Port Harcourt, one of the most expensive cities to live in Nigeria, is the capital of Rivers state. The city is called "Iguocha" by the indigenous Ikwerre dialect. Before the British colonial rule, the area was a section of the farmlands of the Diobu village group of the Ikwerre.
The city was recognised by the British because of the port, which was used to export coal from Enugu and this influenced the development of the area into an urban centre. Although it was built in 1912, it was named "Port Harcourt" in 1913 by Lord Lugard after Lewis Vernon Harcourt, then the Secretary of State for the Colonies. The city gained further prominence when crude oil was discovered in Oloibiri in 1956 and the first oil export was carried out in 1958.
Indeed, the discovery of oil in Port Harcourt resulted in a massive change in the history of the city. It is a major industrial centre as it accommodates many multinational and national firms, especially those that deal with petroleum. Presently, the major source of income for the state is crude oil, which has made it one of the richest states in the country. It is important that a visitor does not the city without trying Bole and fish, a delicious and popular cuisine in the city.
The natural aesthetic and manmade effort made Port Harcourt a very beautiful city with quite a number of places of attraction such as Port Harcourt Tourist Beach, a beautiful creek-lijed beach; Port Harcourt Cultural Centre, a centre for exhibiting the cultural diversity of Port Harcourt and the state in general and also shops where local artefacts and souvenirs are sold; Ifoko Beach; Port Harcourt Zoological Garden; home to various wild animals; Port Harcourt Golf Club, established in 1928 and boasts of other facilities apart from the golf course; Garden City Amusement Park and the Mile One Street Market, the most popular market in Port Harcourt among other tourist centres.
Port Harcourt is very expensive and so the hotels in Port Harcourt are also expensive. There are still a good number that are affordable and conducive with some luxuries.
