Africa > Mali > Highlights
Mali's highlights are extraordinary — some of the most compelling travel experiences in West Africa. The difficulty of getting to them is part of what makes them feel so remote and significant. Bear in mind that current security conditions affect access to several of these; check the latest advisories before planning a trip.
The Great Mosque of Djenné. The largest mud-brick building on earth, and one of the most striking pieces of architecture anywhere. The mosque dominates the island city of Djenné and its weekly Monday market. Built and rebuilt over centuries using the same earthen construction technique — wooden beams protrude from the walls, serving as a permanent scaffolding for annual replastering — it looks like something between a sandcastle and a cathedral. Non-Muslims are no longer permitted inside, but the exterior and the town around it are reward enough.
Dogon Country. The Bandiagara Escarpment stretches for some 200 kilometres across central Mali, a dramatic sandstone cliff face dotted with ancient cliff villages. The Dogon people built their homes here centuries ago, partly to evade slave raiders, and have maintained a culture — masked dances, complex cosmology, extraordinary wooden art — that has fascinated travellers and anthropologists alike. Hiking between villages over two or three days, staying in simple guesthouses on rooftops, is one of West Africa's great journeys. Access has become more complicated due to insecurity in the Mopti region; organised tours with local guides remain possible.
Timbuktu. The legendary city at the edge of the Sahara no longer welcomes independent travellers safely, but it retains extraordinary power as a place. The mud-brick mosques, the ancient manuscripts in private libraries, the sand slowly encroaching on the streets — it is all there, for those who can reach it. The traditional route was by river from Mopti, three days by pinasse through inland delta villages. Currently the situation requires serious security planning.
The Niger River. Mali's lifeline runs from the southwest to the northeast, broadening dramatically into an inland delta between Djenné and Timbuktu. Travelling the river by pinasse — the traditional long wooden motorised boats — is the most atmospheric way to see the country. Villages of mud houses, flocks of egrets and herons, fishermen casting nets: the river at dawn is as beautiful as anything in Africa.
Malian music live. Bamako has a live music scene that punches well above the city's weight. The Festival sur le Niger in Ségou (held in February along the river banks) is one of West Africa's best music festivals, drawing griots, kora players, and modern artists over several days. Even a single evening in a Bamako music bar — sitting outside with cold beer, listening to n'goni and djembe — justifies the journey.