Afrinkong
The Ennedi
A sandstone massif eroded into arches, towers and canyons, with water at the bottom of them.
Photo Djamel Ramdani / Pexels
CHAD · Tourism
Zakouma
Zakouma brought its elephants back from four hundred and fifty to over six hundred, the Ennedi is a sandstone massif full of rock art and desert crocodiles, and the Ounianga lakes sit in the middle of the Sahara without a river feeding them.
Central & West AfricaRegion
27Tourism experiences
Zakouma, and the lakes of OuniangaKnown for
01
Featured destinations
Where the country actually takes you.
Emi Koussi and the Tibesti
A 3,415-metre volcano in the far north, the highest point in the Sahara.
Photo Ben Khatry / Pexels
WaterfallsNone, and Guelta Instead
No falls. What the Ennedi has is the Guelta d'Archei, a permanent gorge pool.
Lakes & RiversLake Chad and the Ounianga Lakes
A shrinking inland sea in the west, and eighteen lakes in the Sahara that no river feeds.
Photo Leyla Helvaci / Pexels
Landlocked, and the Lake
The beaches here are the shores of Lake Chad, worked by fishermen in reed boats.
Gallery Forest on the Rivers
The Chari and Logone carry woodland far north into the Sahel.
02
Wildlife & safari
What lives here, and how you see it without disturbing it.
Wildlife
Buffalo in Thousands
Zakouma's buffalo move in herds of over a thousand, and the Kordofan giraffe with them.
Photo Vishva Patel / Pexels
Zakouma in March
Everything concentrates on the last pans, and the birdlife with it — crowned crane in their thousands.
Photo Hugo Sykes / Pexels
Eco TourismThe Turnaround at Zakouma
African Parks took it on in 2010 after poaching had taken ninety per cent of the elephants.
03
Culture & heritage
The part of a country you cannot photograph from a vehicle.
Culture
Two Hundred Groups
Toubou and Zaghawa in the north, Sara in the south, and Arabic and French across both.
The Toubou
A desert people of the Tibesti and Ennedi, and among the most self-sufficient anywhere.
Photo mg shotz / Pexels
Boule and Grilled Capitaine
Millet boule with sauce, and Nile perch off the Chari grilled on the bank.
Photo K / Pexels
Festivals & CelebrationsThe Gerewol and the Camel Races
Wodaabe gatherings in the Sahel, and camel racing in the desert north.
Photo alameen .ng / Pexels
Traditional Arts & CraftsLeatherwork and Silver
Toubou leather, Sara basketry, and silver from the N'Djamena market.
Photo Ahmet Yüksek ✪ / Pexels
Historic SitesEnnedi Rock Art
Thousands of painted and engraved panels recording a Sahara with cattle and giraffe in it.
Photo raouf bedrani / Pexels
HeritageTwo Sites in the Sahara
The Ennedi massif and the Ounianga lakes, both World Heritage, both barely visited.
Photo Djamel Ramdani / Pexels
04
Cities & everyday life
Where people actually live between the landmarks.
N'Djamena
A capital on the Chari, opposite Cameroon, with the largest market in the region.
Photo Sjuan Dogjani / Pexels
ArchitectureMud and Banco
Sahelian mud-brick in the towns, and reed and mat construction on the lake.
Photo Stuffedbox NG / Pexels
Local LifeTea in the Shade
Three glasses, poured from a height, and no business concluded before the third.
Photo Faruk Tokluoğlu / Pexels
Family & CommunitySerious Country
Distances are enormous and facilities are few. Zakouma is possible; the Ennedi is an expedition.
Photo Alex Dos Santos / Pexels
05
Adventure & outdoors
For travellers who would rather walk it than watch it.
Adventure
Crossing the Ennedi
Ten days by four-wheel-drive between arches and gueltas, sleeping under the rock.
Outdoor ExperiencesWalking Zakouma
Zakouma allows walking with armed rangers, which very few West and Central African parks do.
Photo Ankit Rainloure / Pexels
Luxury TravelOne Camp, and It Is Good
Zakouma has a single seasonal camp. The Ennedi is tents you bring with you.
06
Travel inspiration
The frames people come home with.
Photography / Scenic ViewsSandstone and Shadow
The Ennedi arches in the last hour, when the sandstone goes from orange to red.
Photo Robert Hacker / Pexels
The Guelta d'Archei
Camels come down a gorge to drink, and desert crocodiles live in the pool below them.
Photo Leon Hellegers / Pexels
Why Visit This Country
Why Chad
A national park that came back from the dead, and a desert massif almost nobody has seen.
Why Chad
A national park that came back from the dead, and a desert massif almost nobody has seen.
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