Festival of the Desert Tour

( 12 Days / 11 Nights ) - Tour Package

Travel Packages Festival of the Desert Tour

Destination Covered

Bamako-Segou-Mopti-Djenne-Dogon Country-Timbuktu festival

Package Cost : 2290.00 USD

Package Tour Detail

January 30, 2009: Arrive in Bamako International flight arrives in Bamako. You will be met, assisted and transferred to your hotel. Hote Wassulu or similar

January 31, 2009: Bamako
Today you will explore this capital city of Bamako situated on the Niger, one of Africa\'s great rivers. Mali is a country of many tribal peoples, each with your own exuberant styles of clothing and jewelry. There is nowhere better to see this colorful diversity than in the streets and markets of Bamako. Bamako has a large art and craft centre where sculptors, weavers, leather workers, jewelers and metal workers exhibit their wares and skills.
You will visit the Grand Marché, or \'Great Market\', where you can spend hours exploring the hundreds of stalls. From carvings and cassettes, to fabrics, beads, brass and gold, the variety of goods is staggering. One area of the market is devoted entirely to traditional African medicines. Here you\'ll find the freshly shrunken heads of birds, monkeys and crocodiles, along with lizard skins and other gruesome treatments. Accommodation at Hotel Wassulu or similar. Includes: (B).

January 1, 2010: Bamako / Segou
Breakfast, then drive to Segou, Mali\'s second largest city and former colonial administrative center; admire the beautiful Sudanese-style colonial architecture, visit the port, the pottery market, traditional weavers and other artisans. Overnight in Segou. Accommodation at Independence Hotel or similar. Includes: (B).

January 2, 2010: Dogon Country
Drive to Dogon Country, considered one of the most extraordinary places on earth. Built up high on the narrow ledges of the cliffs are the villages of the Dogon people. In the 11th century, the Dogons fled the advancing Arabs coming from the north, and found shelter in one of West Africa\'s most inhospitable areas. This is such a unique place that the United Nations has declared it a World Heritage site. Visit the village of Songo, renowned for its rock paintings and circumcision grotto Overnight at Hotel Guina or similar. Accommodation at Hotel Guina. Includes: (B), (L), (D).

January 3, 2010: Dogon Country
Continue tour of Dogon Village. The Dogons are animists, worshipping their ancestors and the spirits of nature. Having preserved their traditions down through the centuries, they are considered to be one of the most original civilizations of West Africa. Today’s sightseeing involves walking over rough ground to visit some of the villages, and fairly steep and rough paths have to be negotiated. Experience the authentic traditional Dogon Mask Dance. Early evening drive to Bandiagara for overnight. Accommodation at Cheval Blanc or similar. Includes: (B), (L), (D).

January 4, 2010: Dogon / Dejenne / Mopti
Drive to Djenne, Timbuktu\'s ancient sister-city on the Niger; visit Djenne on its weekly market day, when Djenne is at its colorful best; see the magnificent Grand Mosque, the largest mud brick architecture in the world and one of UNESCO’S World Heritage sites; Return to Mopti for overnight. Accommodation at Hotel Konaga Or similar. Includes: (B).

January 5, 2010: Mopti
Mopti city tour (you will see the fascinating mix of Malian cultures: Bambara, Bobo, Bozo, Dogon, Fulani, Tuareg, Songhaï and Hausa): visit the beautiful mosque, the fishing port and the bustling market, where you can shop for gold or silver jewelry, Tuareg leatherwork, or Fulani blankets of cotton or wool. Overnight in Mopti. Accommodation at Kanaga Hotel Or similar. Includes: (B).

January 6, 2010: Mopti / Timbuktu
This morning take an early flight to legendary Timbuktu. Located at the terminus of the great trans-Saharan caravan route, Timbuktu became fabulously wealthy in the 16th century. Loaded with blocks of salt and other trade goods, huge convoys of camels would spend weeks crossing the unforgiving Sahara to reach Timbuktu. It was here that they would trade salt, pound-for-pound, with African merchants bringing gold and ivory along the Niger from the heart of Africa.
Wander the dusty streets of Timbuktu, admiring such magnificent mud-brick structures as the Djinguiraiber Mosque, the Mosque of Sankore, and the Palace of Bouctou. See the houses of the various 19th century European explorers who used Timbuktu as a base. Accommodation at Hendrina Khan Hotel or similar. Includes: (B).

January 07,08,09, 2010: Festival in the Desert
Drive to Essakane and enjoy 3 days of world music, dancing, camel races and other activities. Meals prepared by private chef. Accommodation in Private tents. Includes: (B), (L), (D).

January 10, 2010: Return to Timbuktu and fly to Bamako for departure or extended tour begins. Includes: (B).

Day Wise Breakup

Day 1 - Sat January 2nd 2010 Bamako

Arrive in Bamako International flight arrives in Bamako. You will be met, Assisted and transferred to your hotel. Grand Hotel or similar.

Day 2 - Sun January 3rd 2010 Bamako-Mopti

Breakfast and drive to “Mopti” which means in Fulani ‘meeting point” is Considered as the “melting pot “of Mali because of the numerous ethnics which live in perfect social cohesion: bozo, Bambara, Fulani, touareg, dogon, soninkes. That fact gives the city a harmonious life, arrival and Free afternoon, overnight at Ambedjele Hotel or a Similar.

