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Marka: Travel guide, prices and free housing · 2026

Merca is the capital city of the Lower Shebelle province of Somalia, a historic port city in the region. It is located approximately 109 km (68 mi) to the southwest of the nation's capital Mogadishu.

Merca · CC BY-SA 4.0

Now in the cityMarka+29°CDrizzle · sunset 05:46 PMupdated 04:05 PM
EntryPick a passportThe answer depends on the passport.
Exchange rateSOS 571.66per 1 $SOS — the local currencyas of Nov 2, 2026
Marka in pictures21 photos
New Ways Merka · cc-by-sa-2.0
New Ways Merka · cc-by-sa-2.0
New Ways Merka · cc-by-sa-2.0
Bacciy ( talk ) · pdm · Apr 4, 2010

Getting there and staying

2 sources · As of November 3, 2026
Source: TravelHub · OurAirports (public domain)

Visa and practicalities

Choose a passport

Set your passport — processing time, fee and documents differ between passports.

Safety and health

Safety · official adviceour data as of Nov 3, 2026
UK Foreign Office (FCDO)Avoid parts of the countryPart of the country is off limits entirely.
Full text

Updated information about the political situation ('Safety and security' page).

US State DepartmentLevel 4The authority advises against travel altogether.
  • kidnapping
  • terrorism
  • health risks
Full text

Do not travel to Somalia due to risk of crime, kidnapping, terrorism, unrest, health, landmines, systematic mistreatment of women, systematic mistreatment of gay and lesbian individuals, piracy, abuse of residents in rehabilitation centers, and confiscation of passports by family members . Do not travel to Somalia for any reason. The U.S.

Source: UK FCDO Foreign Travel Advice · US Department of State Travel Advisory

Getting here

Getting hereOurAirports (public domain)
Aden Adde International Airport MGQ68 km away — the nearest airport
Gode Airport GDE485 km from the centre
Wajir Airport WJR521 km from the centre

People who have been here

Olga Emelianovaolenenok · Read
30.06.13 All-Neighbor Laundry Day.

Unfortunately, I don't have time to write reports every day. I have to write from memory, but actually, it's not bad to recall the days spent here; at the same time, I analyze how the summer is going, what I'm achieving, and how much money I'm earning. Sunday was nothing remarkable, except that it was the first laundry day. Laundry means a place for washing clothes. Laundromats (I think that's what they're called) are scattered all over the city - self-service. For the last three days, Sonya and I have been planning to do laundry. A lot of clothes had piled up, partly because it was very damp in our room; it turns out a pipe had been leaking the whole week we've been here. The things didn't dry properly and even smelled unpleasant. But either Sonya was busy, or I was, or we were out of detergent. In the end, by the end of my last day off this week, we gathered our strength. We took all our things and went, but first to the store for detergent. I had to choose it alone since Sonya stayed with the "bags" of clothes. I didn't think it would be so difficult. The laundry detergent I'm used to is dry, in a box; here, it's only available in very large packs. All other laundry products are sold in pods, 20 pieces per pack. One pod = one wash in modern automatic machines. Very convenient. I took the only brand I knew from those presented - Tide, and, I think, the cheapest one - $5. By the way, you can buy detergent in the laundry itself, but for 75 cents per pod!!! There are special vending machines. In the laundromat, we were clueless for a long, long time. That's why I'm writing in detail now about what and how to press. First, we sorted what to wash with what. Then, from different types of washers, we chose the right one. Later, I figured out what's what. There are different types of machines depending on the type of detergent: liquid, dry, granules. The newest machines are for granules, and they are the vast majority. After the clothes were loaded into the machine, we realized we didn't have change. All washers only accept 25-cent coins. One wash = $2.50. Sonya went home for change, and I studied everything around me. On the machine itself, there are 6 buttons: white, bright, colors, delicate, woolen, and something like "very dirty laundry." The instructions say that we choose the water temperature ourselves. I haven't figured out how yet. After waiting for Sonya, I decided to ask for help from a girl who was waiting for her things, if she could change a dollar for me. Everything turned out to be much simpler; the girl pointed to a change machine that was hidden in the corner!!! Be careful, don't repeat my mistakes!!!! Out of joy, I immediately loaded the money. When choosing the color, I pressed the 'white' button, although all the things were colored and could fade. Actually, I expected that after pressing the button, something like temperature or other options would appear on the display. I thought I would just see what would be offered. That didn't happen; the machine started washing immediately. And on the display appeared: hot water, 33 min. I felt like I was in a train station waiting room. It was my first time watching American TV. They were broadcasting news; as I understood, there are fires in California right now. Then the weather, I didn't understand anything there at all. Temperatures in the USA are measured in Fahrenheit, the conversion formula is non-linear, so you can't just estimate it easily. Already when the things were washed, on one of the machines I saw a table of color-to-temperature correspondence. White = hot, bright & delicate = warm, colors & woolen = cold. That's what the independent temperature choice consisted of. There are also several types of automatic dryers. Sort of like new and old models. As an African-American woman advised me (she came up later), you need to use the new ones because they work faster. This pleasure costs 25 cents. But I had to use the dryer 3 times in a row for the things to dr

  • Photo from a post by Olga Emelianova
  • Photo from a post by Olga Emelianova
  • Photo from a post by Olga Emelianova+2
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33posts by participants about Marka — from housing and visas to weekend routes.Read all