Crossed April 19. Visa price is the same in Rabat and border €120.
No multiple entry available anywhere.
Rumours that price and visa structure will change soon.
Mauri customs havs confiscated over 1500 (one-thousand-five-hundred) vehicles over the last year. From wrecks to near new cars and 4x4. Custom's compound long since overfilled. They are stored and guarded in nomansland. Noone dare get close.
Have yer papers in good order. My vehicle was in someone elses name and I sought counsel from Hamida (who is more fun then Cheick) before the crossing.
Here's Hamida 222 47403323
https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/mN...w=w943-h707-no
Here's 1500 vehicles, wouldnt get closer
https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/2z...g=w943-h707-no

I have searched the river Senegal from Diama to Kayes and to my best knowledge, there is nowhere you can cross with a vehicle other then with the ferry at Rosso. A few kilometers west of Kaedi there is a wide road going down to the river, and it continues at the Sengalese side, so perhaps they have had plans for a bridge here. But there are only small pirogues. You could probably cross with a bike.
Kidira is the main crossing on the Mali-Senegal border, west of Kayes. It is rather corrupt but not like Rosso/Diama. I passed here last week, and was the only one who wasnt asked for a bribe. Most paid 1000 CFA, like they do at every checkpoint in Mali. Ghanaians paid 5000.
The best part of the article is that the border posts at Rosso and Diama will be "restored". Let's hope that involves removing/replacing defunct customs officers.

did it look like they're searching/xray bikes when exiting Morocco?

nope

So basically after much research, it seems the only thing you actually need to pay for when entering on the Mauri side is the TIP which is 3000 UM (8 euro), and insurance. It seems the "helpers"//scammers are attempting to fill this form out for people, is this typically because the form is in French? Is there any way to avoid paying these guys to fill out the form for you, and just do it yourself with a pen?

If a "helper" costs any more than 10 Euro excluding the official TIP cost then I'm not really interested, does anyone have experience doing it themselves?

You can do it yourself. The touts are good if there are any problems, and if you arrive on a busy day.

I just did this today, as I saw a lot of conflicting information on the internet, here is exactly what I had to do to cross;

Drove to the Moroccan border, the two gas stations were both out of fuel. when I arrived there were a lot of cars/trucks lined up OUTSIDE the gate to the border facility. I parked behind these and went to a currency exchange on the left to get 120 Euro for the visa. I then got back on the moto and I drove straight to the front of the line, a guard at the gate handed me a Fiche, which I filled in. He looked at it and let me through into the compound. I drove forward 50m and parked in the middle. You give your passport and vehicle registration document to a police officer who goes to the building on the right named "Gendarmerie" or whatever they call it. He looks at it in his room for several minutes then gives it back to you.

Now go to the building directly opposite on the other side of the road (left) which is the passport office, give passport and Fiche that you filled out earlier. He stamps you out of Morocco. Now go back to the moto (whatever vehicle you have), give your TIP to a police officer hanging around the cars, they sign it, then you take it to the next building on the right named "Douane", which is the next building up from "Gendarmerie". Here you go to the first office on the left, they take your passport, TIP and registration document (carte gris). They sign and stamp it. You now go back to your vehicle and give the signed, and stamped TIP to the nearby police officer around your vehicle. They will look at it, then you can go up to the next barrier in your vehicle. At the barrier, you get out/off your vehicle, and go to a tiny white building right next to the barrier where they look at your TIP and write all the stuff in a book, then give it back to you. The police officer at the barrier will then let you past, here you must drive 20m forward, park yet again and go to another pinkish "Gendarmerie" on the right hand side. Go to the window and hand the guy your TIP, passport and registration document. He will write your info in a book and give the documents back to you. Now you can just get in your vehicle and go directly through the big final gate into no mans land.

There were many people driving across when I went, so I just followed a big truck who took the easy route (without sand). This was approximately 2km, easily doable in your own vehicle without a guide, the moto in some of the deep sand was difficult for me hence why I started following the truck after.

On arriving at the Mauritanian border, I was still at the bottom of the hill when a guy was running down the slope to me. I recognised this guy as Cheik from the pictures above. I took off my helmet and said "Cheik", he said "I remember you" which he didn't as this is the first time I've crossed. He said it would cost 20 euro, to which I said 10 euro and he said okay. If you want to do this yourself then read on, I will explain what he did.

He takes your passport and registration document (carte gris) to the first building on the left once through the gate, while you're parking on the right hand side of the gate. There are two guys in army uniform in this office and they look over your documents. No problem.

Next he goes to the next building up on the left hand side, (this building is white, and has a white concrete fence with pattern holes in it), there will be an open door on the right to enter an office. In here there is a long desk opposite, with 2 guys sitting behind the desk, this is where you get your visa. You give your passport over, they look through it for a while and deal with other passports at the same time. Eventually they ask you to take a seat in front of them, you sit there for a while and then you must scan your fingerprints several different ways. Sit there some more, and they will take your photograph with a webcam on the back of the computer. You then get out of the chair and wait around for a long while, then you pay 120 euro to the guy behind the desk and wait some more. Eventually you get your passport.

