---
title: "Comoros travel guide: Moroni, Karthala, Anjouan and Mohéli | Wimup"
description: "The Comoros on Wimup: how Grande Comore, Anjouan and Mohéli fit together, the volcano and the medinas UNESCO listed in 2026, getting between the islands, what to eat, and the months worth booking."
url: https://wimup.com/country/comoros
type: Country guide
updated: 2026-10-05
publisher: Wimup (https://wimup.com)
---

# The Comoros, three volcanic islands between Madagascar and Mozambique

Three volcanic islands at the northern mouth of the Mozambique Channel, and very few tourists. Grande Comore has **Karthala**, an active volcano with a summit caldera three kilometres by four; Anjouan distils most of the **ylang-ylang** that makes the Comoros the world's leading producer of the oil; **Mohéli** has green turtles nesting all year and humpback whales from mid-July. In 2026 **six historic medinas** became the country's first World Heritage site.

## Quick answer

Land at **Moroni** and give Grande Comore three or four days: the harbour medina, the **Old Friday Mosque**, the inscribed medinas at **Ikoni** and **Itsandra**, and the climb toward the caldera of **Karthala**. Then pick one island. **Anjouan** is towns and hills: **Mutsamudu**, **Domoni** and the ylang-ylang country. **Mohéli** is the sea: turtles at **Itsamia** and whales from mid-July. Ten days covers two islands, two weeks all three. Read your foreign ministry first: France and the US both flag sea travel.

## Quick facts

- **Best months:** Jun · Sep · Oct
- **Ideal length:** 10–14 days
- **Budget per day:** Paid in cash; ATMs are few
- **Language:** Comorian, French and Arabic are all official. Comorian is the everyday language, and French is the one a visitor uses most.
- **Getting around:** Taxis and hired drivers on each island; domestic flights when a carrier is operating, and ferries between the islands.

- **758,316** People

The Union of the Comoros is three islands at the northern end of the Mozambique Channel, about two thirds of the way from northern Mozambique to northern Madagascar: Grande Comore (Ngazidja), Anjouan (Ndzuwani) and Mohéli (Mwali). They cover 1,861 square kilometres between them, and the 2017 census counted 758,316 people: half of them on Grande Comore, 327,382 on Anjouan, which is far smaller and much the most crowded, and 51,567 on Mohéli. A fourth island in the chain, Mayotte, voted to remain French when the others declared independence on 6 July 1975. France runs it as an overseas department, the Union still claims it (it is the fourth star on the Comorian flag), and the dispute sits under a good deal of the politics. The name comes from the Arabic al qamar, the moon. The country is 98 per cent Muslim, overwhelmingly Sunni, and Comorian (Shikomori, similar to Swahili), French and Arabic are all official. Grande Comore is where you land. Prince Said Ibrahim International Airport is at Hahaya, north of Moroni, and the main connections run through Addis Ababa, Nairobi and Dar es Salaam. Moroni's name means the place of fire, after the volcano behind it. Karthala rises to 2,361 metres, the highest point in the country, has erupted more than twenty times since the nineteenth century and last erupted in 2007, and its summit caldera is about three kilometres by four. On the harbour, the Old Friday Mosque dates from 1427, with a minaret added in 1921, and the medina behind it is one of six that UNESCO inscribed in July 2026 as the Medinas of the Historic Sultanates of the Comoros, the country's first World Heritage property. Three of the others sit on the same coast within easy reach of the capital: Ikoni to the south, Itsandra and Ntsudjini to the north. Anjouan is the steep island and the perfume island. Most of the country's ylang-ylang is distilled there, and cloves, essential oils and vanilla are among the main exports. Mutsamudu, the port and island capital, keeps a medina of narrow, partly covered alleys under a citadel built between 1782 and 1789, and Domoni on the east coast is the second inscribed medina on the island. It was off Domoni, in December 1952, that a fisherman landed the second coelacanth known to science. Mohéli is the smallest and quietest of the three and the one to come to for the sea. Mohéli National Park was set up in 2001 as the country's first marine park and extended onto land in 2010, and UNESCO named the island a biosphere reserve in 2020. Green turtles nest on the beaches at Itsamia throughout the year, and humpback whales come into the surrounding water from mid-July to October to calve. Four practical things shape a trip more than the route does. A visa is issued on arrival for about 30 euros, paid in cash, and the passport needs six months of validity. The Comorian franc is a cash currency, and banks and ATMs are few on every island. Getting between the islands is the hard part: domestic airlines have started and stopped repeatedly, so confirm the current carrier once you land, and the UK Foreign Office warns that the ferries can be overloaded, in poor condition and without life jackets. France tells travellers not to board the small motor boats called kwassa-kwassa at all. And the calendar is simple. The cooler, drier kusi season from May to October is the time to come; the hot, wet kashkazi from November to April brings the heaviest rain in January and the cyclone risk. July and August are also the grand mariage season, when the diaspora flies home for the weddings and flights from Paris cost the most.

