You mean without an escort? I think that is very unlikely.

Indeed. Basically anywhere South of Touggourt requires a special authorization and an escort.

And last year I couldn't even get a transit visa to cross from Oran to Touggourt / Hazoua (Tunisia). I had to have invitations and hotel reservations.

Likewise - I can't see conditions changing in Algeria for a long time. Not with Libya and N.Mali in a lawless state. Even if Algeria's neighbours had things under control, it would still take years to loosen the requirements to the extent that free travel was possible. These things work like a ratchet - easy to tighten, harder to loosen. It will take an era of stability in the region plus a change of guard in the political circles in Algiers to do away with the current restrictions. To me that constitutes decade(s) not years.

Well why not. Algeria is about to change the old guard. Boutef is near the end.
The Moroccan King is anxious to improve relations with Africa and is currently visiting a slew of countries to improve trade, establish moroccan companies and banks. And Morocco is set to retake their seat in the African Union.
One of the most urgent questions to resolve is the status of Western Sahara.
This and low oil prices will leave Algeria in the dust unless they change their position on Morocco and WS. Open border with Morocco would bring a dramatic change and improve trade and tourism.
There are protest movements in In Salah, Ouargla and Guardaia. Algiers used to throw money on those problems. Now they have to actually do something.
Three reasons behind Algeria’s stagnant tourism industry | Global Risk Insights
And there has been very little terrorist activity in Algeria since In Amenas. Soon four years ago! Some things are improving.

I admit ending the sulk and opening the border with Mk would be a great idea for local trade and tourism [except the hashish would flood into Alg!], but won't it just be a new old pouvoir as keen to repress any type of Spring and maintain hegemony? Look at Egypt.

With the current state of the neighbours there is little to be gained and much to be lost by letting the likes of us wander around this huge country in full autonomy, like we used to pre-2003. How does that benefit the economy of the south? Barely at all.
Escorted desert tourism may recover - then there will be another 'event' and it will retract again for years. South Alg is too big and rough around the edges to allow that to happen. And some European tourists were irresponsible in the old days - imagine how it would be now. After all, we accepted escorts in the Tenere and the Gilf for years before.

Actual local money-making tourism = swish lodgings and resort holidays up north, like Tunisia or Mk, with nearby tourist souks and 'tea with bedouin' excursions. Alg is starting from the ground up on that one (like Libya did) and IMO the northeast is more risky than the south.
The oil price will come round eventually. They just have to sit tight.

Morocco I admit is moving forward. Lots of infrastructure like the big solar plant near Ozt ('interdit' to visit we were told) and plastic bags banned in shops - sort of. Good on Mk but these two countries are poles apart.

Very little terrorist activities since In Amenas could also be interpreted as no one there to attack and/or clamping down hard to return confidence to the petro biz. I suspect Moroccan secret police is the same.

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I don't know if you're talking about the one not too far from Ouarzazate. I wanted to have a look last year but when asking around Ouarzazate, nobody seemed to know where it was located... ;-)




In terms of domestic security, Morocco as started establishing guidelines in regards of who could be titled "Imam" and what discours can be spread. Wahhabit ideology is no longer permitted, but Morocco can't yet outlaw mosque funding from Saudi Arabia. Malian imams are now trained in Morocco, and taught to preach against rigorist Wahhabism usually spread in Mali...

On the East Coast, Tunisia has voted out the Muslim Brotherhood two years ago, but immediately got plagued by ISIS piling up in Lybia after US/UK/France's attack against Khadafi's sovereign Lybia (well, now Europe greatly misses Khadafi).

Algeria, I don't know what they are doing. Looks like their turmoil started in 1830 with the French colonization and genocide of its population by general Bugeaud, then followed by the bloody war in the 1950s and early 1960s against the French, but haven't yet managed to escape almost two centuries of violence. Algerian secret police not being kind either until these days. Human rights not being high on their list of priorities. So sadly, It will take more years until Algeria opens up to tourism... ;-(

Been reading your posts.

All I can say is that I am dreaming of, one day as soon as possible, been able again to sleep under the stars in the deep Sahara. I was lucky enough to visit south Libya and Algeria in few occasions. Missed Niger and Mali. I hope to be back there soon.

Morocco is beautiful, but south Algeria is another thing.

Nic

Just returned from Djanet, we had a very pleasant and hassle free three weeks in the area, a re-make of our very first Sahara voyage 25 years ago. We were free to visit any place as we pleased between Djanet and Illizi without any restrictons, have managed to see many remote and very rarely visited sites in the Central Tassili.

The restrictions to access the Tamrit plateau have eased somewhat, it is now possible to visit the sites of Jabbaren via the Akba Aroum on a day-trip, but you have to be down by sunset, overnighting on the plateau is not permitted. It is doable but a rather long day, one is acutely aware of every bit of pedal anatomy by the time the bottom is reached.