Now that you have your visa, next you need a TIP. Drive your vehicle about 100m, you will see a walled off compound on the right with a gap in the middle to walk through, park opposite on the left side of the road. walk into this compound and there are several buildings, go to the second building on the left, there are two guys in army rig in here who do the TIP. They wrote it out for me, as I had hired this guy Cheik to help out, maybe you would have to write it out yourself? This TIP gave me 1 week import and cost me 10 euro, I think it should have cost 7.5 but I couldn't be bothered arguing.

After this, you get back in/on your vehicle and drive another 100m up to a building on the left side of the road with a bunch of people crowded around trying to sell sim cards etc. You will know it is the right building as when you enter the door, there will be a door on the left, a door on the right, and if you go straight forward there will be a garden inside on the left. Take the left door first, here is where they will stamp you in to the country, drop your passport on the desk with registration document, eventually the guy will look at your passport and say your country name a few times for no reason. He will stamp you in to the country, and you can walk out. Walk into the door on the right, give your documents and scan your fingers yet again, get your documents back and walk out

Now I got back on the bike and went a further 100m to another building on the left, this has a big ramp up to it where there are a couple of tables and chairs, and a shop. This is where he had already arranged insurance and we waited for the document while I got a bottle of water, but if I was doing this again/alone I would just leave and get insurance in town.

This is where Cheik tried to f#$! me, I had paid 15 euro for insurance. When he brought out the papers it had only 3 days on it. I told him I wanted 10 days for the 15 euro I paid for. He tried to spin some BS about how the prices are changing all the time etc, I said no I want 10 days for the 15 euro simple as that. He got in a bad mood and went off, he came back and tried to kill time, like 30 minutes I waited there for this insurance to come back. Eventually he brought it back with the date just scribbled out and a new date put it, I don't know if this is official or not.

In total I paid:

120euro for visa
10 euro for TIP
15 euro for dodgy insurance
10 euro to Cheik

As I paid the 10 euro for Cheik and the 15 euro for insurance at the same time, I only had a 20 euro note which I gave him, but also 100 dirhams, he gave me back 1200 Oug change, 3 euro. So he dicked me 2 euro in the exchange but thats water under the bridge.

Overall I think I pretty much paid exactly what is required + arguably 12 euro for Cheik the fixer. I know I wanted 10 days insurance rather than 3, but purely out of principal that I'm not going to let him pocket the change if I can help it, in reality I am spending 1 night in Nouakchott and getting out of here. It's boring, its a huge desert, fuel is SUPER expensive, apparently Auberge du Sahara has bed bugs and there is not really much else to do here.

Totally agree with Priffe. There's no need to use a fixer at this border it's all pretty straight forward.

By using a fixer it will encourage others and before long this border will turn into another Rosso/Diama mess with imaginary fees all over the place :thumbdown:

@Wanted

Nice detailed account and have a save journey!

Cheers,

Robert

I gladly part with 10 euros and have my tea in my car while my fixer does everything by himself.
Like most things insurance is negotiable in Mauri, no point getting upset about that.
TIP has always been 10 euros or 4.000 OUM, but it's validity can vary from a few days up to one month (depending on your input or that of your fixer :).

We will doing a roundtrip from Morocco down to Dakar by motorbike. We will arrive to Tangier from Genoa on next saturday and dont want to waste time waiting until monday to get visa in Rabat.
Anyone has information about double entry visa getting on Mauri border? Is it existing or not? Can we get it on border? How much does it cost?

We will doing a roundtrip from Morocco down to Dakar by motorbike. We will arrive to Tangier from Genoa on next saturday and dont want to waste time waiting until monday to get visa in Rabat.
Anyone has information about double entry visa getting on Mauri border? Is it existing or not? Can we get it on border? How much does it cost?

Double entry visa not existing the last time I was there (april 2016), You can get it on the border. price: 120 euros each way, believe it or not.

Only single entry when I passed the frontier in April. I did ask.

visa update
 

hello,
are there any more comments about mauri visas bought in Rabat , being refused on the boarder because there not Biometric , or are they Biometric !
regards chris

No problems at the border where they are indeed biometric

They're finally going to fix the road:
Le Maroc entame le goudronnage d'une route à Guerguerat, près de la Mauritanie

About time. Very easy little stretch of desert to fix.
There's something else going on. Morocco intends to take firmer control of the south of Western Sahara. Tensions with Mauretania are rising
http://blogs.timesofindia.indiatimes...-north-africa/
Dont think it will affect travellers as it is now, but good to know perhaps.
From a Moroccan perspective http://www.moroccoworldnews.com/2016...roccan-border/

Interesting pro-Moroccan article.
Why would Mauritania hand over La Guera to the Polisario?
It's miles from SADR territory.

Power games only? Mauretania are even moving missiles to the frontier. Pulled their ambassador from Morocco some years ago. Raised their flag in La Gouira (not the SADR flag). I dont think Mauretania love the Polisario any more than arabs love palestinians, but perhaps they can be used for a purpose.
Most all imports to Mauretania come from Morocco, direct or transit. Increased trade is really a win-win for both.
At the same time, Morocco - Algeria relations may be changing as Morocco reclaims its seat at the African Union. Algeria Expresses Willingness to Fostering Ties with Morocco | The North Africa Post While they are building fences (Morocco) and trenches (Algeria) along 700 kms of the border.

Spotted this the other day after that talk of Mk trenches - never knew of it.
More here.

