Algeria Bucket List

Visit Algiers, the capital of Algeria on the Mediterranean coast. Explore the UNESCO-listed Casbah (a historic citadel with narrow alleys and Ottoman-era architecture), see the modern Martyrs' Memorial (a concrete monument commemorating the Algerian War of Independence), and stroll along the seafront Corniche for views of the Bay of Algiers. Try local dishes like couscous or merguez sausage at a traditional restaurant.

Learn Modern Standard Arabic and its unique script

Journey through Saharan dunes, Roman ruins, and Mediterranean kasbahs of Algeria

Visit Constantine, Algeria's historic city built on dramatic cliffs. Explore the Sidi M'Cid Bridge (one of the highest bridges in Africa, spanning the Rhumel Gorge), see the Palace of Ahmed Bey (19th-century Ottoman-era palace with intricate mosaics and gardens), and wander the Casbah (ancient fortified medina with narrow alleys and traditional markets).

Attend a live concert by Tinariwen, the Tuareg desert blues band

Visit Oran, Algeria's second-largest city on the Mediterranean coast. Explore the Santa Cruz Fortress (a 16th-century Spanish citadel with panoramic views), see the Great Mosque of Oran (a historic Ottoman-era landmark), stroll along the waterfront promenade, and experience the local culture at the Ahmed Zabana National Museum (showcasing regional art and history).

The Algerian uprising filmed like a newsreel; the Pentagon screened it in 2003.

Costa-Gavras on the assassination of a Greek deputy and the cover-up; thriller as journalism.

Meursault shoots an Arab on a beach because of the sun; Camus in a hundred pages.

Oran quarantined, Dr Rieux at work; Camus's novel of the Occupation and every epidemic since.

Five fortified Mozabite towns in the M’zab valley, a thousand years of cubist architecture in the Sahara.

The Andalusian capital of the Maghreb: the Great Mosque, the Mansourah ruins and the El Mechouar palace.

Saharan plateau of prehistoric rock art.

Remarkably intact Roman city in the Aures.

Ottoman-era citadel quarter stacked above the bay of Algiers.

Roman mountain town with some of North Africa’s finest mosaics.

Ancient fortified towns of the Mzab.