Mauritania has open road borders with Western Sahara, Mali and Senegal. These borders are open to crossing by private motor vehicle or bicycle.
The road from The Western Sahara/Morocco enters the country near Nouadhibou. The road is paved all the way to the Moroccan border post in Fort Guerguarat, where one has to traverse about 7 kilometers of twisting, stony, but straightforward pistes to reach the Mauritanian border, where the tarred road begins again. Although the driving is simple, care should be taken not to leave the well worn pistes between the two border posts, because the area is a mine field. This danger is still present once you reach the tar on the Mauritanian side, and the area is not considered mine-free until you pass the railway line.
The crossing formalities are straightforward. Transit visas - valid for 3 days - can no longer be bought at the border, although this may change again. There is a bureau de change at the border, and a vehicle insurance office and numerous hopeful guides for making the old desert crossing down to the capital.
There are numerous pistes running across the Mauritanian border from Mali. These used to be the de facto route between the two countries, however there now exists a new tar road connecting Nara in Mali to Ayoun al Atrous in Mauritania. The border formalities in Mali are completed at various buildings around Nara town (local children will lead you to the police or customs for a small present). The Mauritanian formalities are conducted at a string of road-blocks along the border road.
An alternative land route which goes direct from Mauritania to Timbuktu, Mali is to travel the road Southeast from Néma, which is at the end of a good tarred road from Nouakchott. This dirt road continues to Bassekounou before crossing the border near Léré, Mali where it improves to a good dirt road to Niafunké and on to Timbuktu.
The Most Frequently Asked Travel Questions about Mauritania
Where To Stay & Best Hotels in Mauritania - updated Apr 2024
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Mauritania Travel Guide from Wikitravel. Many thanks to all Wikitravel contributors. Text is available under Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0, images are available under various licenses, see each image for details.