Morocco says there is chaos on the other side of the border.
Algeria say they are being run over by Moroccan haschisch.
Some truth to both claims I think.
http://www.elwatan.com//actualite/al...327547_109.php

Things heating up at Guergarat border

Armed Polisario Fighters Confront Moroccan Security Forces in Guarguarat

UN Security Council may stop the construction of the road?
Western Sahara Consultations : What's In Blue

troops took positions only 120 meters from each other

700? This is peanuts, Morocco built a 2500 km long berm a looooong while ago :innocent:

While some Arab elites love the jews more the the Palestinians it is important to know that Mauritanians and the Saharawis (polisario just being their preeminent political representative) share a common language (Hassania), common history and strong ethnic interconnections. At present Nouadhibou, Mauri's second largest city, is practically owned by Saharawis. Same goes for Zouerate, Fdeirik and Bir Moghrein - a large chunk of Mauri territory. Mauri will do nothing against the Saharawis, Mauri will also not go to war with Morocco.

The story is more like this:
Morocco decided to steal another slab of land and moved into No man's land. Clearing at first hundreds of gutted vehicles adorning the 5 km strip (no more Mad max scenery). Under the usual pretext: anti-criminal, anti-terrorist, anti-blabla operation. As a bonus Morocco claimed to have confiscated several tons of haschich. Khm. Who produces haschich? Mauritania? Saharawis? The Cubans maybe? So Morocco confiscated it's own drugs in a foreign territory. Bingo! Then the bulldozers moved in, to construct a road. A noble endeavor, we - the travelling folks - may say. If it was not in clear violation of the 1991 peace agreement. Which may lead to armed conflict. The few trucks loaded with moroccan vegetables going south ant the few trucks carrying fish the other way are but an insignificant sidedish. So are the ever decreasing numbers of over-psyched pale skinned tourists.

No Man's Land like no man coul ever have imagined it.
 

[ATTACH]Attachment 18308[/ATTACH][QUOTE=burden;547211]700?

a fantastic piece of pure propaganda :)
The Moroccans busted Morrocan haschisch in No Man's Land?
And the smugglers were: Polisario? Algeria? Smuggling Morrocan dope from liberated territories to La Guira? From Morroco to Mauritania?

...

As things stand now: you finish the Morrocan side, than you ride some kilometres of brand new illegal tarmac, then you see Morrocan gendarmerie, where they shouldn't have been, then you see UN guys, then Saharawi Polisario, and then you hit the old currogated pisted leading to Mauri side of the border.

Attachment 18309

Dear burden you know fuller well that Morocco is now the envy of Africa and the Arab world, developping at madcap speed and doing it with barely a drop of oil. ;)
One common mistake you do is equating sahrawis with Polisario.
Polisario is more interested in smuggling arms and cocaine than moroccan kif.
Soon enough we will have a freeway from Tangiers to Dakar, like it or not.

Pure propaganda! :-) I only posted it for the picture of them laying the tarmac I never thought I'd see that happen...

True, but a typicall neocon development: enriching the very few (already) super-rich, the vast majority of the Morrocan citisens is as screwed as ever, possibly more. Just to give you an example: were you a Morrocan you would most likely be eating old (subsidized (sic!) ... isn't this communism?) bread and sipping recycled mint tea brewed on subsidized (sic!) gas. Equating Saharawis woith Polisario? When? However, Polisario is the only visible political force of the Saharawi people. Ever since 1975. Don't like it? Go blame the king. True, it's been widely ostracised, a bit like Hamas - a legitimate political party that won the election, western style. You don't like the outcome? Establish your own Saharawi party.
I wonder where you get your vehemence on the topic, you have never set foot on liberated territories, nor have you ever been even remotely close to the berm, except when crossing No Man's Land. So how do you know?
As far as the highway goes - there will be none for a long time coming (not that I wouldn't like it) - the tarmac from Mauri border to Nouakchott is utterly destroyed and needs to be completely redone. Not to mention the road from Nouakchott to Senegal. Not to mention the Route d'Espoir - gone but for a modest stretch around Kiffa. Not even the divine king of Morroco can help here :) He also can't help the fact that the Saharawis have been ethnically cleansed from their homeland and continue to live in exile for 40 years now. And are still there. TheY will not just vanish in thin air. But hey, may god help the king achieve his noble goals.

i''m guessing all is still the same, 120 euros at the border, no chance of a multi entry either there or Rabat? Heading into Morocco from Spain in the next few days

Cheers

Report what you find, these things change

Mauritania visa cost rumor for 2017
 

There is a rumor that the Mauritania visa will drop to 40 euro for 2017

Mauritanie: baisse du prix des visas pour relancer le tourisme | Mauritanie



Patrick

cant speak for the rumour but i crossed 10 days ago from Morocco

120 euros, single entry ony.
Insurance 15 euros
TIP 10 euros (couldnt be bothered to fight over what i thought was 8 euros)
I used Cheik as a fixer, paid him 10 euros. made life easier, and quicker as he just butted me in at the front of each line

Negotiations went like this,

Me: How much
Cheik: 150 euros!
Me: I'll give you 10 euros
Cheik: Ok

If you use him, just be firm with what you want. I told him the price i was going to pay, i had it written down as above on paper so there was no confusion. Paid him, changed some money at a fair rate (close to XE), thought that took some work and holding out.

+1 to using Cheik.

