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Algeria tourist attractions: what to see in Algeria

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Algeria is a vast and beautiful country, one of the most interesting to visit of Mediterranean Africa. There are in fact many sights and tourist attractions in Algeria. The capital Algiers has an interesting old town and some fine museums. Oran, the country’s second city retains many traces of Spanish rule.

ANCIENT ROMAN CITIES

The region of Kabylia is one of the most picturesque in the country with landscapes formed by hills, canyons, woods and olive groves. In the north of Algeria there are fascinating ruins of Roman cities such as those of Timgad, Djémila, Lambèse, Tiddis, Tipasa, Caesarea (Cherchell) and Tébessa. Among the naturalistic beauties of northern Algeria the El Kantara gorges, called “the gate of the desert” and the oases of Biskra and El Oued.

GHARDAIA AND THE MOZABITE CITIES

To the south of the coastal strip and the mountains, the Sahara desert extends with the sand dunes of the Great Eastern Erg. Here you will find interesting destinations such as the city of Ghardaia with its landscapes and the nearby Mzab Valley with its 5 fortified cities (Ksour) built in the 10th century by the Ibadites.

A SPECTACULAR DESERT

Further south are desert jewels. Real tourist attractions of Algeria such as the oasis of Djanet and the Tassili N’Ajjer with its mountains and bizarre rock formations and its fascinating rock inscriptions.

UNESCO has entered several Algerian sites on the World Heritage List, including: Al Qal’a of Beni Hammad (1980), Djémila (1982), M’Zab Valley (1982), Tassili n’Ajjer (1982), Timgad (1982), Tipasa (1982), and the Kasbah of Algiers (1992).

Al Qal’a of Beni Hammad are the remains of a wonderful Muslim stronghold. Located in an exceptional mountainous scenario, which was the seat of the government of the Hammadid emirs between the tenth and eleventh centuries. The city is inserted in a mountain site of extraordinary beauty.

Timgad, located in the Aurès mountains is a Roman city built under Trajan around 100 AD. Timgad is an excellent example of Roman military town planning.

Djémila or Cuicul is one of the most beautiful Roman cities of Algeria, is located approximately 900 metres above sea level and retains many buildings of the imperial era. The city is an interesting example of Roman city adapted to a mountain area. The ruins of the city still have his Forum, temples, basilicas, triumphal arches and houses.

The Mzab Valley, is home to five fortified towns (Ksours) built in the tenth century by Ibadites. The cities are characterized by a functional architecture and is perfectly adapted to its surroundings. These architectural solutions are a source of inspiration for today’s urban design.

ROCKY PAINTINGS AND ENGRAVINGS

Tassili N’Ajjer, is the most famous prehistoric site in Algeria, there are thousands of paintings and rock engravings works by the inhabitants of the Sahara of the past millennia. These rock carvings describe the climate changes that have changed the Sahara in the last millennia. There are scenes of animal migration and the evolution of human life. Tassili N’Ajjer is characterized by a fascinating lunar landscape of great geological interest.

Tipasa is a city founded by the Carthaginians along the Algerian coast. This city became important for the Roman conquest of the area. Tipasa was in fact transformed into a strategic base for the Roman conquest of the kingdoms of Mauritania. The ruins of the city are made up of remains from the Phoenician, Roman, Byzantine and early Christian periods. But there are also indigenous monuments such as the Kbor er Roumi and the great royal mausoleum of Mauritania.

The Kasbah of Algiers, is an Arab citadel, an example of Islamic urban planning. There are fortifications, mosques and buildings in the Ottoman style. The Casbah is located in one of the best coastal sites in the Mediterranean, overlooking the islands, where the Carthaginians, in the fourth century BC. had established a commercial outpost. There are the remains of the citadel, of ancient mosques and Ottoman-style buildings, as well as the remains of a deep-rooted traditional urban structure associated with a sense of community.

The climate of Algeria.

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