Mauritania has an illustrious past. And yet I guarantee you, ask anyone about Mauritania and theyʼll say "where is it?"

Once the Roman province of Mauretania, origin of the Moors, a mix of Almoravids and Berbers, Beni Hassan Arabs and black west Africans together comprising a unique land with its own Arabic dialect - Hassaniya.

My Sahara Overland trip, UK to Timbuktu, passes through Mauritania, usually in Nov/Dec.

For tailor made trips I would hook you up with my excellent guides - Beni and his brothers Cheik and Mohammed.

They will take you on a desert odyssey through their quietly spectacular and subtly intriguing country.

You can either fly into Nouakchott and do a round trip or I could organise overland from Morocco. Best times to visit: September to February

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