## Know before you go

- **Population:** 758,316
- **Area:** 1,861 km²
- **Density:** 407.5 / km²
- **Capital:** Moroni
- **Major cities:** Moroni, Mutsamudu, Fomboni, Domoni
- **Tourism board:** Official site
- **Currency:** Comorian franc (KMF) A franc-zone currency pegged to the euro. The economy runs on cash: there are very few banks or ATMs on any of the three islands, so bring euros in notes and change them as you go.
- **Language:** Comorian, French, Arabic All three are official. Comorian, related to Swahili, has a variant on each island and is what nine in ten people speak at home. French covers administration and most of a visitor's needs.
- **Calling code:** +269
- **Emergency:** Police 17 · Gendarmerie 18 The numbers the US State Department gives for reporting a crime. Serious medical emergencies cannot be treated in the country, so evacuation insurance matters more than the number.
- **Visa:** On arrival, about €30 Issued on arrival and paid in cash, valid for 45 days on a single entry. Your passport needs six months' validity. Carry a return ticket and your accommodation address.
- **Travel advisory:** Heightened vigilance · US Level 2 The UK warns of overloaded ferries, protests over Mayotte and cyclones from January to May. The US says Level 2. France urges heightened vigilance and says never board a kwassa-kwassa.
- **Getting around:** Taxis on land, planes or ferries between islands Use taxis or a car with driver, and avoid roads after dark. Between islands, domestic flights run when a carrier operates. Take only licensed ferries: overloaded boats have capsized.
- **Time zone:** UTC+3 · no daylight saving
- **Health:** Basic care; insure for evacuation Care is basic: poor in Moroni and non-existent on Anjouan and Mohéli, by French account. Malaria, dengue and chikungunya are present. Bring all your medicines and insure for evacuation.
- **Religion and dress:** Sunni Muslim; shoulders to knees 98 per cent Muslim, overwhelmingly Sunni. Men and women should dress loosely from the shoulders to the knees, and the UK notes that practising Shia Islam is not permitted.
- **Local laws:** Stricter than they look Photographing government buildings, military sites, ports and airports is illegal. Drug offences carry at least five years, public drunkenness a fine or jail, and same-sex relations are criminal.
- **Volcano:** Karthala is active The volcano behind Moroni last erupted in 2007. An eruption in 2005 forced thousands of people to evacuate and fouled drinking water with ash. Check the current alert level before you climb it.
- **National day:** Independence Day, 6 July
- **Tipping:** Discretionary There is no service-charge convention to plan around. Reward a guide or driver who has given you a full day, in cash.
- **Connectivity:** Mobile first There are more mobile subscriptions than people, but only about a third of the population uses the internet and fixed broadband barely exists. Plan on mobile data.

## When to visit

- **Jan**: The wettest month of the kashkazi: hot, humid and inside the cyclone window
- **Feb**: Hot and wet, with cyclones still possible
- **Mar**: The wet season continues, and so does the cyclone risk
- **Apr**: The kashkazi winds down, but the rain and the cyclone risk have not gone
- **May** (good): The kusi trade winds set in and the dry season starts, though the UK still counts May as cyclone season
- **Jun** (best): Dry, cooler and settled, before the summer arrivals from France
- **Jul** (peak): Whales arrive off Mohéli mid-month, Independence Day falls on the 6th, and the diaspora is home for the weddings
- **Aug** (peak): The height of the grand mariage season: dry, festive, busy, and among the dearest months to fly from Paris
- **Sep** (best): The driest month of the year, with whales still off Mohéli and the wedding crowds gone
- **Oct** (best): Still dry and warming up. The last month of the whale season, and turtle nesting on Mohéli picks up
- **Nov** (good): Hot and humid as the kashkazi returns, with the rain building through the month
- **Dec**: The rains set in and the cyclone season opens

## Fun fact

The coelacanth was thought extinct for tens of millions of years until one turned up off South Africa in 1938. The second came from the Comoros: on 20 December 1952 the fisherman Ahmed Houssein caught one on a hand line off Anjouan. Most coelacanths recorded since have come from the same water.

