Note: Updated version published in December 2023, following my second trip to Algeria. For a detailed account of the off-road desert routes I took over both trips see here.
Algeria.
It’s been on many independent travellers’ hit lists for a long-time, but a combination of three decades of instability, a tricky visa application process and government-mandated guides have rendered it off limits for anything other than organised, guided trips pretty much since the early 2000s.
Escorts and guides were introduced in 2003, as a result of a mass kidnapping in Tassili n’Ajjer in the south, just as tourism was returning after a civil war in the country in the previous decade. What followed was a broader collapse of Saharan tourism due to similar threats elsewhere.
Things in Algeria may be changing, however. After reading first about a couple of motorbikers riding in the north last year, and then a Swiss couple this year who managed to get into the country and around the more difficult south, this autumn I decided to give it a go on my own bike.
And what better bike to do it on than that scion of motorbike desert riding aristocracy, a 1983 Yamaha Tenere?
Entering the country via Algiers on the boat from Marseille, I was pretty confident that I’d be able to get about in the northern part of the country unimpeded based on what I’d seen online already.
But what about the southern half of the country where the Saharan desert pistes get serious, and Tassili n’Ajjer national park and the Ahaggar Mountains, the two jewels of the Algerian Saharan crown, are?
That was largely untested territory.
My trip
From mid-September to mid-October 2023 I rode a long, clockwise loop from Algiers down to Tamarrasset via Ilizi and Djanet in the east, before heading back to the north via In Salah and Lagouet.
Then, I returned for a second trip in late October, and had a similar experience once again.
I was able to ride pretty much where I liked, including on various desert pistes, without an escort or guide with the exception of around Djanet, though I had to navigate through many gendarme checkpoints, who wanted to keep an eye on what I was up to/where I was going. As well as some riding in the north, my route included the famous Djanet-Tamerseet piste, some lesser known pistes south of Ilizi and the Assekrem Pass loop, all in the deep south.
It is a fantastic country, both in terms of the friendliness of the people and the landscapes, particularly in the south, which is well worth a visit, but challenges remain to do so independently and with your own vehicle.
The current situation
First up, let’s get down to brass tacks; a caveat for all that follows.
When it comes to travelling independently with your own vehicle in Algeria in the south of the country, there doesn’t seem to be a clear cut policy in place. There is still a strong amount of caution and waryness from the authorities – the experience can be expected to be less like Morocco and perhaps more like north Pakistan, where a heavy police and military presence calls the shots.
You should note that gendarmes, in their green uniforms, are national police, distinct from local police, who wear blue. Coming down the east of the country, shadowing the Libyan border, most of my engagement was with the former, with one or two exceptions.
Other travellers I have spoken to or followed online have not had as easy a ride as I was fortunate to have, particularly in the south, with gendarmes mandating an escort in some places, turning up in the middle of the night at peoples’ hotels to check-in on them, asking that they do not leave a hotel (by vehicle) without their say-so, arranging times to visit the next day, requiring vehicle inspections or even impromptu driving tests.
Overall it does seem like things are more open than before, but, as one well known Sahara expert said to me, the real test as to how committed the Algerian authorities are will be when the first travellers find themselves in a spot of bother in the desert and needing help from the gendarmes. This is a view shared by multiple Algerian guides I spoke to, when in country.
Applying for a visa
For my part, I simply applied for a visa in the Algerian consulate in London, being careful to follow the instructions on the website. Note that there is no question about mode of transport on this form, which I understand used to be the case.
I had an Algerian citizen vouch for me, by way of a recommended Airbnb booking, with a letter of invitation stamped by the local town hall and a scan of their national ID card. I was advised by the consulate that this was the best way to secure a visa however it is possible to use a hotel reservation too, made directly with the hotel rather than through Airbnb or booking.com. I successfully used this second method for my second October/November 2023 visa.
In terms of proof of employment/income, whilst I resigned my normal day job before this trip, I am fortunate enough to be also employed as a Director in a family business, which I used as this going so far as to print out the Companies House record of that.
I asked for a 90 day multiple entry visa and received a 30 day, single entry one – I took the “reach for the stars to land on the moon” kind of approach in this respect.
From speaking to others, it seems that visa agencies might be behind the curve on the applications process compared to direct applications – for example, preemptively mentioning an applicant will be travelling by motorbike when there is no need to do so anymore, leading to a rejected visa application.
On the ground
In the north, the gendarme checkpoints are less rigorous or frequent. From what I experienced, and from what I’ve seen both online and from some other bikers I met, this is more straightforward to visit than the Saharan south.
From the line of around Ouargla in the east across to In Salah southwards, the presence of gendarmes changes, with permanent stations placed at key strategic road junctions and ad hoc ones on the main road. Here they will want to check your passport and visa, and know which way you are headed. This can take a bit of time, as they need to speak to their HQ. Note that in the south-east, from Ilizi down to Djanet they will expect you to check in with the next checkpoint where you said you’ll be going.
