Mauritania Country Profile

 

Mauritania Flag

Discovering Mauritania

Mauritania is a country found in North Africa and shares borders with Mali in the east, Algeria in the northeast and Senegal in the southwest. In the west, it is bounded by the Atlantic Ocean while in the north by the Western Sahara (Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic).
Mauritania derives its name from the Roman province of Mauretania. It has a population of about 3.3 million people. This generally little-known Saharan country consists of mainly vast Saharan plains of sand and scrub. Majority of its land is barren dominated with sand dunes although in some patches the land rises to rocky plateaux with deep ravines leaving isolated peaks.
Nouakchott which was formed in 1960 is the capital city and lies in the vicinity of the sea within low dunes desert landscape scattered with the thorn bushes, on a place adjoining the settlement of old Moorish’s the Ksar. The city is renowned for its contemporary structures that have maintained the traditional architectural style of Berber. The Plage-du Wharf, crafts centre, carpet factory, Maison de-la Culture, the Ksar, the mosque and Camel Market are some of worth visiting places during Mauritania holidays in the city.
A Mauritania travel will bring you close to the tribe that survives through a symbiotic relationship with wild dolphins between Nouakchott and Nouâdhibou. The coast is 500 miles of extensive sandy beaches and supports an astonishingly varied and large population of birds.

For the ardent adventurous, a safari tour to the country’s 800km sandy coastline devoid of most vegetation but supporting an astonishingly large and varied population of birds is extremely mesmerizing. It is highly recommended that nature and bird enthusiasts have a stopover at Parc National du Banc d’Arguin have a glimpse of the seasonal migrating birds from Europe. It is also exceptionally exciting. The mountains in the Adrar region are amazing to trek.
Deep inside the mountain pass of Homogjar to Chinguetti, is a holy city of Islam founded in the 13th century – a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Discover the ancient capital of a Berber empire -Tagdawst, near Tamchakett, has been identified as ‘Aoudaghost’.
First time travelers to Mauritania, you may desire to have desert drives in 4-wheel drive vehicles to Adrar plateau (500m) in the centre and Tagant (600m) southwards where you will come across scattered towns, small villages and oases.
The northern bank of the Senegal River, which forms the country’s southern border, is the only area in the country with permanent vegetation and it supports a wide variety of desert wildlife. Mauritania Holidays trips are also becoming popular especially along the desert beaches in the west and near Nouâdhibou. They offer good spots for sport fishing, swimming and wind surfing.