## Stereotypes, sorted out

- **Myth:** The Comoros are a beach holiday, like the Seychelles or Mauritius. **Reality:** They share an ocean and a latitude, and little else. The Comoros are volcanic, 98 per cent Muslim and conservative in dress: shoulders to knees, for men and women. In place of lagoon villas there is an active volcano, six medinas with a World Heritage listing, and turtles and whales off Mohéli.
- **Myth:** The Comoros are French. **Reality:** Mayotte is. The Union is not. The Comoros declared independence on 6 July 1975 and Mayotte voted to stay French. The Union still claims it, and the flag's four stars include it. Ties to France are close, with remittances worth about a fifth of GDP in 2023, but the subject is political.
- **Myth:** Coups make it too dangerous to visit. **Reality:** The coups are mostly history: about twenty, successful and attempted, most between 1975 and 2000. Current advice is about ordinary risks. The UK calls crime low, the US says Level 2, France says heightened vigilance. All three flag roads after dark, inter-island boats and thin medical care.
- **Myth:** The grand mariage is just an expensive wedding. **Reality:** It settles a man's standing in his town, above all on Grande Comore. After the ada he may speak in public, wear the mharuma shawl and enter the mosque by the elders' door. Ceremonies cluster in July and August, when the diaspora flies home, so the islands are busiest and flights from Paris dearest.

- Dress from the shoulders to the knees, men and women alike, away from the beach. It is the UK Foreign Office's advice and it is how Comorians dress.
- Carry euros in cash. Banks and ATMs are few on all three islands, cards are not widely accepted, and the visa on arrival is paid in cash too.
- Do not photograph government buildings, military sites, ports or the airport: it is illegal, and the penalty can include a fine and a confiscated camera. Ask before photographing any person.
- The country is overwhelmingly Sunni Muslim. The public practice of other faiths and proselytising are against the law, and public drunkenness can bring a fine or jail.
- Treat Mayotte as a serious subject, never small talk. The island is French, the Union claims it, and the issue still brings people onto the street from time to time.
- The pale paste on many women's faces is msindzano, ground sandalwood and coral. The red and white patterned wrap on Anjouan is the shiromani.
- French works with officials, hotels and drivers. Comorian, related to Swahili, is what nine in ten people speak at home.

## Famous Comorian faces

- **Ahmed Abdallah**: First president in 1975, ousted, restored by mercenaries in 1978 and killed in 1989.
- **Azali Assoumani**: Army chief who took power in 1999, elected in 2002 and again from 2016. AU chair in 2023.
- **Mohamed Toihiri**: The first Comorian novelist, author of La République des imberbes (1985).
- **Ahmed Houssein**: Anjouan fisherman who caught the second coelacanth known to science, on 20 December 1952.
- **Ali Soilih**: Head of state from 1976, ran a socialist revolution until mercenaries ousted him in 1978.
- **Ahmed Abdallah Sambi**: Cleric from Anjouan whose 2006 election was the first peaceful democratic handover.
- **Ikililou Dhoinine**: President from 2011 and the first from Mohéli, after an election judged free and fair.
- **Mohamed Bacar**: Anjouan strongman who held the island until troops landed in 2008, then fled to Mayotte.
- **Salim Hatubou**: Novelist and collector of Comorian tales. Start with Les Démons de l'aube (2006).
- **Soeuf Elbadawi**: Poet bringing the spoken word into Comorian writing in French: Un dhikri pour nos morts.
- **Ali Zamir**: Novelist refused a French visa in 2016, the summer Paris published Anguille sous roche.
- **El Fardou Ben Nabouhane**: Red Star striker who scored first in the Cup of Nations win over Ghana in January 2022.
- **Myziane Maolida**: Scored the only goal as the Comoros beat Ghana in Moroni on 21 November 2023.
- **Said Hachim Sidi Abderemane**: Wrote the words and co-wrote the music of the national anthem, adopted in 1978.
- **Soprano**: Marseille rapper of Comorian descent, from Psy 4 de la Rime to a solo career.