My advice is to be good humoured, to play along with the process and to be proactive and constructive at all times, but also savvy – both in terms of sharing plans which might not be set in stone and in terms standing up for yourself if it feels like there’s an appropriate opportunity to gentle push back, as I had to on the odd occasion. If you plan to riding on pistes or camp in the desert, think carefully how the room might react to that idea based on the conversation before you.
It is, ultimately, all part of adventure. I usually took the opportunity to relax and enjoy having a rest off the bike at these stops. I offered them my Algerian mobile number and was at pains to reassure them that they had nothing to worry about.
Reading the room is key here; whilst there is undoubtedly some backside covering going on from the authorities, the default Algerian stance, both amongst authorities and the wider public, is to be as hospitable as possible to foreigners – this extends to guaranteeing your safety whilst you’re in their patch, particularly in relation to the Sahara. It is a cultural thing as much as it is anything else.
The gendarmes’ safety concerns generally boil down to two things in the south – organised crime groups (described invariably as ‘the mafia’) operating in the desert across the border with Libya, and your individual capability to be safe in the desert. In the case of the first, there is not a black and white situation here – problems do occur from time to time, and you yourself will have to consider the wisdom of camping somewhere exposed in the desert on the Libyan border, with a shiny new BMW motorbike and all the world’s electronics gadgets, in a remote area which can be difficult to govern, with an often transient population who, in some circumstances, are desperate and fleeing war from neighbouring countries.
Different gendarmes will have different opinions on the threat of the day. In some areas, it’s possible to gauge at that point in time the threat is overinflated, in others it should be taken more seriously. There are nuances, and it’s worth noting that the gendarmes tend to stay in their stations rather than patrolling or interacting with the public more widely; this focus on ‘the ‘bad things’ happening in the area will ultimately frame their view. I took multiple opinions from different gendarmes, hotel receptionists, restaurant owners, shopkeepers, mechanics and any guides who happened to be around, to get a picture.
At the checkpoints, there appeared to be some confusion at times amongst gendarmes that I was a) a foreigner b) on a motorbike and c) unguided, though this was always resolved when they spoke to HQ. It seemed like I’d ended up on someone’s good books somewhere and the message was relayed down the line.
Considering my experiences and those of others less fortunate than myself, I think a few things may/may not have helped smooth my passage:
- The fact that I was travelling on an older (read: less flashy) dual sport motorbike with appropriate (Pirelli MT21) tyres, with appropriate equipment for riding in more remote locations. I made a point of telling the gendarmes how much water, food and camping equipment I carried, for example, and that I also wore a SPOT GPS tracker.
- Being able to speak French, both in terms of conversing with gendarmes and giving them confidence that I could look after myself. Don’t expect English to be spoken. Some will only speak Arabic. As ever, Google Translate is also your friend!
- Being proactive in engaging with gendarmes, including sharing my Algerian mobile number. Note, they will ring this until you answer so be prepared to follow through on that! In some occasions, I found myself doing the co-ordination between different police stations over the phone about where I was staying/going, at their request.
Money and mapping
Finally, a brief word on money and mapping.
Everything is paid for in cash and you should bring enough Euros for the duration of your stay. ATMs generally do not accept western cards, except in a few locations in the big northern cities. Bringing enough Euros is key because a) the cash, black market rate of conversion is as much a 50% better than the bank rate and and b) there are very few ATMs around that accept western cards, and most certainly not south of Ghardaia other than perhaps Djanet.
If you do find yourself in a bind on this, as I did, then one solution is to find a trustworthy local, such as a hotel receptionist, with a PayPal account – you can transfer Euros that can then be withdrawn as cash in dinars by them, at a pre agreed rate.
On mapping, this too is somewhat challenging if you’re planning to head off the black top and on to the piste. Just as in so many developing countries, the pace of road building is outstripping mapping data, even for the likes of Google Maps and OSM. On other occasions, older maps might be more accurate for older pistes which are no longer used due to this development. It’s worth heading over to Chris Scott’s excellent Sahara Overland page to read more about this.
On a more general note, the development of the road network has another impact on piste riding; it means that when you do ride on the piste, traffic maybe lighter or indeed non-existent as compared to the past and also that many connected, unpaved desert routes that were once frequently used have now fallen into disuse. It’s worth considering the safety aspects of this when heading off tarmac.
In summary…
You can find a detailed summary of the off-road desert routes I did during both of my trips here.
I loved having the opportunity to travel to Algeria. Hopefully things will continue to open up, and the authorities will encourage more people to visit.
Right now, my advice to anyone considering visiting the south in their own vehicle, would be to ask yourself how you would respond if it turns out that you can’t move about as freely as you might like, and whether you’d still be happy to go and just have a punt on being able to do so.
If the answer is ‘yes’, then go for it.
On a final note
Many thanks to Chris Scott and Karim Hussein, both experienced Saharan desert riders themselves, for their help before and during my trip.