The national airline is Somali Airlines.

From Mogadishu to London is 15 hours, flying first to Dubai and then on to London with a stopover in Djibouti.

Mogadishu (MGQ) is 6km (4 miles) west of the city. To/from the airport: There is a taxi service to the city centre.

The equivalent of US$20. Transit passengers and children under two years are exempt.

The principal ports are Berbera, Kismayu, Marka and Mogadishu.

There are routes to Somalia from Djibouti and Kenya. There is no border crossing with Ethiopia at present. Roads are underdeveloped, and travel requires suitable 4-wheel-drive desert vehicles.

Somali Airlines run regular services to all major towns.

Modern Somalia is essentially a broad strip of coastal desert. Roads are poor and consequently coastal shipping is an important form of transport, both socially and economically.

Traffic drives on the right. It is difficult to travel outside Mogadishu by car. Existing roads run from the capital to Burao and Baidoa and there are sealed roads between Kismayu and Mogadishu, and Hargeysa and Mogadishu. Passenger transport is restricted almost entirely to road haulage. There are few cars and buses, although there are reasonable bus services between the major centres in the south. Taxi: These are available in large towns. Car hire: Available in Mogadishu. Documentation: An International Driving Permit is required.

Minibuses and shared taxi-type services run in Mogadishu, but availability may be restricted outside normal working hours (Sat-Thurs 0700-1400).