Hobyo is a small historic port town on the Indian Ocean coast, in the Galmudug region of central Somalia. It was once the capital of the Sultanate of Hobyo, a 19th-century polity that controlled trade along this stretch of coast, and ruins of the sultanate's infrastructure survive in the town.
Hobyo was also a significant base for Somali pirates at the peak of piracy activity around 2008–2012. That era has largely passed, but the town remains very isolated and difficult to reach safely. There are no reliable transport connections, no tourist facilities, and the surrounding region has intermittent clan conflict.
The coastline here is wild and largely untouched — for those working in the region with proper security arrangements, it is worth knowing about. For anyone else, it is not accessible.