Wakanow alternatives: other ways to book flights in Nigeria

Last updated 27 October 2026 · Written by the SkyKoda team

Disclosure: SkyKoda runs this page and is one of the services compared. We list other sites' strengths too, link every fact about them to its public source, and date it. Prices and policies change, so check the source before you book.

Wakanow is Nigeria's best-known online travel agency, with about 30 travel centres and a Pay Small Small plan. But it isn't the only option, and its service fee is added after booking and not published. Here are the main alternatives, what each does well, and who each one suits.

SkyKoda runs this page and is one of the options. We have tried to give each one its due.

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Wakanow and its alternatives side by side

As of 27 October 2026. Numbers in brackets link to the source list below.
What you get	SkyKoda	Travelstart	Travelbeta	Wakanow
Pay in parts	FlexPay: deposit 25%–90%, balance due within 1–30 days, fee 6% of the airline base fare; ticket issued when paid in full; fare not held until then [1]	None for Nigeria found; terms say Travelstart "does not offer credit, unless otherwise agreed" [2]	Lists "travel financing"; deposit, length and fees not published [3]	Pay Small Small: 25% down payment, plans from 1 day to 2 months, service charge depends on plan length, the 25% is non-refundable if you stop the plan, must be fully paid before travel [4]
Service fees	₦0 service fee on fares; FlexPay fee 6% of base fare when you pay in parts [1]	Service fees charged, amounts not published; non-refundable on cancellation; separate refund and change fees [2]	Booking fee not published; refunds and changes: airline rules "plus a service charge of 10% of the refunded value" [5]	"Wakanow service fee will be added" after booking; amount not published [6]
How you pay	Visa, Mastercard, Verve, bank transfer [7]	Credit and debit cards (Naira bank transfer or USSD: not publicly stated) [8]	Card online; for other payment methods contact them first [5]	Cards, mobile wallets, bank transfers [9]
Support	Phone and WhatsApp 0810 782 0069, e-mail hello@skykoda.com [10]	+234 (0)700 2255 876, WhatsApp +27 71 482 7158; Mon–Fri 07:00–19:00, weekends 08:00–14:00 [11]	0700 111 0111, 0817 000 3419, info@travelbeta.com, WhatsApp [12]	Says 24/7 by phone, e-mail and chat; 0700 WAKANOW [13]
Offices	One office, Asaba (Delta State) [10]	Travel store at Murtala Muhammed Airport, Lagos (opened 2023) [14]	Victoria Island, Lagos and Transcorp Hilton, Abuja [12]	About 30 travel centres and airport desks listed across Nigeria [13]
Mobile app	No app yet; the website is built for phones	Yes. App Store (Nigeria) 4.63 from 433 ratings; Google Play 4.5 from 13.9K reviews, 1M+ downloads [15]	Yes. Google Play 4.4 from 44 reviews; App Store (Nigeria) 3.67 from 6 ratings [16]	Yes. App Store (Nigeria) 3.55 from 207 ratings; Google Play 4.1 from 1.95K reviews, 1M+ downloads [17]
Independent reviews	Trustpilot profile, no reviews yet [18]	Trustpilot (travelstart.com, all countries) 1.2 ("Bad") from 775 reviews [19]	No Trustpilot profile we could confirm as theirs	Trustpilot 2.1 ("Poor") from 78 reviews [20]
Refund time	By the airline's fare rules; usually 2–8 weeks after the request, sometimes longer [21]	Processing fee; "6 to 8 weeks depending on the airline", can take "6 months to a year or longer" from some airlines [2]	"Minimum of six to eight weeks"; payments final once auto-ticketing starts [5]	"6–8 weeks… depending on the airline" [22]

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1. SkyKoda: pay in parts with published terms

SkyKoda is a Nigerian flights-only agency. It shows ₦0 service fee on fares and its FlexPay plan lets you pay a 25%–90% deposit and the rest within 1 to 30 days, for a published fee of 6% of the airline base fare. Support is by phone, WhatsApp and e-mail.

Good for: people who want to pay in parts with clear terms, or pay by bank transfer. Less good: no app yet, one office (Asaba), and no Trustpilot reviews yet.

2. Travelstart: the best-rated app

Travelstart, founded in 1999, has the highest-rated travel app of the sites here (4.5 on Google Play from 13,900 reviews). Nigerian bookings are now made on travelstart.com.

Good for: app users paying by card. Less good: no pay-later option found for Nigeria, service fees not published, Trustpilot 1.2 from 775 reviews across its countries.

3. Travelbeta: offices in Lagos and Abuja

Travelbeta has offices on Victoria Island, Lagos and at Transcorp Hilton, Abuja, and sells flights, hotels, shortlets, visa help and "travel financing".

Good for: people who want an office in Abuja or Lagos. Less good: financing terms are not published, and refunds carry a 10% service charge on top of airline rules.

4. Booking direct with the airline

Airlines such as Air Peace, Ibom Air and United Nigeria sell tickets on their own websites and apps. You deal with the airline directly for changes and refunds.

Good for: one airline you already know you want. Less good: you can't compare airlines in one search, and most airlines don't offer a pay-in-parts plan.

5. Google Flights or Skyscanner to compare first

Price-comparison sites show fares from many sellers at once, then send you to an airline or agency to book. They don't sell tickets themselves.

Good for: checking the market price before you book anywhere. Less good: the price you click on may change at the seller's site, and Naira payment options depend on where you end up booking.

How to check any flight ticket is real

Whichever site you use, you can check the ticket yourself. Your e-ticket shows a six-character airline booking reference (PNR) and a 13-digit ticket number. Enter the booking reference and your surname in "Manage booking" on the airline's own website or app. If the airline shows your name, flight and ticket number, the ticket is real and confirmed.

With pay-in-parts plans the ticket is only issued once you have paid in full, so the airline won't show a ticket number before then. That is normal at SkyKoda, Wakanow and other agencies.

Frequently asked questions

What is the best alternative to Wakanow?

It depends on what you need. SkyKoda suits people who want to pay in parts with published terms and no service fee on the fare. Travelstart suits app users paying by card. Travelbeta suits people who want an office in Abuja or Lagos.

Which sites besides Wakanow let me pay small small?

SkyKoda's FlexPay (25%–90% deposit, 1–30 days, 6% fee) and Travelbeta's travel financing (terms not published). Travelstart says it does not offer credit.

Is it cheaper to book directly with the airline?

Sometimes. Agencies can have different fares or discounts, so compare the final price. Booking direct is simplest when you already know which airline you want.

Search your route on SkyKoda to see live fares from every airline we sell, and pay 25% now with Pay Small Small.

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How we compared

We read each company's own website, help pages, terms and contact page, and their app-store listings and Trustpilot pages, on 27 October 2026, and recorded only what is published. Where a company doesn't publish something, the table says "Not publicly available" or "not published". We did not make test bookings. Prices change daily, so compare the final price for your own flight. Companies can ask us to correct anything at hello@skykoda.com.

Person	Number	Net Cost
Adult (+12 Yrs) Child (Upto 12 Yrs)	- + - +	0
Child 1	1	0