120 euros, single entry ony.
Insurance 15 euros
TIP 10 euros (couldnt be bothered to fight over what i thought was 8 euros)
I used Cheik as a fixer, paid him 10 euros. made life easier, and quicker as he just butted me in at the front of each line

Negotiations went like this,

Me: How much
Cheik: 150 euros!
Me: I'll give you 10 euros
Cheik: Ok

If you use him, just be firm with what you want. I told him the price i was going to pay, i had it written down as above on paper so there was no confusion. Paid him, changed some money at a fair rate (close to XE), thought that took some work and holding out.

Hi folks,
Mauri visa down from 120 euros to 40 euros!
Checked and confirmed bierbier

And multiple entry available?

Just to REconfirm, the 40€ is the price TODAY or from next year?

I'll be thrilled if it's starting now bier

january next year :)
don't know about multiple orgasms

Visa at the border?
 

Hey guys,

can anyone confirm that the visa for Mauritania can be obtained directly at the Morocco/Mauritania border and that t now costs 40 euro? I have read in one of the previous msgs in this thread a confirmation of the price, but still wonder if it applies also for the visa acquired directly at the border.

Thanx
A

I can confirm that the visa can be obtained at the border. Only a valid passport is needed (i.e. no photos, etc.). We did pay 120 Euros in November 2016 (Euro currency). Cannot say anything about the price today.

Good luck!

Cutrex

02 Januar 2017
 

Visa to Mauritania on the border, still costs 120 EUR.
From 12 hours waiting on the border of 2 campers, the promised 40 EUR. Well, the internet works here. mary

Best regards

Andrzej
(kamperemprzezswiat.blogspot.com)

Two Polish camper waiting on the border of Mauritania, joined by tourists from Portugal.
Please change your info on the website. Visa still costs 120 EUR!
It makes no sense to introduce people astray! :(

Regards

Andrzej
(kamperemprzezswiat.blogspot.com)

Disappointing, but.. well.. Mauritania. :)

Someone should inquire with the president who vowed to lower the fee -- and the officials at the border who told us it was happening Jan 1...and the news sites who all reported it, such as:

Mauritanie: Aziz baisse le prix du visa pour relancer le tourisme - Le360afrique.com

Part of me wonders if the border officials are just taking advantage, and are playing hardball to pocket a bonus 80 EUR. It's not like anyone is cracking down on their nonsense.

Visas have in passports. 55 EUR (1 x 1 month) + 5 hours of waiting in line at the office. mary
Details border crossing describe myself quietly on his blog. Even after his return to Europe, because we have to go back along the same route.
I do not know if the officials want to cash in on those 120 EUR?
I do not know why the President announced a 40 and a 55 EUR? But after 4 days of waiting at the border and broadcast transmission of emails with questions "why", even to the Information Office of the Government of Mauritania, 130 EUR left us to travel further. : Mchappy:

Regards

Andrzej

Mauritania
 

I can confirm that crossing from Morocco into Mauritania visa is now €55 at the border.

beer

Mauritania
 

More clarification desired...and sorry for that...

So...the new price of visa at the border is now *55 eur* and not 40 as was annouced/rumoured? And what is the advice on paying 10 eur to the fixer...s it worth it or it is easy enough to just do it on your own? I am travelling by autostop/by public transport.

Thanx!!!

A

Hi
I have an easy question for you. I am planning my first trip to Senegal and reading this topic, a doubt come to me. Can you pay the visa in euros? Or you have to pay it in local currency?
Thanks!!

Old Price for Mauri Visa Still Being Charged in Rabat
 

Hello,

In Rabat at the moment (Jan 2017) and heading south to Mauri. I thought that I would get my Mauri visa whilst in Rabat to save some time.

A couple of fairly surly and unhelpful gents told me that the visa would cost 1,450 Dh, which I suppose is still the old price.

I politely thanked them and told them that I would rather get the visa at the border for the new price of 55 Euros.

Only thing is, they had got hold of some of the details of my passport which they seemed to enter into the computer. I hope they didn't get pissed off with me and put a notation into the system that will make things difficult later on. Only time will tell.

We paid in Euros. I don't think they'd even want local, but I suppose anything's possible.

For the fixer question, having now done it once already, I would use cheikh again.

For a first-timer, nothing is labelled, and finding the right place (particularly when the biometric guys show up 3 hours late) is near impossible. Nobody is helpful.

That's not why I'd buy the fixer, though.

Once the people show up to start doing biometric work, the fixers, on behalf of their clients, re-arrange the order of "presentation" for the border personnel. Constantly. like, fixer A puts his dude on top, then fixer B notices, puts his dude on top, repeat. The border people are diddling with their cell phones while this all goes on. Negotiations occasionally "break out" among the parties. The applicants just line the wall, shell-shocked, while the game plays out.

Cheikh is clearly the biggest A-hole of the group. You want to be the passports he's putting on top of the pile, and you want to be the one on whose behalf he yells at guards, visa processing people, and other fixers, because he seems to win the arguments.

Treat it like an amusing bit of African or Arab bureaucratic theater, and it all makes a bit more sense.

My $0.02

- Mike

I can confirm the visa fee is now €55 in euros with change given plus €10 for TIP. 6/1/17

I didn't use a fixer, and thanks to wanted's excellent description a few pages back navigated all the buildings with limited French. No coruption or 'cadeau' requested, just bureacracy. Took 3.5 hours from arriving at morocco side to finishing mauritania side. Most time was waiting for the visa guys in mauritania to finish lunch and then prayers (1.5 hours).