## Must-try Comorian food

- **Langouste à la vanille**: Lobster in island vanilla sauce, usually named the national dish. Order it once in Moroni.
- **Mataba**: Pounded young cassava leaves cooked in coconut milk with fish or meat. Everyday comfort.
- **Pilaou**: Rice cooked with meat and plenty of spice, a pilaf that came across from Zanzibar.
- **Ntrovi ya nazi**: Green bananas in coconut milk with cloves, cinnamon and cardamom, served hot.
- **Ambrevades au coco**: Pigeon peas simmered in coconut milk, a crop Anjouan is known for.
- **Mabawa**: Spiced chicken wings grilled at market skewer stands run by the mamas brochettis.
- **Putu**: The table hot sauce of chilli, tomato, onion and lime. Ask for it with grilled food.
- **Mkatra foutra**: Unleavened bread made with coconut water, fried and topped with sesame (foutra).
- **Mkatra siniya**: Rice-flour and coconut cake for weddings, national holidays and family feasts.
- **Ladu**: Balls of ground rice, sweetened and spiced. Small, dense and made for sharing.

## FAQs

### Do you need a visa for the Comoros?

Yes, and it is issued on arrival. At Prince Said Ibrahim International Airport and the other entry points a visitor visa costs about 30 euros, paid in cash (euros, US dollars or Comorian francs), and French consular advice describes it as valid for 45 days on a single entry. Your passport needs at least six months of validity on arrival, and you should carry a return or onward ticket and the address where you are staying. Check with the nearest Comorian embassy or your own foreign ministry before flying, because the rules can change with little notice.

### Is the Comoros safe to visit?

For most visitors, yes, with specific precautions. The UK Foreign Office calls crime low and street robbery rare, while noting that walking alone at night raises the risk and that anti-French demonstrations over Mayotte happen from time to time. The United States holds the country at Level 2, Exercise increased caution, citing crime, unrest, health and piracy against small craft at sea. France keeps the whole country at heightened vigilance, advises great care on the roads at night, and tells travellers not to board the small kwassa-kwassa boats. The bigger gap is medical: French advice describes care as unsatisfactory in the capital and non-existent on Anjouan and Mohéli, so take insurance that covers evacuation. Read your own foreign ministry before booking.

### When is the best time to visit the Comoros?

May to October, the cooler and drier kusi season, when the southeast trade winds blow. June, September and October are the pick: dry and settled, and from mid-July to October there are humpback whales off Mohéli. July and August are just as dry but are the grand mariage season, when the diaspora flies home and flights from Paris cost the most. The hot, wet kashkazi runs from November to April, January is the wettest month, and the UK Foreign Office puts the cyclone risk at January to May.

### How do you get between the three islands?

By air when a domestic carrier is flying, and by boat when it is not. Inter-island airlines have come and gone (Int'Air Îles stopped flying in February 2024, and newer operators have announced routes since), so ask a hotel or agent in Moroni which one is operating that week. Ferries run, but the UK Foreign Office warns they can be overloaded, in poor condition and without life jackets, and that overloaded boats have capsized in Comorian waters with heavy loss of life. France advises against the small motor boats called kwassa-kwassa altogether. Leave slack in the itinerary, because a missed crossing is the usual way a Comoros trip changes shape.

### Is Mayotte part of the Comoros?

Geographically yes, politically no. Mayotte is the fourth island of the archipelago, but when the other three declared independence in 1975 its residents voted to remain French, and France now runs it as an overseas department. The Union of the Comoros still claims it, and the fourth star on the Comorian flag stands for it. For a traveller the practical point is that Mayotte is entered under French rules, not on a Comorian visa, and that the dispute is a live political subject on the other three islands.

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- [Morocco](https://wimup.com/country/morocco.md)
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## Sources

- [Tourism board](https://comorostourism.com/?utm_source=wimup.com&utm_medium=referral)
- [Visa](https://www.diplomatie.gouv.fr/fr/information-par-pays/comores/conseils-aux-voyageurs-entree-sejour?utm_source=wimup.com&utm_medium=referral)
- [Travel advisory](https://www.gov.uk/foreign-travel-advice/comoros?utm_source=wimup.com&utm_medium=referral)
- [Health](https://www.gov.uk/foreign-travel-advice/comoros/health?utm_source=wimup.com&utm_medium=referral)
- [Local laws](https://travel.state.gov/content/travel/en/international-travel/International-Travel-Country-Information-Pages/Comoros.html?utm_source=wimup.com&utm_medium=referral)
- Rankings are Wimup editorial picks. Prices, durations and budgets are editorial estimates, not live quotes; check the official site before you go.