Mile 12 doesn't run on regular business hours — if you're buying in bulk, the market rewards people who arrive before the city wakes up, and makes everyone else pay for arriving late.

ToTrip Car Rental Services gets regular requests from restaurant buyers, caterers and hotel procurement teams who need to move through Mile 12, Ketu and Ojota in one trip and come back out with a full boot — this guide is about how that trip is normally arranged.

Why This Corridor Is Different From A Regular Shopping Trip

Mile 12, Ketu and Ojota make up Lagos's main wholesale food and produce belt — tomatoes, pepper, onions, tubers, grains and general foodstuff, sold in volumes meant for restaurants, event caterers and households buying for the month rather than the day. It's a different kind of market from Alaba (electronics) or Balogun (fashion and general goods), and it moves on its own schedule.

The Best Time To Go

Stock is freshest and prices are best early — well before the wider Ikorodu Road corridor fills up with the rest of the day's traffic. Buyers who go later still get served, but with less selection and a longer fight to get back out through traffic.

🛑 Mile 12 / Ketu / Ojota At A Glance

Best arrival windowBefore 7am, for freshest stock and best prices
Recommended vehicleSUV or van with full boot space for sacks and crates
Driver roleWaits on standby through loading, not a drop-and-go trip
Traffic riskBuilds quickly along Ikorodu Road from mid-morning onward

Loading, Waiting & Multiple Stops

Most bulk buying runs aren't a single stop — a buyer might move between Mile 12 for produce, Ketu for a specific supplier, and Ojota on the way back, all in one outing. A chauffeur booked for the morning waits through each stop, manages the vehicle while you're inside negotiating and loading, and keeps the trip moving between locations without you having to re-arrange transport at every stop.

Who This Trip Is Usually For

  • Restaurant and hotel procurement teams doing weekly or monthly stock runs
  • Event caterers buying for a specific programme
  • Diaspora visitors buying foodstuff to cook with or ship home
  • Distributors and smaller retailers restocking

"A Mile 12 run is an early-morning job — the buyers who do well are the ones who show up ready to move fast, and a driver who's used to waiting through the loading makes that whole morning much less stressful."

— ToTrip Car Rental Services, Driver Operations

Planning a bulk buying run to Mile 12, Ketu or Ojota? Book a driver who'll wait through the loading.

Check Availability

If You're Buying Electronics Or General Goods Instead

If your shopping list is closer to electronics, phones or general market goods rather than food and produce, our Alaba International Market guide and Lagos Market Shopping Tour guide (Balogun, Computer Village and Yaba) cover those trips specifically.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can the driver help carry produce to the vehicle?

The driver's role is to manage and load the vehicle itself — carrying goods through the market to the car is typically handled by market porters, as is standard practice at Mile 12.

What vehicle should I book for a big produce run?

An SUV or a van with full boot space — something like a Sienna — suits a serious bulk buying trip far better than a saloon car, which fills up quickly once sacks and crates are involved.

Is it safe to go to Mile 12 that early in the morning?

The market corridor is already busy and well-populated by early morning, and having a driver who stays with the vehicle throughout adds a further layer of security while you're inside buying.

A Mile 12, Ketu or Ojota run comes down to timing and having transport that can wait through the loading — get those two things right and the rest of the morning takes care of itself.