No fixer used, again thanks to wanted's descriptions. Those that are therequired generally aren't too bothersome. Cheikh is clearly top dog amongst them and seems pretty reasonable to deal with. All the fixers do is get you to the top of the pile, but it wasn't busy when I crossed so no issue.

I got tip for 20 days just by asking, so no need to extend in nouakchott.

One other thing, the Internet connection they have is unreliable and they can't do the visa without it. This meant the people an hour after me took 7 hours to cross. I also met an Italien guy in nouadhibou who had the same problem. It took him 13 hours including them escorting him and others to nouadhibou airport to do the visa and then taking them back to the border to finish off!

Hope that helps

Thanx for all the info, especially to jamesallen and wanted. Really appreciate it. :)

Now to other things...I travel low-cost with my friend and we are now in Dakhla. We want to cross the border and get to Noadhibou. We don't have a vehicle and are travelling by hitch-hiking (preferably) and/or public transport.

As far as I understand the border closes at 18h and it is wise to be there as soon as possible in the morning. So...does anyone know about decent hotel options in Guergerat? Decent would mean that the price is ok (up to 100 dh for room for 2 persons) and hassle-free. What are options to get to the border crossing and then navigate the border from Morocco post...through no-mans-lan....to the end of Mauritania post...*without* own vehicle? Is it feasible to count on some european travellers that would be ready to take us with them?

After we successfully navigate the crossing, have visas in our passports and say goodby to the police...what about getting to Noadhibou...? I understand it is still 60-70 km to the town. Buses? Taxis? Hitch-hiking?

Sorry for asking so much...really thanx for all the answers!!
A

Not been there myself for years but the Barbas hotel is 85km form the border and a likely place to get a lift.
No formal lodgings at the Mk border post, afaik.

Most overland travellers have little space in their vehicles, but locals use taxis I'm sure.

Barbas will be your only lodging. It's basic, cheapish (I seem to recall 30 Eur for a double), and has a restaurant and fuel (which you won't need :) ) -- No A/C, Fan, or hot water. Wifi is janky and terrible but worked occasionally. Food was good.

...if you don't already have iOverlander, it is vital for discovering these sort of places that everyone uses.

You'll want to get there in early afternoon to start working your hustle to get a ride. I'm sure at some point a taxi or van roll through there, but we didn't see any.

Getting to the border at 9am sharp is possibly to your detriment, as the staff arrive late and there was a backlog for us, which caused delays. I imagine by noon the place is deserted and you can sail through.

$0.02 -- Good luck.

- Mike

Exchange into Euro
 

Thank you for the really useful information!!
There is one thing that I would like to confirm.

That means you exchanged Moroccan DH into Euro at Moroccan side at the border?

I don't have enough Euro, so I am worried about it.

Regards,
Yuko

You pay in euros.
Mauretanieans say the northern border post is run by two of the president's sons, so it is a family enterprise (must be lucrative) and if they can't decide on the cost that is a family feud.
Would be interesting to know if they offer multiple entry visa at the border. And what they offer in Rabat.

Moroccans pull back from contested border area:
https://ledesk.ma/2017/02/26/mohamme...-de-guerguerat

Slightly more detail on the above in an English version...

Morocco says forces to withdraw in Western Sahara's Guerguerat standoff | Reuters

Polisario remain in Guergerate. If they were a bit smarter they would use this strip of land better to their advantage, for information/propaganda/political leverage/commerce (commerce not meaning their beloved contraband)
Sahara occidental : le Front Polisario campe sur ses positions dans la zone de Guergarate - JeuneAfrique.com

getting visa/crossing moroccan and mauritania
 

Ive been reading all these threads and am driving a vehicle to ghana for an NGO in june.

Has anyone done the crossing morocco to mauri in the last week?

has anything changed due to recent events?

"Morocco says forces to withdraw in Western Sahara's Guerguerat standoff | Reuters"

can anybody tell me the cost of visa/insurance etc and whether they are still doing visa at the border?

When you enter Bir Gandouz (& as marked on the map) there is a hotel behind that first filling station on the right about 200m before Barbas Hotel. It was great, a very clean room with en suite, from memory it cost us about 200Dh or less for a twin room, there's a restaurant downstairs & good wifi.

As for driving down Hazel, I did the same to Cote d'Ivoire mostly alone as a female in December, it's absolutely fine - we all had to drive through the stand off between the Polisario & Moroccans, UN chopper flying overhead & a few UN vehicles on the little mound to the left after the tarmac

At the Mauri border, I kept the fixers at bay and did it myself, I was done in 20mins or so (internet obviously had a good day) ... insurance took minutes, again from memory (left all the details in Cote d'Ivoire) it cost me about 15euros for a Mercedes Sprinter on the shortest time they'd give me, spent a total of 3 days in Mauri.

Rabat not issuing Visas as of 7 Mar 2017
 

Here is a quick update on the visa situation in Rabat.

I got to the embassy at 8am, first in line. Yes! 5 minutes later, the embassy caretaker comes out and tells me that I can not obtain a visa. He said to go to the border.

Upon closer inspection of the information board, there was a partially obstructed notice dated 07 March 2017 that read (Google translation from French):

No more (at least temporarily) visas in Rabat. Saving time at the border turned into wasting time in Rabat.

