Foumbouni

Foumbouni is the largest town in the south of Grande Comore, sitting on the coast where Karthala's lava flows reach the sea, with a market, an old mosque and coral-stone houses among the newer building. The coast here is black rock rather than sand. It serves the southern villages and is the point where the circuit road round the island passes closest to the volcano's eastern flank. Karthala's eruptions in the 2000s dropped ash across this side of the island, and the flows above the town are visible from the coast road.

What you actually see

• The market - the trading centre for the southern part of the island.
• The old mosque - the historic building among the newer town.
• The lava coast - black rock where Karthala's flows reach the sea.
• The coral-stone houses - the older building fabric surviving in the town.

When to go

May to October is the drier and cooler season. The rains run November to April. Market days are busiest.

Honest expectations

There is little arranged for visitors and the town is workaday. The coast here is rock, not beach. Facilities are minimal.

Nearby

Chindini is south, and Moroni is northwest.