Discover Algeria

Algeria is Africa's largest country by area, stretching from a Mediterranean coastline in the north to a vast expanse of the Sahara Desert covering most of its southern two-thirds. Decades of low visitor numbers, driven by a difficult visa process and lingering caution after the 1990s civil conflict, have left it one of North Africa's least-visited countries relative to its size and history -- a contrast with its extensive Roman, Ottoman, and French colonial heritage.

Algeria's history under French rule ended in 1962 after an eight-year war of independence, and that colonial period still shapes the country's architecture and language alongside its deeper Arab, Amazigh (Berber), and Mediterranean roots.

Its landscape is genuinely varied -- Algiers' whitewashed Kasbah and Mediterranean waterfront, Roman ruins scattered across the north, and the dramatic dune landscapes of the deep Sahara around Ghardaia and Tassili n'Ajjer each represent very different sides of the country.

Do I need a visa? Yes. Everyone needs a visa to visit Algeria, with no visa-free entry, so start the application before booking flights.

How much cash can I bring? Declare it at entry and exit if it exceeds 5,000 euros or the equivalent. Carry cash regardless -- card acceptance is limited outside the main hotels.

Can I travel in the Sahara? Through an operator, with the advisories as the starting point: the southern border is where the kidnap risk is concentrated and the Sahara carries its own warnings. It is booked, permitted and escorted rather than driven independently.

What are the emergency numbers? For an ambulance, 16 or 1021. Police is 17 in urban areas; the gendarmerie, on 14, covers rural areas and highways. Operators are unlikely to speak English.

Will English get me by? Not reliably. French is much more useful, including with officials and emergency services.