What else was of interest was a notice dated 17 January 2017:
* please tell me this is just the application itself! The French is: "Invitation au nom de l'intéressé"

Has anybody obtained a visa since 17 Jan and can confirm requirements?

I just came back from Morocco-Mauritania-Senegal trip.(March-April 2017)
No problem for visa at the border
55€ - no photo - biometric visa
10€ for motorcycle importation
25 for insurance
1 hr total
that's all

I can also now confirm the border details. I don't have an update on Rabat.

55€ or 660dhs for visa.

When I went through 23 April, there had been technical issues since the previous day, preventing issuance of visas. Fortunately, at 5pm (6pm Morocco) the system was working again. 2hrs and a bit of anarchy later, visa in hand. At least I didn't spend the night there.

It would have been nice to have gotten that visa in Rabat to have avoided the delays.

Also, there is a Polisario checkpoint, but my taxi just got waved through. Commercial vehicles seemed to be getting checked.

Border Crossing
 

Hey, I figured I'd post my experience as I just crossed the border from Guerguerat into Mauritania on May 14th 2017. We got in a shared taxi at Dakhla and left at round 9 am and we got to the border at around 1:45-2ish. Moroccan customs was pretty easy to clear and the POLISARIO has pulled out of the area as of a couple weeks ago since they listened to the UN. There was a small structure in the middle of no-man's land that looked like the former checkpoint though as it had a POLISARIO flag painted on some rocks. Mauritanian customs was pretty easy too. The visa cost 55 euros as others have said and after a relatively brief interview with a man in an office they waved us through.

Rosso the border between senegal and mauritania is the worst crossing i've ever experienced in six years of travelling. Try to avoid it. Especially when entering mauritania. Theres another one as well. All people ive spoken to got scamed in some way.
-theres people telling you they work for the customs, but they are bandits. But the tricky thing is, the police teamed up with them and plays along. They told me to pay a deposit, which i would get back when leaving the country.
-other people (acting like passengers waiting for the shared taxi to fill up) tell you to get a vacination certificate. A shop sells fake ones. Dont buy it. Ive never been asked at checkpoints for one. Bring one from back home just in case.

Dont talk to people who dont wear an uniform and dont pay any money for anything except the 55€ visa fee and you should be fine.

Are visa for Mauritania available at the main borderpost coming from Mali: Nioro - Ayoun al Atrous?

Mauritanian Visa and the Border
 

Hello,

RIM-visa is available on this route, border post is Gogui.
RIM-Side is closed from 12-3p.m., visa ofice closes at 5 p.m..
Next place to stay on RIM-Side is Kobenni, a few kilomters away from the border.

Have a nice trip

Juergen

Hi guys, coming up from Senegal in early Sept, we want to go Diama, would you grab a Mauri visa in Dakar before going to the border? I heard at one point the Diama border crossing couldnt issue visas

Could be wrong but I get a feeling northbound it has to be Rosso, so all the more reason to get one in Dakar if possible.

Just to pick up on this thread, 2 of us on bikes are planning to enter Senegal via Mali to avoid Rosso and Diama. We were heading for Kayes and crossing into Senegal from there. With this Mauri exclusion zone and "high risk" area it puts the Ayoun el Atrous route in doubt. I see on iOverlander there is a crossing at Melgue/Melga but it is not clear what the road is like. Has anyone used that Melgue border crossing recently? Is it viable for 2 guys with basic off-road skills, one on an R1500GS the other on a G650 XCountry? Cheers

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Hi jim
Selibaby-Melgue-Kayes is a flat piste with a few dry river beds to pass
easy in the dry season
roadless land
several nice bambara and peul villages
lovely route
We're going to Casamance next trip and will take this route to avoid Rosso/Diama
enter Senegal at Kenieba

Thanks Priffe, that sounds great. I believe we can manage that OK. I went through Rosso last time, South and North. Going South was the worst and not an experience I want to repeat. This route also takes me into a different area which is great.

We are also heading for the Casamance area this time. Looking forward to it. Thanks again for the info.

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Will you please enlighten me, where; what is Casamance ? I can't see it on my map. Mali, Senegal, Guinea?


Ali.

It's southern Senegal - the part below Gambia.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Casamance

Whilst in Casamance, highly recommend a stop at The Little Baobab in Abene, Simon Fenton's widow now runs it with their two small boys.

There are other posts on here about Simon; a great guy, sadly missed!

Visa Mauritania
 

As of sept 2017 we paid 690 Mad per person in Rabat

No visas available in Dakar, had to be Rosso or Nouakchott airport going north. Rosso sucked as per usual

Our last group were turned away from the Mauri embassy in Dakar as they don't have biometric facilities, so we had to get the visa for everybody at Rosso.

That may change going forward but this was the case in May 2017.

We got our 2 [Mali] visas at the [Mori-] Mali border going south in early October without issue, for 55€ each. It took about 20 mins, done quite professionally. Only single entry visas available at the border though.

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Entering Mauritania with 2 Passports From Same Country
 

Hi, I had a quick but maybe unusual question, and was hoping someone here could shed some light on it. Next month I'll be traveling to Nouakchott for work, and I was wondering if immigration officials at the airport have a problem with passengers carrying 2 passports (they're from the same country- I don't have dual citizenship). Due to the amount of travel I have to do that requires visas, I recently obtained a second passport to make the process easier, and on this trip, I'll need to carry both (I'll be arriving from Cameroon, and that visa is in a separate passport than the Mauritanian one). Thanks!

