Nigeria is blessed with many beautiful and captivating tourist attractions that keep endearing people from different places to visit them.
These places can also serve as great getaway locations for family and friends hoping to enjoy leisure.
Here’s a list of 10 warm springs in Nigeria;
1. Arinta Waterfall:
Arinta Waterfalls is one of the many wonders of nature in Nigeria. It is located in a quiet and serene village in Ekiti State. Arinta Waterfalls may not be one of the most popular waterfalls in Nigeria but it is a beauty to behold. Arinta is one of the most underrated tourist attractions in Nigeria. It comes with a beautiful landscape, lush green vegetation, rugged hills, a flowing stream and a gigantic rock. This is nature at its finest.
2. Assop Waterfall:
Assop Falls is 70 km along Jos-Kagoro road on the top of Jos, Plateau. The Assop River supplies water which the rapids and falls use, and it feeds the natural vegetation of grasslands that extend into the gallery forests. The site is an area of Guinea Savanna on the slopes and top of a mid-altitude ridge of Jos, beside the Jos-Kagoro road, about 70 km from Jos. The vegetation comprises of gallery forests, surrounded by grasslands. The Assop river, which feeds the picturesque rapids and falls, drains part of Jos.
3. Agbokim Waterfall:
This is situated in the Etung Local Government area of Cross River State, very close to its border with Cameroon. Situated about 17 kilometres from Ikom and 315 kilometres from Calabar, it is made up of seven streams. It is surrounded by steep hills and valleys, which are encircled in a rainbow-like atmosphere. Agbokim falls remains one of the best destinations in Cross River State.
4. Erin–Ijesha Water:
Erin-Ijesha Waterfalls (also known as Olumirin waterfalls) is located in Erin-Ijesha. It is a tourist attraction located in Oriade local government area, Osun State, Nigeria. The waterfalls were discovered in 1140 AD by one of the daughters of Oduduwa. However, according to The Nation,”Olumirin waterfall was discovered by hunters in 1140 AD”. Another source has it that the tourist site was discovered by a woman called Akinla, founder of Erin-Ijesha town and a granddaughter of Oduduwa, during the migration of Ife people to Erin- Ijesha.
The Erin-Ijesha Waterfalls is a popular excursion point for schools around the neighbourhood. The natives regard the waterfall as a sacred site and a means for purifying their souls. Festivals were formerly celebrated and sacrifices performed at the site.
5. Effon Waterfall:
Effon waterfall also known as Effon-Alaaye waterfall is found in Effon-Alaaye local government area of Ekiti State. The waterfall is located 10km away, in a remote corner ridge bordering the neighbouring Osun state.
6. Farin Ruwa Waterfall:
Farin Ruwa Falls is a waterfall found in the central region of Nigeria. It is among the highest waterfalls in Nigeria. It is significant among Africa’s falls when the total height covered by the waterfall is considered.
The source of Farin Ruwa falls is found in Nasarawa State. The fall gushes down over the edge of the Nasarawa. During its descent from Jos, the water drops at a height of about 150 metres (492 ft.). This drop is higher compared to the more popular Victoria Falls, which drops at a height of around 108 metres (354 ft.) during its descent.
7. Gurara Waterfall:
Gurara Waterfalls is located in Gurara, a local government area of Niger State, North Central Nigeria. The waterfall is approximately 30 metres in height and it lies on the Gurara River along the Suleja-Minna Road.
According to oral history, Gurara Waterfalls was discovered by a Gwari hunter called Buba in 1745 before some Europeans discovered it in 1925 – after they found it as a recreation centre. Prior to the discovery of the waterfalls by the Europeans, Gurara Waterfalls was worshipped by people living in communities around it. Oral history also has it that Gurara Waterfalls and Gurara River were named after two deities called Gura and Rara.
8. Ikogosi Warm Spring:
The Ikogosi Warm Springs is a tourist attraction located at Ikogosi, a town in Ekiti State, Southwestern Nigeria. Flowing above the warm spring is another cold spring which meets the warm spring at a confluence, each maintaining its thermal properties. These attributes make the spring a tourist attraction in Nigeria. Research suggests that the warm spring has a temperature of about 70°C at the source and 37°C at the confluence.
9. Owu Waterfall:
Owu Waterfall is a waterfall located in Owa Kajola, in Ifelodun Local Government Area of Kwara State, Nigeria. It is the highest waterfall in West Africa, measuring 120m above the water level and cascades 330 feet down an escarpment with rocky outcrops, to a pool of ice-cold water below.
10. Wikki Spring:
The Wikki Warm Spring can be found in the Yankari National Park, Nigeria’s most revered national park for spotting wildlife. The Wikki Warm Spring is the biggest of the four warm springs in Yankari, which have come about as a result of geothermal activity below the park.
The spring is Mother Nature’s answer to a spa with a consistent temperature of 31°C. It boasts crystal clear waters and flows into a beautiful lake, 200 meters long by 10 meters across, and nearly two meters deep, making it the perfect spot for a swim.
