The golden dunes
Sand at the edge of the houses.
LBM1948 — CC BY-SA 4.0 · Trabelsiismail — CC BY-SA 3.0 · LBM1948 — CC BY-SA 4.0 · LBM1948 — CC BY-SA 4.0 · LBM1948 — CC BY-SA 4.0 · LBM1948 — CC BY-SA 4.0
Béni Abbès is an oasis in the Saoura valley of western Algeria, called the Pearl of the Saoura and the White Oasis. It stands on a rocky hill on the left bank of the seasonal Oued Saoura, with the Grand Erg Occidental around it on three sides, so houses and palms appear beneath tall golden dunes. Its name goes back to the Beni Abbes tribe, and the traveller El Ayachi mentions it in 1662. Sources say Mohamed Ben-Abdeslam built its ksar in the palm grove in 1605. The commune has seven ksars, the largest among the palms. More than 10,000 people lived here at the 2008 census. Charles de Foucauld lived here before Assekrem, and a chapel of his remains. You see golden dunes creeping to the edge of earth houses, with palms between sand and walls, in strong colours. From above, the valley shows its seasonal blue water crossing the long oasis to the south. The old ksar in the palm grove has narrow lanes, and visitors walk on the dunes at sunset. Béni Abbès is 165.3 km in a straight line south of Béchar and about 241 km by road. Foreign visitors to the south generally have to travel through an accredited Algerian agency and may have a police escort, so confirm current rules with the agency and the consulate. Winter is the best time, as heat can reach 45 °C in summer. Rare rains can flood the valley, so do not camp in it. Dress modestly in the ksar and ask before photographing residents.
Sand at the edge of the houses.
Seasonal water across the oasis.
Narrow lanes among the palms.
Béni Abbès commune, Saoura valley
About 241 km by road, so staying overnight is wise.
From October to March, as summer is fiercely hot.