I have 2 for the same reason, but you definitely don't want to announce you are travelling with 2, especially from the same country.
Owning 2 is of course not illegal,l but I think travelling with 2 is, in most places. Arrive and leave on the same passport.
I would have thought it's unlikely they will look for an exit stamp from Cameroon on arrival in RIM.

Hmm- thanks for the feedback. In this case, would it be better to just obtain a visa on arrival at the airport? I really like to get all of the necessary entry paperwork sorted out before I leave, but it seems like that route would be more complicated in this instance.

Was this at the Gogui border?

Thanks for the chance to clarify this, I was referring to the Western Sahara/Muritania border at Guerguerat, not the Mali border. We got our Mali visas at the Mali Embassy in Nouakchott, applied in the morning and had the visas by lunchtime, both of us have Irish passports.

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Update on Border Crossing - Western Sahara to Mauritania @ Guerguerat
 

Two bicycle tourers here. Male with USA passport and female with Spanish Passport. We DID NOT get visas prior to arrival and cannot report on that process, but crossing for us was fairly painless and we had no issues from Western Sahara into Mauritania as of December 27th, 2017. Here is what to expect:

The "No Man's Land" is paved for a short stretch after you clear the Moroccan exit Visa and then gets pretty rough (sandy, rocky), but it is short - less than 1 km and also navigated by plenty of cars and huge 18 wheelers. No danger, No risk and you're through it in 30 minutes or less easy. Plenty of taxis if you are on foot.

Once you get to Mauritanian border buildings know that the cost was 55 euro for each of us (you need euro and if you were stuck without euro you could exchange for it at the border) and once we got into Mauritania it was a three step process that the police guided us through:

1) Cross border after the 1 km No Man's Land stretch and police will lead you to the small little building to the immediate left to write down some information from your passport.
2) They will point you to the building right next to this building where you enter in a lobby/courtyard area and hand your passport into the small room where guys are sitting with computers - this was the longest wait for us - about 45 minutes for our turn to come and then we sat down and they scan your fingerprints and take your photo. This is where we paid, then they printed and stuck the visa into our passport.
3) Lastly, a little further on but in the same border area on the left hand side you need to get the visa stamped. There is another police building, but again you will find it without trouble because you will be asked by police to see your visa and then they will point you to where to get the Stamp. That's it!

Update on Mauritania Money
 

One other thing. I'm not sure how long this is going to last or what exactly is going on but plan on ATMs to not work on your international cards. They didn't work for us in Nouadhibou and now none are working here in Nouakchott either. From our hotel here and other guests only locals with bank branch cards can take out money - no Visa or Mastercard from foreign travelers are working at any bank ATM. My advice is to get what you think you need for the whole country at the border. The exchange they'll likely give for 400 to 1 euro isn't terrible. Its 420 to 1 in an exchange shop in Nouadhibou. People will change euro for you likely everywhere, but just make sure you have some, they will take US Dollars as well!

Another odd thing to note coming in. Starting on January 1st, 2018 they've changed the value of their currency, but are accepting both types til July. A 1000 ouguiya bill is now a 100, 2000 now 200, etc. You could receive both types. Just a heads up.

Tensions may return here, so they say:
http://www.horizonsunlimited.com/hub...6-2#post576528

Last week (jan, the 2th) - there were no problems to get the new mauritanian money out of an ATM at NDB with VISAcard.
Cheers Ferdi

Europe To Senegal border: full Updated info
 

11/01/2018

Dear all,

i just returned from a very smooth overland trip from Europe to The Gambia without a Carnet de Passage!. During this trip i crossed Morocco, the Western Sahara, Mauritania and Senegal. I found that a lot of information available on forums like these are in need of an update, therefore i will do my best to be as complete as possible. (note that my experience can always differ from yours)

When driving throughout West Africa, knowledge of the French language is absolutely necessary. i would strongly advise anyone thinking about doing a similar trip to make sure to have at least basic proficiency in French.

Entering Morocco:
Entered by ferry through Tanger Med, late at night. we got stuck at customs there, it took us more than 6.5 hours to get through. we may just had some bad luck, but i would advise to do a good research on other possible points of entry (Cueta, Tanger ville). Get your temporary vehicle import permit beforehand on the internet (search for D16TER). Currency exchange and vehicle insurance available after customs. if using a European insurance with coverage in Morocco, be sure to get an ORIGINAL proof of insurance beforehand.
Fair warning: the Moroccan police love to hand out speeding tickets. i got 2. just keep to the speed limits, even in the lonely desert: they are everywhere! otherwise you'll have to pay on the spot, about 15 euros. The toll roads in morocco are truely amazing because they are not busy, cheap (15/20 euro total cost) and gas stations are frequent. southwards from Agadir the roads are just 1-lane, watch out for oncomming trucks. make sure to have fiches ready to hand out to the numerous police checkpoints. (Search for "fiche morocco" on google)
south of Tan-tan Diesel prices get a lot cheaper, about 0,70 eu/L. between Laayoune and dakhla there is a lot of road construction going on at the moment: calculate extra time for this stretch! Don't stray to far from the paved road, landmines may be present throughout the whole western Sahara, especially south of Dakhla.

