Algeria’s Sahara Desert Adventure

Our tour starts in the Algerian capital, Algiers. The country's largest city, Algiers today is a bustling Mediterranean port that can trace its origins back to Carthaginian traders of the 4th century BC. Dominated by the imposing walls of its citadel, the Kasbah quarter of the old town is a collection of meandering alleyways, palaces and mosques, that now fall under the protection of UNESCO. Away from the old town, the city's French colonial heritage embraces a collection of grand buildings and wide boulevards that sweep around the coastline.

There are no activities planned today, so you're free to arrive in Algiers at any time. On this tour we have limited time in the nations capital, you may wish to consider extending your trip. If you'd like an airport transfer today, you'll need to arrive into Algiers International Airport, also known as Houari Boumediene International Airport (ALG), which is around a 30-minute drive from the hotel depending on traffic. Due to the number of flights arriving later in the day, your tour leader will catch up with you the following morning for the welcome meeting.

Please note that most people joining this tour combine this trip with the north; the tours combine in the late afternoon of day two, at which point everyone will fly to Djanet together.

This morning, we'll head out to explore the capital of Algeria with a local English-speaking guide. First up, we visit the beautiful Church of Notre Dame d'Afrique that dominates the bay above Bab El Oued. We'll then head into the 10th-century city known as the Kasbah, one of the most impressive medinas in North Africa. We'll walk through the cobbled narrow streets and explore a mosaic complex of houses, palaces and mosques, many of which date back the Ottoman period.

Moving on, our next stop is one of the most important, prestigious and historical monuments of Algiers, Bastion 23 Palace which is located on the seafront. It's a set of three palaces (17, 18 and 23) we'll get to roam through secret rooms inside. Our next stop is the imposing 92-meter/300-foot-tall Monument to the Martyrs, situated on a hill and overlooking the whole city. Situated on a hill and overlooking the whole city, we'll get the opportunity for some great photos of the city from the vantage point, weather permitting. Note, the order of the sites we visit may well change depending on traffic conditions.

This evening, we'll meet up with the rest of our group who have completed the trip in the north. We'll drive to Algiers airport together for a late-night flight to Djanet, in the heart of the Sahara. Depending on timings we'll find a local restaurant near the airport to have dinner. Upon arrival (normally between 1am and 2am), it's a short 20-minute drive to our hotel.

After a leisurely breakfast, we'll head into the desert town of Djanet. Sometimes described as the "Pearl of the Tassili" the town stands out with its emerald green palm groves tucked in amongst a moonscape of black rock and orange sand. We'll visit a local market where it's possible to get fitted out with a cheche (multi-functional headwear worn by the Tuareg people), there'll also be time for souvenir shopping - the markets are known for quality silverware.

Leaving behind the relative civilization of Djanet we'll head out into the Sahara. We'll be traveling in a convoy of 4WD off-road vehicles, perfect for tackling the desert terrain. With a maximum of three people, plus a driver in each car, everyone gets a window seat. Driving one hour north of Djanet, we'll explore Timrass, a dramatic area of rocks protruding from the desert sand. Lunch is taken in the shade of a rock outcrop; our camp crew will set up tables and chairs and prepare a delicious salad accompanied by a hot main course option.

Continuing further into the desert, we'll witness some spectacular rock formations and see our first wonderfully preserved rock art paintings and engravings. Our local Tuareg guides will be on hand to provide interpretations of the paintings.

One of the magical parts of this trip is how remote our desert camps are - completely off the grid, in spectacular settings and with no one else around. After dropping our bags at the campsite, we'll head to a elevated spot to catch the sunset. After sunset, it's a short drive back to camp. Our first night in the desert is in a more comfortable fixed camp (akin to glamping) with spacious tents that have solar powered electrical outlets, lighting, a thick mattress, pillows and all linen provided. There's a separate seating area for dinner where tables and chairs are set up.

Our camping crew will prepare all of our meals in the desert. Our evening meal is three courses, consisting of soup to start with, followed by a main course of couscous, pasta or rice accompanied by vegetables and a meat-based dish (usually lamb stew or chicken) and bread cooked in the traditional Tuareg way, on hot coals under the sand. Dessert is seasonal fruit, followed by mint tea or coffee, dates and a cookie.

Our day starts around sunrise with a cup of tea or coffee followed by breakfast consisting of bread, butter, jams and cheese. After breakfast, we'll head off to visit the crying cows engravings, an elaborate ancient engraving depicting cattle. After a brief refuelling stop in Djanet we head southeast.

