Nigerians Trade Malls for Farm Weekends in Tourism Shift

Nigerians are changing how they spend their weekends, and the shift is happening faster than anyone predicted. Instead of heading to malls, beaches, or hotels, growing numbers of city residents are driving to farms for a different kind of escape.

Agritourism has taken root in Nigeria. Farms across the country are opening their gates not just to sell produce, but to welcome visitors who want to walk open land, eat food grown meters away, interact with animals, plant crops, or simply rest in the quiet that only farmland offers.

Three farm resorts are leading this movement and showing what's possible when agriculture meets hospitality.

Xtralarge Farms and Resorts in Ota-Idiroko, Ogun State, has become the most talked-about name in Nigerian agritourism. Founded by Dr. Seyi and Dr. Moji Davids, who left the United States to build it, the sprawling property outside Lagos operates as both a working farm and a full resort with a pool, spa, cinema, restaurant, guided tours, and overnight stays.

An hour southwest of Abuja, Almat Farms in Kuje sits on over 40 hectares of countryside. Visitors can tour crop fields and animal enclosures, ride horses or ATVs, fish, and swim, all while the farm continues producing organic vegetables and livestock feed.

Green House Farm and Resort near Nasarawa presents itself as a village powered by nature. Individual guest rooms stand as separate structures with balconies overlooking greenery and mountains, designed to feel authentically rural rather than polished resort-style. Guests walk through crop fields, try planting and harvesting, and eat meals made from produce they've just handled at the on-site restaurant.

The Ripple Effect

This agritourism boom is doing more than providing weekend getaways. It's reconnecting urban Nigerians with where their food comes from and showing that farms can be profitable in multiple ways. Young people are seeing agriculture as modern and attractive rather than outdated, and rural communities are gaining new economic opportunities without abandoning their land.

The farms prove that rest doesn't require luxury towers or shopping centers. Sometimes the best reset comes from open air, growing things, and remembering what the earth actually does.

Nigeria's weekend landscape is being redrawn one farm visit at a time.