Mauritania:

Leaving morocco:
Crossed the border at Bir Ghandouz. arrived around 12 o'clock in the afternoon. ask for instructions if you can not find the correct buildings.
- Stamp out your passport (left side of road).
-Afterwards, stamp out the temporary import permit in the building on the right-hand side, bring your carte grise! the moroccan police will probably search the car.
-Afterwards you'll have to go to the gendermerie building on the right, get another stamp, and then you leave morocco.

Entering Mauritania:
From morocco there is a 1km strecth of newly paved road through the so-called "no-mans land" after the paved road awaits a 0.5km stretch over sand and rocks (4x4 vehicle is advisable here). politely decline fixers trying to lead you through this small stretch: just drive on and wait on the end of the tarmac, and wait for another truck to show a good way. if not possible just stay in the visible tracks. don't be afraid of landmines, if you stay on the tracks you will be perfectly fine.
Once at the border a fixer will probably swamp you or act like he is an official. i used one, paid 10 euro's and actually found him to be very helpful. the choice is yours.
-Go to the police building on the left. they check your passport. nothing is to be paid here.
-Go to the customs building a bit further down on the same left side, it is a bit hidden so if you can't find it just ask. here you will get your visa. took me about 30 minutes, cost: 55 Euro.
-Afterwards, go trough the gate at the right side (it should say "douanes" or something similair on the arch above the gate) go straight into the building and ask for the temporary import permit (passavant). fill out the data on your vehicle registration card (or in french Carte grise) on a form and let it be stamped out. cost is 10 euro's.
-after that, get vehicle insurance on the left side of the road. i got ecowas insurance for the "whole" of West Africa, 20 or so days for 30 euro's. if you can get the ecowas insurance, get the ecowas insurance! this way you don't have to get a new insurance in Senegal, The Gambia, etc.
when all is done, you are free to go! have some fiches ready for Mauritania.

A lot of governments advise against travelling eastwards into Mauritania. if you stay around the coastal highway, bear in mind that Nouadhibhou and Nouackchott are the best places to spend a night. The road quality on the first stretch between nouadhibou and nouackchott is fairly bad, watch out for potholes. further south the road gets better. south of Nouackchott the road gets very bad, and directly under Nouackchott there is a lot of road construction going on. calculate extra time.
if heading for Diama, the first 30 km of the road is brand new tarmac. ask for directions to diama. you have to cross a 30km sand piste through a nature reserve. it is beautiful, don't forget to take your camera out. the piste itself is quite rough, adjust your speed. afterwards you need to pay for the park entry, 7 euros per person. after that, head for the mauritanian side of the border!


Leaving Mauritania:
-head for the first office on the left. stamp out your temporary import permit. the cost is 10 euros, ask for a receipt (The rule in general is, No receipt = corruption!).
-Go to the next office on the left. stamp out your passports. they ask for 10 euros. do not pay! ask for a receipt, when they refuse, remind them that a receipt (recu in french) is necessary for government transactions. by doing this i got away without paying.
- A man is guarding a gate there, asking about 2 euro's for a "tax de commune". pay them and continue.

Drive over the dam to the Senegalese side! Many people dread this crossing because of the many stories about corruption here [but Rosso ferry is much worse]. crossing was quite expensive for me (we did not have a carnet de passage!) so expect to pay a substantial sum. on the plus side, it was very desolate and easy-going and the process took about 1 hour.

... Senegal and Gambia covered here


So that was my story. I hope many future overlanders find this information to be usefull. if planning on doing this trip, i can highly recommend it! It was amazing.

Feel free to send an E-mail if you have any questions. In case your car will stay in the Gambia, i am willing to share the contact information of the officials who helped me out of trouble.

Good luck,
3 Young Dutchmen.

We are heading to Mautitania. .has anyone hav latest visa new? Will head to Rabat to confirm with em assy will post update.

Latest visa update 5.2.2018

We stopped at the embassy in Rabat. The following IS my direct experience and as we were coming from Tanger med our stop was for peace of mind as anything else.

Visa 30 Day - 690dh
A payment request is issued which you then go and pay over the counter in cash at the local BCME branch ( across the main road from the embassy.
You will also need a photocopy of your pasportizace, 2 passport photos.
Then they will take your fingerprints and Digital photo before issuing a visa at 14h the next Day.

IT was suggested that the border option also works but if anything were to fail you would be told to go to Rabat....so go and figure...

I will post a current update from the border once we get There.

We crossed the border on 8.2.18.

All parametric visa facilities work. Cost is 55 euro. So if you are bypassing Rabat the border will issue a visa on the spot. The longest delay might be a day if they lose connection, as told to us by a fixer.

which ATM (Which bank), where exactly in NDB, please? Must be one of the very few as most don't work in my experience

According to the Embassy visas of any duration are available at the border. We would want at least 30 days, preferably 90. Any idea if that would be s problem?

GAB Nimerwat-NDB, Nouadhibou

somewhere there:
https://www.google.de/maps/@20.9477049,-17.0361153,16z

Good morning guys, I'm planning a roundtrip motorcycle trip to Bamako and after reading everything written about Mauri's border with Senegal by Diama, I still have the question of whether it is possible to obtain Mauri's visa at his entrance by Diama. Does anyone have updated information about it?
Many thanks

Try and get a double entry on the way down.

Otherwise, last I heard only Rosso does it, but no reason you can't then go to Diama with it.
Get the feeling Rosso northbound may be less aggro, but never done it.