Cross River State

Cross River State is in a state in the South South area of Nigeria.

Other destinations

 * in the Etung local government area of Cross River State in south-eastern Nigeria, very close to its border with Cameroon

Understand
Cross River State derives its name from the Cross River which passes through the state. Cross River State is a state in the South-South geopolitical zone of Nigeria. The state was formed from the eastern part of the Eastern Region on 27 May 1967.

The State is composed of several ethnic groups, which include the Efik, the Ejagham, Yakurr, Bahumono, Bette, Yala, Igede, Ukelle and the Bekwarra among others. There are four major languages spoken in the state: English, Efik, Bekwarra, and Ejagham.

As an agricultural state, the Cross River State economy partially relies on crops, such as cocoyam, rubber, oil palm, yam, cocoa, cashews, and plantain crops along with fishing. Key minor industries involve tourism in and around the wildlife reserves along with the historic Ikom Monoliths site, Calabar Carnival, and Obudu Mountain Resort.

By plane

 * Margaret Ekpo International Airport (IATA: CBQ, ICAO: DNCA), also known as Calabar Airport, is an airport serving Calabar. There are daily flights to Calabar from Lagos and Abuja serviced by airlines such as Air Peace Airlines and Ibom Air Airlines.

By bus
Major transportation company such as GIGM, and ABC Transport Services, offer inter-state services.

See
Cross River State's attractions include the soaring plateaus of the mountain tops of Obanliku to the Rain forests of Afi, from the waterfalls of Agbokim and Kwa to the spiralling ox-bow Calabar River which provides sights and images of the Tinapa Business Resort, Calabar Marina, Calabar Residency Museum and the Calabar Slave Park.

Other tourist attractions are the Ikom Monoliths (a series of volcanic-stone monoliths of unknown age), the Mary Slessor Tomb, Calabar Drill Monkey Sanctuary, Afi Mountain walkway canopy, Kwa falls, Agbokim waterfalls, Tinapa Business Resort, and the Mono rail way.

The National Museum in Calabar, located in the former residence of the colonial governor, concentrates on the history of Calabar, the region and slavery. Interested persons could spend 3 hours there and barely touch the surface of the material. There are a lot of artifacts relating to the production of palm oil.

Do
Calabar Carnival, known as "Africa's Biggest Street Party" held every year through December and attracts thousands within and beyond Nigeria. The festival includes music performances from both local and international artists, a boat regatta, fashion shows, Christmas Village, traditional dances and the annual Ekpe Festival.

In the forested interior of the state are several biodiverse protected areas including the Cross River National Park, Afi Mountain Wildlife Sanctuary, and Mbe Mountains Community Forest. These wildlife reserves contain populations of Preuss's red colobus, African forest buffalo, bat hawk, tree pangolin, grey-necked rockfowl, and West African slender-snouted crocodile along with some of Nigeria's last remaining Nigeria-Cameroon chimpanzee, drill, African forest elephant, and Cross River gorilla populations.

Eat
Some of the popular delicacies you can find in Cross River State:
 * Abak Atama. This yummy abundance of periwinkle soup is the Efik analogue of the popular Banga soup.
 * Ukang Ukom. This meal combines unripe plantain, cow foot and sometimes cow head for a truly fascinating dish.
 * Afia Efere Soup
 * Fisherman Soup
 * Otong Soup
 * Oto Mboro
 * Ekoki

Stay safe
Cross River State is relatively a calm state safe for tourists. However, during the elections, the level of hostilities is a bit high.