Mali tourist information with details about travel
to and around the country. Where to stay and what to see is made easier with insider tips
and hand-selected Mali links, by dedicated editors and visitors to TravelNotes.org - The
Online Guide to Travel.
Countries neighbouring Mali are: Algeria,
Niger, Burkina Faso, Côte d'Ivoire, Guinea, Senegal and Mauritania.
Weather in Mali
View a graphical weather forecast for the week ahead in places around
Mali.
Bamako
Weather, Kita Weather, Timbuktu Weather.
In earlier times, Mali was the centre of the great empires of the
western Sudan: Ghana, Mali, and Songhai.
Djenné, Timbuktu, and Gao, were the focus of trade, religious
learning, and culture.
The empire of Mali reached its peak in the early 14th century under
Mansa Musa.
The Songhai Empire of Gao, took over, with kings Sunni Ali and
Askia Muhammad coming to the throne.
The great Songhai Empire was in turn crushed by a Moroccan invasion in
1591.
The Republic of Mali was a former French colony. Its capital is
Bamako.
Modern Mali was made part of the French colony of Haut-Senegal-Niger
in 1904, and in 1920 it became the French Sudan.
On January 17, 1959, the French Sudan joined with Senegal to form the Federation of Mali; which proclaimed its
independence on June 20, 1960.
The federation broke up in August. Senegal became a separate state,
and the former French Sudan kept the name of Mali.
The Dogon tribe, part of the large Mandingo population in
Mali, build their unique villages in cliffs and hilly areas.
Nomadic Tuaregs and other Berbers roam the Sahel and parts of the
Sahara. Some of the armed Tuaregs have been known to rob or kidnap travellers in the north
of Mali.
The official language of Mali is French, but the majority of the
population speak Bambara or other African languages.
Islam is the main religion of Malians, although some people still
follow traditional beliefs.
Mali Pages:
Directory of websites related to Mali.
Mali Web:
The latest from Mali - in French.
Mali by Road
About ten per cent of Mali's 18,000 km of roads are paved.
Mali by Rail
A railway links Koulikoro, Bamako, and Kayes with Dakar, in Senegal.
Mali by Boat
The River Niger, cutting an arc through the southern part of Mali, is
a valuable communication route; connecting the mysterious outpost of Timbuktu with Bamako.
Most of the River Niger, in Mali, is navigable by small steamboats
from July to January. During the rainy season it is also possible to travel down the
Senegal River from Kayes to Saint-Louis, on the Atlantic Ocean.
Mali by Air
Airlines and Airports:
International airports serve Bamako and Mopti. Air Mali is the state airline.
Although little more than a village when it was occupied by French
troops, in 1883, Bamako was an important centre of Muslim scholarship in the Mali Empire.
It became the capital of the colony of French Sudan in 1908 and
continued as the national capital of Mali in 1960.
Today it is the focus of Malian music, and some excellent bands are
staged at the Bamako Station Buffet.
Fatime's
Bed and Breakfast:
Located in the Badalabougou district of Bamako, Fatime's house offers simple rooms
equipped with fans and mosquito nets. There's also a living room, yard, shower and
bathroom.
Tuareg Nomads founded Timbuktu as a seasonal camp on the southern
edge of the Sahara around the year 1100.
Timbuktu became an important end station of trans-Saharan caravans and
a distribution point for trade along the upper Niger when it was part of the Mali Empire,
and a renowned centre of Islamic study in the Songhai Empire.
The city declined in importance after the Moroccans attacked, in 1591,
and commerce was diverted to other cities.
Timbuktu is still best reached by boat or camel; making getting
there something of an adventure in itself.
Saga Tours:
Mali-based tour operator, with experienced Malian guides who speak English, French and a
variety of local languages, offers sailing on the Niger River; camel caravans into the
Sahara; hiking the Bandiagara escarpment; Timbuktu, Dogon country, Djenne and Mopti.
Book Mali hotels online to save yourself time and money.
Hotels
in Mali:
Find hotels in Mali with special online rates.
Books
on Mali Travel:
Browse Amazon's best-selling list of books on travel in Mali.
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