Maputo (until 1976 Lourenço Marques) is the capital and largest city of Mozambique. It is also the main financial, corporate and mercantile center of the country. It is located on the western shore of Maputo Bay, in the extreme south of the country, near the border with South Africa and the border with Swaziland and, therefore, the triple border of the three countries. Until March 13, 1976, the city was named "Lourenço Marques" in honor of the homonymous Portuguese explorer.

The city administratively constitutes a municipality with an elected government and has also, since 1980, the status of province. It should not be confused with the province of Maputo that occupies the most southern part of the Mozambican territory, except for the city of Maputo.

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The tourist infrastructure of this young country that has just gained independence in 1975 is still flawed and uninviting, but locals and natural wealth do everything they can to get (and well, by the way) travelers who begin to arrive in that African territory that only a decade ago managed to return the attention to the tourism sector.

The result is an unexplored city, touristy, and a population that still does not carry the malice of the most experienced tourist destinations on the planet. It is definitely a full plate for more traveled adventurers who are looking for alternative routes on lands not yet visited by mass tourism.

Simple and discrete museums recount the trajectory of ancestral peoples who arrived in Mozambique, from the year 200 d. small cultural centers expose, proudly, works of black-wood made by artists who begin to gain space in the art; and a few (and beautiful) colonial buildings that defy time, without any restoration, since the departure of the last Portuguese settlers in the early 70's.

The tourist attractions and a part of the places seem to have a memory of the period when the country was guided by European customs, especially those brought from Portugal. The pastels of Belém and the typical confectioneries of Lisbon in the center of Maputo do not deny the Portuguese past.

The Iron House, built by the same author of the French Eiffel Tower, buildings of Portuguese architecture such as the Tunduru Botanical Garden and the Natural History Museum, the Cathedral and the train station of the early 20th century are some of the most popular attractions and more. visited in the city.

However, it is across the bay of Maputo that the city reveals the best in the region: the Inhaca archipelago. Located 34 km from the Mozambican capital, in a flight of only 15 minutes, the destination is formed by Inhaca, with 42 km ², and by the island of the Portuguese, a small territory of 3.7 km ².

Its delicate nature has been protected as a reserve since 1965 and shelters a biodiversity formed by dense forests on both coasts; savannas, in the center; and mangroves. The marine life has more than 160 species of corals that can be seen in beaches like Ribzene and Ponta Torres, besides turtles and varied species of fish.

The relaxed climate of its inhabitants that rush through the rustic streets of the sand and the wild beaches, typical of the coastal coast of Mozambique, make the visitor forget the hallucinated climate of the Mozambican capital.

Nothing better than to watch, isolated on some of the deserted beaches of Inhaca, the slow goings and comers of the artisanal fishermen who leave in small boats of wood, while Maputo is rising from the other side.

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Marginal Avenue, on the shores of beaches such as Miramar and Costa del Sol, concentrates traditional restaurants, well known for the large seafood platters served by the sea.

Other Mozambican dishes found in the city are the "matapa", a kind of broth made with cassava leaf, coconut, peanut, crab and shrimp; and the "magumba", a local sardine.

Those who like to taste exotic fruits should not forget to eat the "mafura", a typical Mozambican fruit, with which to prepare the oil of munhas and the ice cream with sweet potatoes.

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Maputo's climate is tropical dry. The hottest period of the year comprises the months of November to April and the coldest months of May to October. The period of greatest precipitation occurs in the hottest months, between November and March.
The average relative humidity is 66.6%, with little oscillation during the year. The month with the highest relative humidity is March with 71.0%, and the month as lower humidity is June with 63.5%.

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