Day 3 - Mon January 4th 2010 Mopti

Breakfast and Mopti city tour (you will see the fascinating mix of Malian Cultures: Bambara, Bobo, Bozo, Dogon, Fulani, Tuareg, Songhai and Hausa): we will begin our visit by the mosque built in 1930 similar to the one of Djenne with the same architecture. Then we will continue to the handicraft center with the market where you could discover many local condiments. Lunch in the Bar Bozo; visit the fishing port which is one of the noisiest places in the day of market by the flow of local boats full of goods for selling. Local boat to Visit of some bozo villages to see how they dry fishes as fish is every one concern in Mopti at the over side of the river Niger and then to overlook to photograph the sunset, Overnight in the Ambedjele Hotel.

Day 4 - Tue January 5th 2010 Mopti - Dogon Country

Breakfast and Drive to Dogon Country, considered one of the most extraordinary places on earth. Built up high on the narrow ledges of the cliffs are the villages of the Dogon people. In the 11th century, the Dogons fled the advancing Arabs coming from the north, and found shelter in one of West Africa's most inhospitable areas. This is such a unique place that the United Nations has declared it a World Heritage site. Visit the village of Songo, renowned for its rock paintings and circumcision grotto, inuation to Sangha, arrival and visit of Ogol Up and Down to discover the Hogon, the Toguna and Overnight at Hotel Guina or similar, (B) Hotel Guina.

Day 5 - Wed January 6th 2010 Dogon Country

Breakfast and trekking down to discover some Dogon Villages, The Dogons are animists, worshipping their ancestors and the spirits of nature. Having preserved their traditions down through the centuries, they are considered to be one of the most riginal civilizations of West Africa. Today’s sightseeing involves walking over rough ground to visit some of the villages, and fairly steep and rough paths have to be negotiated. Experience the authentic traditional Dogon Mask Dance. Early evening drive to Bandiagara for overnight.(B,L,D) Cheval Blanc or similar.

Day 6 - January 7th, 8th, 9th 2010 Dogon Country – Timbuktu Festival

Breakfast in the early morning then drive to Timbuktu , departure from Dogon Country to reach the legendary city of Timbuktu, the city of 333 holy, the mysterious city or the doorway to the desert founded around the 11 th century by the touareg Imagcharen. In Timbuktu the tradition says: “gold comes the south, salt comes from the north, money comes form occident, but the peeches of God, holy things, wonderful stories can be found only in Timbuktu. The 6 th administrative capital of Mali, Timbuktu attracts many tourists who like to discover an exceptional cultural heritages, adventure landscape and fabulous histories of the city. Timbuktu has maintained many ancient monuments you will walk through street to see the buildings, arrival at Timbuktu and continuation to Essakane and enjoy 3 days of world music, dancing, camel races and other activities. Meals prepared by private chef. (Daily B, L, D) Accommodation in Private tents.

Day 7 - January 7th, 8th, 9th 2010 Dogon Country – Timbuktu Festival

Day 8 - January 7th, 8th, 9th 2010 Dogon Country – Timbuktu Festival

Day 9 - Sun January 10th 2010 Timbuktu- Mopti

Breakfast and drive to Timbuktu for a city tour (the mosques, the old city, explorers’ houses, the manuscript centre) and tinuation to Mopti,narrival and overnight at Ambedjele Hotel or a Similar.

Day 10 - Mon 11th 2010 Mopti – Djenne

After breakfast drive to Djenne the city classified as World Heritages because of its architecture. The city considered as the twin of Timbuktu because of its attachment on Islam. Founded around the 10th century by Soninkés, a religious city considered as one of the oldest city in Africa. The visit of children learning in Coranic School is worthy. Djenne is very famous by its colourful market and the biggest mud monument in the world. Arrival and visit of the Monday market of Djenne considered as one of the most colourful market in West Africa due to its typical African products, in the afternoon visit of the mosque and overnight at the hotel Campement.

Day 11 - 12th 2010 Djenne – Ségou

Breakfast, then drive to Ségou, Mali's second largest city and former colonial administrative centre; Visit of San on the way; the capital of Bobo land, an ethnic very attached to its culture as they are animists, arrival in Ségou and admire the beautiful danese-style colonial architecture, visit the port, the pottery market, traditional weavers and other artisans, Overnight in Ségou, (B) Independence Hotel or similar.

Day 12 - 13th 2010 Ségou - Bamako

Breakfast and departure Bamako the capital city of Mali by the way visit of Sekoro a Bambara village the capital the capital of the former Bambara kingdom to see the king vestibule, its tomb and the mosque continuation to explore this capital city of Bamako situated on the Niger, one of Africa's great rivers. Mali is a country of many tribal peoples, each with your own exuberant styles of clothing and jewellery. There is nowhere better to see this colourful diversity than in the streets and markets of Bamako. Arrival and you will visit the Museum which shows the traditional local status, archeological discovering in Djenno-Djenne and the xtile of Mali. Continuation to the handicraft center to discover the status, jewel, blankets of our different ethnics, the big market and the pink market with its multicolor objects (the bazin clothes with its different design and bogolan clothes and others kinds worthy to see).After the visit of the city; transfer to the hotel for the departure.

Package Includes

8 nights of hotel accommodation (double occupancy) and breakfast.
3 nights of Tuareg tents accommodation during the festival.
Ground transportation in an air condition 4WD vehicle to all listed sites.
Full board pension prepared on the festival site ( 3 breakfast, 3 lunch, and 3 dinner).
Mineral water.
Camel ride on the festival dunes.
An experienced English - speaking guide.
Dogon mask dance.

Contact Detail

Balanzan Tours

Contact Person :- Mr Coulinaly
Baco Djicoroni, , Mali

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