It doesn't take long to fall into the rhythm of desert travel, far from packed schedules and pressures of modern-day life, time matters less out here and with no distraction from mobile phones, we can focus on enjoying the natural beauty of one of the greatest wildernesses on earth. We'll pass through the most northern section, a massive, flat basin called the Tenere which stretches all the way into Niger and Chad. The name itself comes from the Tuareg word tinere, which literally translates to "desert" or "emptiness."

Our base for our second night is a semi-permanent camp at Ali Dema, consisting of a handful of stone huts built around a rock outcrop. There are several dramatic arch structures nearby and rock formations. There's time to head out for a short walk and find a good spot to watch the sun setting. After that, it's back to camp. Once the crew has pitched the tents, we'll get our first taste of Tuareg tea, also known as Maghrebi mint tea, relaxing around a campfire, followed by dinner, freshly cooked by our crew.

For our remaining nights in the desert, we'll stay in more basic dome tents, set up for either double, twin, or single use. Mattresses are provided but remember to bring a sleeping bag (see the equipment section for more details). There's also a communal dining area with rugs and tables, plus a toilet tent set up away from the main camp. Whilst more basic than the first fixed camp, this set up allows us to venture into parts of the desert few tourists get to see. Tonight, it's also possible to sleep in the basic stone huts, using the mattresses.

We'll witness some of the most spectacular desert scenery over the course of today. The first part of the journey is relatively flat. As we continue, low rocky hills will come into view, eventually we'll enter Oued El Biredj, a wide canyon-like valley, opening out to the vast landscape of the Tardart with its 'rock forests' of eroded sandstone pillars and numerous well preserved prehistoric rock art which we'll make stops to see along the way. The vistas get better and better as we venture further into the canyon.

After breaking for lunch in a shaded spot, we turn off from the main El Biredj canyon at which point we witness the most dramatic and beautiful sand dunes on the trip.

Our camping spot for tonight is in a remote area with breath taking views overlooking a distinctive twin rock tower against the backdrop of the vast sand dunes. There's time to head out for a walk to explore our surroundings and climb the dunes whilst the campsite is set up. The sharpness and shades of the dunes make this a classic desert landscape - a photographer's dream.

There is an optional one-hour walk this morning. We'll set off early to avoid the heat of the day (4WD vehicles will be available for those who don't wish to walk).

Retracing our steps, we continue our journey deeper in the Tassili n'Ajjer plateau, eventually we reach the end of the El Biredj canyon where the high orange-coloured sand dunes of Moul El Naga begin to appear, the transition into the Djaren canyon involves an exciting steep descent down a sand dune. The valley floor opens up once again, as we drive through spectacular wind-sculptured arches (where we'll have our lunch). This area hosts one of the highest concentrations of rock art paintings in this part of Algeria, with over 70 locations exhibiting paintings and engravings found to date; we'll visit the best selection.

We'll camp in the wild once again, choosing a sheltered location next to one of the rock arches in the Djaren canyon.

After breakfast our camp crew will pack up camp, and we'll head out for our last full day in the desert. There's less driving today, giving us plenty of time to discover more rock art and if we're lucky, even spot wild camels and gazelles. Our camp tonight is at Tin Koukak in the atmospheric Djaren canyon. The sunsets here are spectacular and we'll witness some of the clearest night skies imaginable.

We'll set up camp and find a spot for sunset amongst the dunes, hills and rock formations, for our last night in the desert.

Our final morning in the desert. After a morning walk, we'll start our long drive back towards Djanet, we'll make stops along the way to take in the picturesque scenery. The first 30 kilometres is off-road, we'll then re-join the paved highway for the 120 kilometre/75 mile drive back to Djanet, arriving back to the Tentere Village Hotel where we'll get reacquainted with modern life. Day-use rooms will be provided to have a shower, the hotel also has WiFi at reception to catch up with messages from home.

The rest of the afternoon is free - you might like to head into Djanet itself or rest at the hotel. This evening, there is the opportunity to join the group for dinner at a local restaurant or at the hotel to celebrate our last night together.

We'll drive to Djanet airport, departing around 11pm for our night flight back to Algiers.

Our flight back to Algiers departs in the early hours of the morning, arriving around 6am. The flight timing is subject to change and at the time of writing, this flight has a short, scheduled stop at Tamanrasset, although some flights are direct, landing at 4am.

Our trip ends upon arrival at Algiers International Airport, also known as Houari Boumediene International Airport (ALG). We recommend booking onward flights departing from 10am onwards in case of delays. If your flight departs later in the day, you may wish to walk over to the Hyatt Regency Algiers Airport Hotel located ten minutes away via an elevated walkway from the terminal building, the hotel offers a comprehensive buffet breakfast for around £15 / $20 USD starting at 6am. This is the closest hotel to the airport, should you wish to book a day use room, contact the hotel directly.