Mali travel guide

Our Mali travel guide takes you across desert sands, through evergreen forest and to the dramatic cliffs and escarpments of the Dogon Plateau. Experience Mali’s legendary music scene in Bamako’s nightclubs, take to the Niger River in search of waterside communities, and visit ancient towns that once stood at the centre of great empires.

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Mali travel guide

A country steeped in legend, music and incredible natural beauty, Mali is one of the most rewarding destinations in West Africa. Its lifeblood is the Niger River, which bends and twists from the dramatic escarpments and cliffside villages of Dogon Country, through dynamic capital city Bamako, and on to the parched Sahara Desert in the north, passing ancient Sahelian trading kingdoms and the fabled town of Timbuktu along the way.

Mali is West Africa’s beating heart; a country as rich in history as it is blessed with jaw-dropping landscapes and diverse cultures.

Perhaps nothing better symbolises Mali than the Grand Mosque of Djenne, which must mended after every rainy season by the town's inhabitants: it's a fascinating destination, but one that has seen its fair share of hardship. Once the jewel in the crown of West African tourism, Mali’s landscapes, monuments and stories have been off limits to tourists for several years thanks to political instability, Tuareg rebellion, and the increasing influence of Islamic militants. Few intrepid travellers venture to this fascinating place.

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Mali
is/isn't

Mali is...

an incredible cultural experience, with a music scene that’s one of the best on the continent.

Mali isn’t...

off limits, just about; if you join a guided tour and steer clear of some still-troubled areas.

Mali map & highlights

Historically and geographically, landlocked Mali is West Africa’s centrepiece: a bridge between the deserts of the north and the forests of the south. The largest country in West Africa, its butterfly-shape covers some 240,000 sq km and shares a border with seven other nations. To the south are rolling grasslands and dramatic highlands, including the cliffs and escarpments of the Dogon Plateau. Northern and central Mali are made up of Sahel and Sahara, broken up only by the Iforas Massif, a sandstone plateau that’s an extension of the mountainous Hoggar region of the Algerian Sahara. The Niger River flows through the interior, functioning as the country’s main trading and transport artery.

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1. Bamako
2. Djenné
3. Dogon Country
4. Mopti
5. Ségou
6. Timbuktu

Bamako

1. Bamako

For many travellers, the hot, dusty and crowded capital is just a place to rest before moving on to the rest of the country, but those who do take time to explore will quickly be drawn in by the city’s dynamic live music scene, sprawling markets and the buzz of motorbikes swarming along the banks of the Niger River.

Bamako

Djenné

2. Djenné

Set alongside the Bani River, Djenné is the most beautiful town in the Sahel, and was once an important link in the trans-Saharan gold trade. Cut off by the rising waters of the Niger Delta for several months a year, its smooth buildings are built in the Sudanic style, and include the Great Mosque, whose towers and characteristic protruding beams are beautiful and striking.

Dogon Country

3. Dogon Country

A fairy tale of dusky pink villages, wide open skies, sacred crocodiles and sandstone cliffs, Dogon Country is a rugged and remote area in eastern Mali. Its major feature is the towering Bandiagara Escarpment, a 500m high, 150km long line of cliffs that cuts through the Sahel; and where mud-brick houses cling to the rock faces.

Dogon Country

Mopti

4. Mopti

Built on three islands connected by dykes across the Niger River, Mopti is the country’s biggest port and is often called the Venice of Africa thanks to its busy canals. While the town may lack Venetian beauty, it’s a fun and engaging destination, teeming with trading activity and colour and home to a vibrant cultural mix of people from across Mali.

Ségou

5. Ségou

The third largest town in Mali sits alongside the Niger River and is home to a thriving community of artisans, including cotton weavers, potters and rug makers. It also features beautiful examples of traditional Bamana architecture and graceful old colonial buildings. Plus, it’s the site of the annual Festival Sur le Niger – a lively music festival in the first week of February.

Ségou

Timbuktu

6. Timbuktu

The UNESCO World Heritage city of Timbuktu has long been a compelling place to outsiders, associated with beauty, learning and wealth. Sending a postcard with a Timbuktu stamp ranks high on the list of quirky travel experiences. Once the seat of a formidable empire this city has suffered many ups and downs, most recently the implementation of Sharia law and the destruction of some of its heritage.