Tips and Advice on Travelling in North Africa

For a while I've been planning to go traveling with a friend of mine,
but we recently had a big disagreement on where to go and I decided it
would be best to travel by myself. I'm not very outgoing so although
I'm extremely excited, I'm finding the thought of going alone quite
daunting.

Anyway I've thought of a lot of places and finally decided to go to
North Africa which I wanted to go to for years. As to specifically
where in North Africa I should go, I haven't planned yet and was
wondering if any of you had any ideas/advice.

I have roughly two to three months to travel and will be in Naples
before hand, so I'll arrive in Tunisia by boat which should work out
cheaper than flying directly there. I've been looking into the
surrounding countries i.e. Algeria Libya, Egypt, Mali etc but I'm
mostly clueless as to what they are like to travel in.

I'm assuming generally things are quite cheap in Africa but does this
apply to traveling as well? Ideally I would love to go to Ethiopia but
it seems a bit to far/expensive to travel to in two months.

Do any of you have any advice on rough living costs, safety, places to
go etc. Thanks in advance.

http://www.globegathering.com/

On Mar 12, 3:44 am, "stonks" wrote:
For a while I've been planning to go traveling with a friend of mine,
but we recently had a big disagreement on where to go and I decided it
would be best to travel by myself. I'm not very outgoing so although
I'm extremely excited, I'm finding the thought of going alone quite
daunting.


In most places you wouldn't have a problem finding other travelers if
you decide you don't like traveling alone.

Anyway I've thought of a lot of places and finally decided to go to
North Africa which I wanted to go to for years. As to specifically
where in North Africa I should go, I haven't planned yet and was
wondering if any of you had any ideas/advice.


Morocco and Egypt are fascinating countries, are inexpensive, and are
accessible to travelers of any experience level. Morocco is best
known for its colorful markets ("souks"), its "Imperial Cities" of
Marrakech, Fes, Meknes and Rabat, full of mosques and other historic
buildings and souks, and also has mountains and deserts to explore.
Egypt has obviously the Pyramids and tombs, but also historic mosques
and lively bazaars.

Tunisia doesn't have as much to see as Morocco or Egypt, and it's a
bit more expensive than Morocco or Egypt, but it's a small country
that you can see a lot of in a short time. Tunisia has more European
influence, is less religious, and is not as poor as Morocco or Egypt.
If you are interested in ancient history (it has many Roman sights) or
want to visit the Sahara, you would find Tunisia worthwhile.

I would avoid Algeria or Libya unless you're an experienced traveler.

I have roughly two to three months to travel and will be in Naples
before hand, so I'll arrive in Tunisia by boat which should work out
cheaper than flying directly there. I've been looking into the
surrounding countries i.e. Algeria Libya, Egypt, Mali etc but I'm
mostly clueless as to what they are like to travel in.


Here's one take on Mali:

http://travelindependent.info/africa-west.htm#Mali

"For most Mali is West Africa, a nation three times larger than
France, backed by the Sahara, transited by the River Niger, home to
the most fascinating sight in the region (Dogon Country) and of course
there is Timbuktu. With direct charter flights from France to Bamako
and Mopti, Mali is the one place in French West Africa a traveller
will want to visit. Dogon country and it's uniqueness is widely known,
it's reputation and photogenic images go before it. Images of Djenne's
huge mud mosque go before it too, projecting an image of exoticism and
Africanness it's self. Removed from the West enough to tempt almost
any traveller. You can take a trip on a slow boat down the Niger, mud
villages on it's banks, hippos... Timbuktu at the end (lets be fair
this is Mali's main draw because on first response EVERYONE will want
to have gone to Timbuktu and back). That's the travel brochure version
(if there is one), what one expects in the expectation of looking
ahead or the nostalgia of looking back to a trip, but the reality is
quite different for many reasons. Where to start other than to say
Mali really is not fun and Dogon country aside the only wow will
probably be how people live like this and what the hell are you doing
in such an inhospitable place.

This is of course a personal take, no doubt a few hard-core (up-their-
arse, just spent 8 weeks in Niger, French speaking travellers) may
disagree, but certainly from all the travellers I spoke to this was by
far the most consistent opinion. Why is this then? Well at the heart
of it there are four main issues, all largely endemic to French West
Africa, but exaggerated many times in Mali. 1) The country is really
very poor and the traveller's infrastructure is very basic, this means
a basic lack of good cheap places to eat/sleep or ways to get around.
The feeling of adventure you get from travelling with locals or
sleeping in very basic hot rooms soon wears off after a few weeks. 2)
Malians do vary dramatically through the country, but certainly in
tourist areas there is a lot of hassle (Mopti and Timbuktu in
particular). This hassle really can get too much sometimes, it can
often be dishonest and unfriendly. A few guys put it to me (one who
had lived in Mali for many years) and although I hate to repeat it I
do have to agree to a certain extent and that is there is element of
racism towards western travellers. More so than anywhere else I have
experienced. 3) The fact that it is quite clearly a desperately poor
country (aside from Niger and the Sudan more so than possibly most
travellers ever experiences first hand), with the strength of the CFA
it can be really quite expensive. Transport (private), decent
accommodation, imported food (so most decent food) and trekking Dogon
country will leave you feeling quite poor. All this on top of seeing
95% of the population living in extreme poverty--- Anything else? To
summarise: travellers more than often have expectations way to high of
Mali. It's very hard work, relatively crowded, hard to get around, not
cheap and more often than not unfriendly. Nevertheless traveller's
experiences will vary and it is never encouraged that anyone gives
anywhere a miss."

I'm assuming generally things are quite cheap in Africa
but does this apply to traveling as well?


Most of North Africa is cheap to travel in, but sub-Saharan Africa is
not necessarily cheap. In sub-Saharan Africa, the locals might live
on $1 per day, but restaurants, hotels, transportation, and tours can
sometimes cost as much or more than similar ones would cost in Western
countries.

Ideally I would love to go to Ethiopia but
it seems a bit to far/expensive to travel to in two months.


I think the flight from Cairo to Addis Ababa is $400-500 US.

Do any of you have any advice on rough living costs, safety, places to
go etc. Thanks in advance.


Safety: (1) get a money belt (a pouch you wear under your shirt
containing your money and passport). pickpocketing is a problem and
you are an obvious and easy target as a Westerner in a crowded souk.
(2) leave your laptop and jewelry at home. use Internet cafes
instead. (3) try to use cash instead of credit cards so you don't
have to worry about getting your card number stolen. (4) there are
lots of great inexpensive crafts in this region, but if you want to
buy an expensive carpet or piece of jewelry make sure you know what
you're doing before you plunk down a lot of money. (5) prepare for
"hassle" - lots of people will start up a conversation with you just
to try to take you into their family's store. it gets really annoying
after a while, but it's good to remember that these are mostly very
poor countries and people are just trying to make a living. there are
also people who without your asking walk next to you pointing out
things and then claim they were your guide and demand money. usually
just tell them right away that you don't want a guide and won't pay
them anything.

As for where to go, which ones out of the following things interest
you the most: ancient Egyptian sights, ancient Roman sights, Islamic
sights, traditional markets and crafts, Arab culture, the Muslim
religion, deserts, or mountains?