Visas this year were a breeze, stamped in the passport two weeks after application without the need to call them.

Trip account wll be up the website in a couple of weeks.

Hi,

" We were free to visit any place as we pleased between Djanet and Illizi "
Can you more precise?
For exemple did you go to Afara,Tamedjert,Thiodaine,Tamera,oued Imirou,etc...
And did you cross erg Admer?
I suppose you fly to Djanet, not with your car...

RR.

Yes, flew in/out of Djanet (though flying to/from Illizi is also an option).

We did the old piste from Dider to Imirhou (making long treks from the piste to some sites 10-15km away), then back to the RN3 on the new Imirhou piste along the foot of the Fadnoun, up to Illizi then about 100km to the W of Illizi along the Oued Samen piste. Return was mainly on the RN3, going off-road to visit the Aharhar Tasset region. My understanding is that continuing to Afara/Tamedjert is possible, plan to do it in the spring.

All with one car and a driver, no issues with police/checkpoint. In Illizi I received a call from the police chief at the local hotel inquiring about our plans, after I explained that we will not go any further north and will return to Djanet the call ended with a cordial bon voyage.

Interesting to hear about this improved track. I followed it intermittently on Google a couple of years ago, but see it appears much clearer now, and with fresh trackside excavations ('2016' imagery 'piste Aine Tihoubar')

I recall Imirhou south to Dider was very rough going (compared to Tarat in the other direction) - and that was on bikes.
It appears like they're improving it's continuation on the west side of the N3 towards Oued Samene watershed and maybe Tamajert too (there's an old track there - followed it once ages ago, but it soon washed out).
Is that what you mean by '100km west' Andrasz? - or the regular 'Graveyard Piste' of kidnapping notoriety? Whichever, it's all good news for access.

I known Wustenfarher (German tour op) is heading from Illizi for Afara region this January - their first visit there since 2011.
We've already booked him for a year from now, by which time we're hoping Tam wilaya may be accessible too.

Look forward to the trip report.

Hi Chris,

Indeed the N3 to Imirhou track is much improved, it is an entirely new construction alongside the old track with a thick foundation of locally quarried shale that makes good going (the whole track from the N3 to Imirhou may be done in two hours) except where the rainfall washed the whole thing away (maintainence not being one of the strong points of the fine continent).

The Imirhou - Dider piste is dismal, the last time it saw any maintenance must have been in the forties (marked as 'motorable' on my 1952 AMS 1:250k map which is based on the 1937 200k IGN, though with the comment 'Road classification should be referred to with caution' ). But it is indeed passable if chosing the right speed, even a 2wd could do it (with a little road-building in places).

From what I know there is a much improved track leaving the N3 at Tasset and continuing via Afara to Tamadjert, plan to see that area in the spring. The track you refer to west of the N3 is actually surfaced now till Ifni, I have no idea of the condition beyond (but the main route to Tamadjert is now from the south via Afara)

The track we took west from Illizi was the end of the 'graveyard piste', we visited a very remote but fabulous site along the Northern Tassili. They are also in the progress of improving this track towards the Oued Samen, some stretches were already tarmaced, lot of constuction stations along the way.

All in all, everything seems rather relaxed in the area, at least this appeared to be the message coming over from both the military in Djanet and the police chief in Illizi. The only place in the area which still is a big no-no is to spend anything more than a day on the plateau above Djanet (and of course the Bordj Hawass to Tam track is firmly closed, even to locals). The Tam wilaya is a completely different game, from what I've heard there the restrictions are still increasing.

So a few things are actually happening in old Algeria.
Now how about this:

-A major container port is being built in Cherchell starting early 2017.

-Tamanrasset to be developed as a hub for air transport

http://www.seanews.com.tr/news/16254...-box-port.html

I happened to be looking at Il Khalil, smuggling base right on the Alg-Mali border and last resting place of my Hilux from 2006. Probably looks more like this now.
The whole place is now surrounded by a defensive wall while inside many compounds are pockmarked with shell craters. They say since 2013 right up to now MUJAO and the MNLA have been fighting over it.

I assumed it was the Algerians shelling it to keep the hoards at bay, as they've built their own defensive berm right opposite Khalil, continuing along the border in either direction. And Bordj Moktar itself is surrounded by a south-facing berm. But perhaps it just a NIMBY move to contain the nearby fighting.

And there's tarmac now from BBM halfway SE to Timiaouine and all the way north, halfway to Reggane or more. Soon Alg will be like Morocco - we'll be complaining that all the great pistes are now sealed.

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Hi Chris,

"we'll be complaining that all the great pistes are now sealed"

But between those great pistes there is a lot of space to drive on!

but with authorizations.....


RR.