Mali Tourism - Travel to Mali
Mali is a landlocked country in West Africa. The capital is Bamako.
| Flag | |
 | |
| Quick Facts | |
| Capital | Bamako |
| Government | republic |
| Currency | Communaute Financiere Africaine franc (XOF); note - responsible authority is the Central Bank of the West African States |
| Area | total: 1.24 million sq km water: 20,000 sq km land: 1.22 million sq km |
| Population | 11,340,480 (July 2002 est.) |
| Language | French (official), Bambara 80%, numerous African languages |
| Religion | Muslim 90%, indigenous beliefs 9%, Christian 1% |
| Table of contents |
Regions in Mali
Mali is divided into eight official regions:
Map of Mali
Cities in Mali
Other destinations - Travel to Mali
Mali has three UNESCO World Heritage Sites: Cliffs of Bandiagara, Djenne, and Timbuktu.
Understand Mali Tourism
The Sudanese Republic and Senegal became independent of France in 1960 as the Mali Federation. Senegal withdrew after only a few months, and the Sudanese Republic was renamed Mali. Just under half the population is less than 15 years old. The great majority of Malians are Muslim, some also practice indigenous beliefs, and a tiny number are Christian.Mali is among the poorest countries in the world-- 65% of its area is desert or semi-desert. Economic activity is concentrated in the area irrigated by the Niger River. About 10% of the population is nomadic, but most Malians work in farming and fishing.
Get into Mali
You should have an international vaccination card showing immunization against yellow fever.
Travel to Mali By Plane
Air France has every day a flight to Mali (Paris - Bamako). There are also smaller companies like Point Afrique or African airlines which are often cheaper than Air France, but fly less frequent. These airlines also have direct connections to Mopti.
Travel to Mali By Train
There's just one Train - Line between Bamako (Capital) and Dakar (Capital of Senegal).
Travel to Mali By car
There are several ways to get to Mali by car. From Europe one has to cross the straits of Gibraltar, Morocco, Western Sahara and Mauritania . The problem is, the region of Western Sahara is not secure. To get to Mauritania is only possible with a military convoy. The next problem are the mine - fields, so maps, where are the mines are indicated are STRONGLY recommended. An other option is to ship the car and collect it at the local sea port. For example in Dakar (Senegal). There are no asphalted roads which leads into Mali so a 4x4 is strongly recommended.
Travel to Mali By Bus
Not possible
Travel to Mali By Boat
Mali has no coastline.
Get around in Mali
Mali Tourism By Bus
The main cities along the asphalted road into the north are connected via bus (Bamako, San, Segou, Mopti, Gao). There are several different companies but they all do have the same prices. Normally a ride to Mopti (600km, half the way up), endures approximately seven hours, a ride to Gao up to 12. It is not improbable that the bus brakes down and needs an repair or stops to help another bus out. It's possible to make a reservation several days before, which is recommended during the tourist season.
By taxi brousse
To get around one can take the "Taxi - Brousse", the bush taxis. They are the main connections between the towns which aren't connected via bus. They are very slow and they sometimes brake down or stop to help an other broken down taxi out. So sometimes the ride takes longer than expected.
Mali Tourism By Car
To get around by car a 4x4 is strongly recommended. There is just one road made of asphalt which leads into the North of the country (Bamako, Kayes, Segou, San, Mopti, Gao). There are private persons who rent their 4x4 car's for a ride.
Mali Tourism By plane
There are plane connections between Bamako, Mopti and Timbuktu. The planes are old Russian Aeroflot ones. Fast but, compared to a bus ride, expensive. As Mopti lies between Bamako and Timbuktu the planes are sometimes full when boarded in Mopti.
Mali Talk
French is the official language, but Bambara is spoken by 80% of the population, along with numerous other African languages.Abroad the bigger cities there are really few people who speak French, even Bamabara gets rare in some regions. Conversation in English is only possible with whites.
Buy
Eat - Travel to Mali
Drink
The water is usually not clean. Only drink bottled water, where you can see the CO2 bubbles when opened. Coca Cola is usually a good choice because it's absolutely clean. If one gets infected by polluted water, usually after one or two weeks diarrhea is coming. There are also street vendors, which sell for example ginger drinks, which are made at home. They are "bottled" in little plastic bags. They are usually very sweet but tasteful. Which is also widely sold is sweet milk, which is also "bottled" in the same way. The advantage of the milk is, that it is normally clean because they are industrial filled.
Sleep - Mali Tourism
Learn
Work
Stay safe - Mali Tourism
Stay Healthy While You Travel to Mali
Stay away from dirty food and water. To the rule "cook it peel it or forget it" should be payed attention. Also water should only be drunk out of sealed bottles or after it is sterilized through boiling or chemical utensils. The food is another issue. It's sometimes difficult to know if it's cooked long enough. Also the, to Westerners, unusual spices are sometimes the cause for sickness, especially diarrhea. Also expect little stones in the meal (teeth!). For the traveller the main danger is diarrhea. If diarrhea is acute, the best medicine is to rest and to eat and drink much. During the illness the body loose a lot of water and salt. With Coca Cola (sugar and water) and pretzel sticks (salt), which are available everywhere, usually one is after one or two days again on top. There are also instant powders available which have the amount of glucose and salts which are needed.
Respect
The greetings are very important. One should learn the greetings in French, better Bambara. Even if one wants to buy fruits or a bread, the vendors should be greeted in a proper way. It's very important to show a general interest in the other person, so it should be asked after the family, the work, kids, and so on. The answer is simple: always "ca va" (everything is okay). The other must not answer in a negative way! Example: "Bonjour (good morning), ca va (how are you)?" "Et la familie?" (...and the familie?) "Et les enfants?" (...and the kids?) "Et la travaille?" (...and your job?) ...Contact
External Links for Mali Tourism
- The Mali Embassy in the United States http://www.maliembassy.us/new_site/index.htm seems to have more consistent connectivity than actual government sites in Mali.
