My contact in Djanet says the new system is not yet in place, but they are expecting the new visa regime to come into force sometime in January 2023, Inshallah!

More news from Le Pointe

From January 14, a simplified procedure for issuing an Algerian visa on arrival will be operational!

We will explain everything to you :
Instead of the ordinary formalities of visa applications, foreign travelers going to the Great South of Algeria, as part of a stay organized and supervised by an approved Algerian tourist agency, will be able to obtain a “regularization visa” upon their arrival at airports in the region.

This relaxation in the granting of visas for the Algerian Great South "is part of the measures taken by the public authorities to promote Sahrawi tourism", specified the Ministry of the Interior in its press release.

Someone told me it only applied to Schengen countries which of course now excludes Brexit Brits. Not sure where they saw that.
UK consulate visa page appears unchanged
https://www.algerian-consulate.org.u...isa-to-algeria
but that's not saying much.

Really, this is only of value to conventional fly-in tourism (safer and easily controlled) than the sweeping overlanding of old. Afaik, for the desert south the area of off-highway travel remains tiny (regions around Djanet and Tam).

And I would not be surprised if it only applied to airport arrivals. not land/port borders (as in RIM), even with an escort waiting. But we shall see.

I am very interesed to hear from you the steps that you took starting from the visa , the Almeira port procedure part + ferry Ticket agency or website you chose to your entry seaport process in Algeria...it is too much to ask but anything will help in my planning thanx..:thumbup1:

There are recent travel experiences inside of the wüschi forum. It is in german language, but the chrome browser is able to do a nexcellent translation beer

Surfy

Well spotted Surfy.
I see the Swiss couple in the Sprinter have not only managed to travel in the deep south unescorted, but they succeeded in slipping across from Djanet to Tam, a route that was supposedly closed to tourists last time I heard. No one's done that for years and years, though without an escort they could have roamed anywhere, within reason.
They look like long time Africa pros and I think may be heading out to RIM via Tindouf.
https://cantone-libero.ch/category/r...ika-2022-2023/

chris
I know few Algerian guys who did the crossing from Djanet to Tam on motorcycles. a groupe of 5 and a guy who did it solo all on 1200GS
They struggled a lot, but it is doable.
There is also a known Qatari traveler who did it on a smaller bike (I think a triumph 500?) but he was escorted throughout the whole journey in Algeria (high profile)
I’ve also heard that a section of the road has already been prepared for asphalt… but don’t know how much … my guess in few years it will be open and easy for all …
There has been a lot of progress and road development in the past few years,
One which is a new road RN 118 of approx 400km crossing the western erg between Elbenoud and Tinerkouk, this section has no pétrole station, no cell phone coverage…
Attachment 26583

Good to know people are getting out there and that southern checkpoints are letting them pass without escorts.
Once you are on the piste easy to roam anywhere (or there are few checkpoints).

You did your November tour (in other post) without escorts?
I would expect this to be possible on the 'Timimoun circuit'.
Heading further south, the trick would be getting out of In Salah; or maybe this is no longer an issue.
(I see the Swiss now past In Salah and heading towards Timimoun.)

The trap as always is the visa (for some nationalities).
The imminent Visa on Arrival is not like Morocco or Tunisia and still seems to comes with pre-conditions.
But once you have that by whatever means and they let you clear of a border with no escort, it does seem you're free to roam.

As a new regulation this does seem a little too good to be true; more like not bothered, as in the old days. It was the whole mass kidnapping saga of exactly 20 years ago which set it all back for independent tourism. And you do wonder in travel agencies are going to be reluctant to let things go back to pre-2003 freedoms.

Wrt Djanet-Tam road, I read from the Swiss account that from the east it has reached just beyond Serenout fort (now a big installation).
You can see the black tarmac on Bing Aerial; ESRI.
And from Ideles it goes NE before petering out (visible on Google Maps).

Things may have moved on in real time but between these two points is 120km of piste (verified Sept 2023), I do recall the terrain from Serenout around Telerteba mountain is lots of small sandy valleys; harder roadbuilding than out on the plane. It did take them 10 years to seal the 400km from Illizi to Djanet but as your photo shows, anything is possible!

More good info on checkpoints in southern DZ here:

Does anyone have any idea if the new VOA for southern Algeria will apply to the north? I get that you have to have a tour booked for the Djanet region and that you have to fly into Djanet. But what if you want to explore the north afterwards? Obviously you can't apply for a standard visa from within the country. Would you just not be allowed to leave Djanet with this new VOA?

Good question which I don't think everyone along the chain from ministry to tour ops to border officials and roadside checkpoints and online forums will have the same answer.
One way may be to do the north first then make your way down to Djanet, either by air or bus, for the latter with solid evidence that you have a tour booked in Djanet.
But up north doing so make take some nous/local language skills in dealing with checkpoints, depending on where you go.
That said, it's hard to think you will not be allowed to leave Djanet, easily done if your plane goes back via Algiers (not Djanet direct to Europe, as Le Point are now doing) and you do not have hold baggage.

I contacted an Algerian tour operator who attempted to answer some of my questions. This is what he said in regards to being able to visit the north on a VOA receieved in the south:

So apparently you have to prove that the majority of your trip will be in the south, not exclusively in the south. When asked if any potential visit to the north could be done independently after doing a tour of the south he responded with this:

So although you can visit the north independently with an ordinary visa, the VOA requires a tour that accounts for every single day of one's stay in Algeria, even if you intend to visit part of the north after visiting the south. I guess that's better than the VOA only allowing travel to Djanet...

By the way, does anyone know if visas still have to be applied for in one's country of residence? Or are they allowing tourists to apply from abroad yet? I am rarely ever in my country of residence, and when I am it's usually not for long enough time to apply for a visa. Hence why I'm especially interested in this new VOA system, even if I'd have to book a tour...

Thanks for finding that out - looks like a comprehensive answer.
May I ask who was the agency, Essendilene?

Did not fully realise there are still two types of visa - ordinary/old style apply at consulate - and new VoA.
Will the VoA require no interaction with one's consulate; straight from agency permissions to stamp on arrival at border?

I just looked again at https://www.algerian-consulate.org.uk.
Evidence of recent updates ('Ramadan 2023') but visa page looks the same as it did last time I went to Algeria and the years before that, with no mention of VoA.

The British FCO is typically behind the times (as mentioned elsewhere), or like us, does not fully feel confident in explaining the VoA system yet.
https://www.gov.uk/foreign-travel-ad...y-requirements
"Visas
Before you travel, you will need to get a visa from the Algerian Consulate in London. You can’t get a visa on arrival."

As I have read, this is all part of a plan ahead of introducing e-visas as much of the world uses now.

I have never known anyone who was able to apply for an Alg visa outside of their home country. I presume VoA could be different?
Other African nations have this requirement with travellers needing to DHL their docs back home to get a visa for onward travel.
Usually it is just an equivalent response to the similar demands of the country concerned.

Unlike the British FCO, the US Department of State has updated its Algeria page to include visa on arrival:

http://https://travel.state.gov/cont...s/Algeria.html

Though this video fits well here :



https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=twAP3buj9Og