Things to Do in Comoros

About Comoros

Comoros greets you with scent first. Night-blooming ylang-ylang drifts down from the hills above Moroni, weaving with wood smoke from roadside grills and the sharp salt of the Indian Ocean. On Grande Comore, fishermen haul skipjack onto black-sand beaches at Chomoni while women pound cassava leaves beneath baobabs. Those same leaves reappear at dinner in your guesthouse in Itsandra for 1,500 KMF ($3.40) with rice and fresh coconut milk.

Take the rusty ferry to Mohéli and the soundtrack changes. Fruit bats chatter over vanilla plantations outside Fomboni. The only traffic jam is a pod of dolphins cruising past the pier. Anjouan's winding road from Domoni to Mutsamudu hugs cliffs above water the color of melted glass. There, 800 KMF ($1.80) buys a grilled lobster tail from a beach shack with no name, just an oil-drum barbecue and a view of Mozambique across the channel.

Electricity cuts out every few hours. The one paved runway at Prince Said Ibrahim Airport can feel like a leap of faith. That same fragility keeps the islands honest. You come for the beaches. You stay because nowhere else smells like cloves drying on corrugated roofs at sunset.

Travel Tips

Transportation: Inter-island travel runs on the rust-streaked Komor II ferry. It costs 7,000 KMF/$16 and takes four hours to Mohéli. The boat leaves Moroni port when, and only when, it's full. Show up at dawn. Bring bananas as bribes to secure deck space. Grande Comore's shared taxis charge 300 KMF ($0.70) from Moroni to Itsandra. They refuse to leave until every seat, including the trunk, is occupied. Download maps.me before you land. Google assumes roads exist where goats now graze.

Money: Comorian francs rule. ATMs in Moroni, specifically the BNCI on Rue de la Corniche, are most reliable. They spit out 10,000 KMF notes that nobody can break. Change euros or dollars at the money changers near Volo-Volo market. Their rates beat banks by 5-7%. Credit cards work only at Itsandra Hotel and one overpriced souvenir shop. Everywhere else is cash-only. Carry small bills. A 5,000 KMF note for a 300 KMF taxi ride triggers a village-wide coin hunt.

Cultural Respect: Friday prayers shut Moroni for two hours. No buses. No shops. Just the amplified call from the Friday Mosque echoing across the harbor. Dress modestly away from beaches. Cover shoulders and knees in villages like Iconi. Grandmothers will still correct your sarong knot with maternal disapproval. The left-hand rule matters more than you'd think. Pass money and food with your right. If invited for kawha (clove-spiked coffee), accept three small glasses. Refusing the fourth signals you're ready to leave.

Food Safety: Eat where the charcoal smoke is thickest. Mama Amina's stall in Volo-Volo market grills kingfish so fresh it was swimming that morning. It costs 1,200 KMF/$2.70 with plantains. Skip the mayo-based salads sitting in the sun. Stick to steaming-hot langouste stew or anything just lifted from a wok. Peel your own mangoes. Pre-cut fruit swims in questionable water. Bottled water is 200 KMF ($0.45) everywhere. Tap water is fine if boiled. The pipes in Moroni are older than your parents.

When to Visit

Comoros follows two calendars. Tourists use the Gregorian one. Islanders live by the monsoon. April through November, the long dry season, brings 26-29°C (79-84°F) days and 80 mm monthly rainfall. Hotel prices sit at their 100% baseline. December ushers in the short rains. Temperatures hold. But afternoon thunderstorms drench Moroni.

The ferry to Mohéli gets canceled more often than not. January to March is the furnace. 31°C (88°F) feels like 38°C (100°F) with 90% humidity. Malaria risk spikes. Hotel rates drop 35-40%. Only the stubborn visit. Late March and early December are shoulder months. They trade guaranteed sunshine for 20% cheaper rooms and empty beaches.

Whale season peaks July to October around Mohéli Marine Park. Humpbacks breach 100 meters offshore. Boat trips jump from 10,000 KMF ($23) to 15,000 KMF ($34) when the first fins appear. Deep-sea fishing tournaments in October double domestic flight prices to 45,000 KMF ($102) one-way. Ramadan shifts earlier each year. 2026 sees it in February-March.

Daytime dining disappears. Nightlife withers. Families should aim for August. Dry weather. Calm seas. French school holidays haven't yet inflated the last direct flights from Paris. Solo travelers on a budget? November. Storms are rare. Hotels are 30% off. The ylang-ylang harvest perfumes the entire island.