Afrinkong
Nature & Landscapes
The Adrar
A sandstone plateau cut by palm-filled canyons, with the old caravan towns in them.
West Africa · Afrinkong
Mauritania
The iron ore train, and the libraries of Chinguetti.
A two-kilometre freight train across the Sahara you can ride on top of, four caravan towns with medieval manuscript libraries still in family hands, and the largest bird colony in West Africa at the Banc d'Arguin.
Where it is
Africa · West Africa · Mauritania
The land in brief
- Spans
- 1,250 km E–W, 1,390 km N–S
- Latitude
- 27°N to 15°N
- Borders
- 3 countries
- Sea
- Has a coast
- Best time
- November to March. The rest of the year the interior is unbearable.
Also in West Africa
BeninWhere vodun comes from, and the palaces of DahomeyBurkina FasoThe best cinema and the best masks in West AfricaCôte d'IvoireLagoons, forest and the AtlanticThe GambiaA river with a country around itGhanaThe forts, the forest and the highlife
Compare Mauritania with another countryAll fifty-four, worked through the same twenty-seven categories.When to come
JFMAMJJASOND
November to March. The rest of the year the interior is unbearable.
01Highlights
What Mauritania is known for.
Six of the twenty-seven, and the ones most people come for. The rest are below — and none of them is filler.
Nature & Landscapes
The Banc d'Arguin
Two million wading birds winter here, on the largest tidal flats in West Africa.
The Kediet ej Jill
915 metres of magnetite near Zouerat, so iron-rich it deflects a compass.
Seven Hundred Kilometres of Atlantic
Cold current, big surf, and the Imraguen fishing villages working with dolphins.
The Palmeraies
Date palm groves in the Adrar canyons — the only shade for hundreds of kilometres.
Culture
Moor and Fulani
Bidhan and Haratin Moors across the north, Fulani, Soninke and Wolof along the river.
02Experiences
25 ways to spend the time.
Every country we cover works through the same twenty-seven categories, so you can hold two of them side by side and compare like with like rather than one brochure against another. Compare Mauritania with another → The two not listed here are the hero picture and the case for going, which has a section of its own below.
Landscapes
- The AdrarA sandstone plateau cut by palm-filled canyons, with the old caravan towns in them.
- The Kediet ej Jill915 metres of magnetite near Zouerat, so iron-rich it deflects a compass.
- Guelta de MatmataPermanent pools in the rock south of Atar, with crocodiles that have been there since the Sahara was wet.
- The Senegal RiverThe southern border, and the only permanent river in the country.
- Seven Hundred Kilometres of AtlanticCold current, big surf, and the Imraguen fishing villages working with dolphins.
- The PalmeraiesDate palm groves in the Adrar canyons — the only shade for hundreds of kilometres.
Wildlife
- The Banc d'ArguinTwo million wading birds winter here, on the largest tidal flats in West Africa.
- Desert, Not SavannaThe wildlife is birds and desert-adapted mammals, and the coast is where it concentrates.
- Two Million BirdsThe Banc d'Arguin is a Ramsar site and one of the most important wintering grounds on earth.
- Trekking the AdrarCamel treks between the ksour, days at a time, sleeping out on the sand.
People and culture
- Moor and FulaniBidhan and Haratin Moors across the north, Fulani, Soninke and Wolof along the river.
- The ImraguenA coastal people who fish with lanchas and, by tradition, with the help of dolphins.
- The Chinguetti FestivalPoetry, camel racing and manuscript readings in the old caravan town.
- Silver, Leather and ChestsMoorish silver, tooled leather cushions, and the painted wooden chests of the Adrar.
- Thieboudienne and Three TeasFish and rice from the river south, and the three-glass tea ceremony everywhere.
- Big Country for Small ChildrenDistances are long and facilities are few. Better for teenagers than for toddlers.
- The Fish Market at SunsetThe pirogues come in at Nouakchott beach and the whole catch is sold on the sand.
Places
- Nouakchott and NouadhibouA capital built from nothing in 1958, and a port with the world's biggest ship graveyard.
- Dry Stone and SandKsour built of flat stone without mortar, and streets that the dunes are taking back.
- Chinguetti and OuadaneTwelfth-century caravan towns in dry stone, half-buried by the dunes now.
- The Manuscript LibrariesFamily libraries in Chinguetti holding astronomy, law and poetry from the middle ages.
Ways to travel
- Riding the Ore TrainTwenty hours in the open on top of iron ore, in the cold, and people do it on purpose.
- Small and SeriousAuberges in Atar and Chinguetti run by people who know the desert, and little else.
- Sand Against StoneChinguetti in the last hour, when the dunes in the streets are lit from the side.
- TerjitA hot spring under palms in a narrow gorge, and the best shade in the country.
03Why go
The case for Mauritania.
Why Visit This Country
Why Mauritania
A medieval library in a sand-buried town, and a train you ride on the ore.
Hidden Gems
Terjit
A hot spring under palms in a narrow gorge, and the best shade in the country.
Eco Tourism
Two Million Birds
The Banc d'Arguin is a Ramsar site and one of the most important wintering grounds on earth.
Heritage
The Manuscript Libraries
Family libraries in Chinguetti holding astronomy, law and poetry from the middle ages.
04Go deeper
All of Mauritania, four ways in.
Who would take youAfrinkong
The ground is ours right across Africa: your vehicle, your driver for the whole journey, and the days shaped around what you came for.
In Cameroon, Uganda and Namibia you travel with companies of our own as well.
Plan your journey →
Begin
Your Mauritania starts here.
Tell us the month, or simply the thing you want to see, and a guide who works there will answer.