posted by
nkclark
Has anyone else had similar experiences in Lagos?
My experience when leaving Lagos on an Air France flight--before checking in for the flight, you put your bags on a table and these military/airport guys go through them. So they're ogling some of the electronics and video gear in the bags and making comments about it.
Those bags were never seen again--disappeared without a trace. I don't think it was a coincidence or the airline "lost" the bags. I don't think those bags ever made it on the plane.
Keep in mind, world organizations will tell you that Nigeria is one of the most, if not -the- most, corrupt countries on the planet.
Police are shaking people down on just about every street corner and every few miles on the highways. Our group had armed guards traveling with us whenever we left the hotel (and we stayed at the only hotel in the city that a major diplomatic organization will allow its representatives to stay in, the Eko.) Then there are the kidnappings in the oil region.
We did meet some nice people there, but the culture of the country is one of corruption. Hey, how many countries have an Internet scam named after them?
Everyone I've spoken with who has visited Nigeria did agree on one thing--the best day was the day they left.