AÏR - TÉNÉRÉ TOUR in 7 or 8 DAYS by ARBRE DU TÉNÉRÉ

Agadez - Tiguidit - arbre du Ténéré

The Tiguidit Cliffs bear rock paintings from prehistoric cultures who vanished several thousand years ago; with the pre-islamic tombs and petrified tree trunks discovered in the same area, they powerfully evoke a very ancient past.
To avoid sinking into the soft sand, drivers let air out of the vehicles’ tires as soon as the ridges of the Ténéré Erg are in sight, long before you reach Arbre du Ténéré. The first giant dunes raise their proud profile against the sky just beyond this historic site.

Arbre du Ténéré - Areschima sud - Arakao

Heading north, the road zigzags among trackless dunes; as the 4WDs wind their way around the huge sand hills, leaving faint tire marks that vanish with the first breeze, travellers feel as lost as in the middle of an uncharted sea.
To the left, the massive Takolokouzet challenges the dunes’ march toward the western horizon. At the junction between sand and rock lies a ten-kilometer-wide crater shaped like a crab claw: Arakao. Through a gaping wound in its side, a gigantic dune leads the desert’s assault against the proud mountain.

Illekane - Izane - Adrar Chiriet

In every direction, sand waves roll toward the horizon, sometimes crashing against islands of blue and white marble. Gold, silver and pink dunes nurture delicate flowers and capture light tracks that hint of a secret life amazingly well adapted to its harsh environment.
The multicolored Ifiniyane Dunes rush up against Adrar Chiriet, a dark volcanic outcrop fantastically eroded by blowing sand.

Puits de Tezirzek - dunes de Temet

Near Tezirzek Well, a hill covered with rock paintings evokes the rich fauna that roamed the Ténéré when the desert still bloomed. All those species have disappeared, along with the cultures whose life depended on them.
Almost completely blocked by sand, the tricky Temet Pass leads to the highest dunes of the Ténéré, of the whole world, perhaps: forbidding sand walls more than 300 meters high in places. Mount Gréboun towers another thousand meters above them.

Temet - Iférouane

After this journey to the kingdom of sand and silence, we reenter the world of the living through Iférouane. This rather large lowland oasis is dotted with well-tended, shadowy gardens; there we meet traditional metalsmiths and craftsmen.

Assodé - Timia

Tales of the flourishing past of'Assodé abound. The ancient capital of the Aïr is now a ghost town where only a few walls still stand, but pottery shards strewn all over the site testify to its once thriving economy.

Bright green against the ochre expanse of sand, the Timia oasis offers a striking contrast to the somber lava range that surrounds it. Kel Oui farmers still water their gardens with the wooden pulleys used by their ancestors. They raise corn, wheat, a wide variety of vegetables, even grapes.

Downstream from Timia, a lovely waterfall cascades through a series of basins toward the guelta.

Elméki - Dabaga - Azel - Agadez

Arid moonscapes and emerald-green oasis, volcanic pillars and well-tended gardens, light-footed gazelles and flowering acacia trees: on this stretch of track, contrasts and surprises abound, to the unending delight of the traveller. In Elméki, Tuaregs still extract tin from ancient cassiterite mines. The road to Agadez goes through Azel, a charming village of settled Tuareg farmers and herdsmen


PRICE per person for a group of 7 or more starting from Agadez :

- 8 days = 640 Euros (4.200 FF) per person
- 7 days = 565 Euros (3.700 FF) "
- 6 days = 520 Euros (3.400 FF) " (Temet Pass excluded)

Prices include:
* 4WD vehicles and fuel
* drivers, guide and cook
* full board, cookware, tableware and one foam mattress per person
* local taxes and route approval (required for desert travel)

Prices do not include:
* drinks and personal expenses
* plane tickets and airport taxes
* food and lodging in Agadez
* travel insurance (trip cancellation, lost luggage, emergency return for health reasons)
NOTE: these prices apply to the 2001/2002 season, save for an abnormal rise in local prices.

DESERT TRAVEL IS NEVER DULL. EXPECT THE UNEXPECTED