Comoro Islands

The island country of Comoros is a tropical paradise set on a volcanic archipelago in the Indian Ocean. It takes its name from the shape of its largest island, Grande Comore – in Arabic, “qamar” means “moon”. They were originally called Juzu el Kumar (“islands of the moon”) by sixth-century Arab sailors who visited their shores, thanks both to Grande Comore’s shape and the fact that, under a full moon, the islands shone brightly.

The country’s Arab heritage can be seen in buildings such as the elegantly-collonaded, grandiose Ancienne Mosquée du Vendredi in Moroni, Comoros’s coastal capital city. Moroni is set on Grande Comore and is home to the National Museum of the Comoros and a picturesque port area with ornate carved doors, from which goods such as coffee, cacao, and vanilla are exported. Behind the city rises Mount Karthala, an active volcano responsible for lava rock formations all around the island, and the country’s highest peak at 2,361 metres above sea level. Around Grande Comore and its sister islands, Mohéli and Anjouan, deserted beaches are lapped by warm Indian Ocean waves and fringed with gently-swaying palm trees.