The world is out: Libya is the latest travellers’ hotspot, and one of the last unspoilt places on the Mediterranean seaboard. Obscured from Western view for the last 30 years under the government of Colonel Mu’ammar Gaddafi, the country has recently begun courting international tourism. Ripe for discovery are Libya’s incredible hospitality, beautifull desertscapes, well-preserved classical ruins, prehistoric rock art and palm-fringed oases.
November to March for cooler temperatures-or during Libya’s golden age in the 2 nd century AD
Shopping in the bustling medina in Tripoli walking through the streets and souks of Benghazi Viewing the desert architecture and old city at Ghadhames Exploring the archaeological site at Leptis Magna, regarded as the best Roman site in the Mediterranean Visiting the preserved Greek city of Cyrene Hiking through the magnificent Jebel Akhdar mountains
Read Libyan-born and American-raised Khaled Mattawa’s lsmailia Eclipse, poetry that speaks across both cultural and political borders
Listen to Masoud, modern Libyan folkloric tunes
Watch Lion of the Desert by Libyan filmmaker Moustapha Akkad, about a Liban Guerilla soldier who tries to stop the invasion of ltalina troops during WWll
Eat cuscus bil-Bosla-coucous with lamb, beans and tomato; dolma mshakila-peppers and zucchinis stuffed with spiced, minced lamb; bilhout-spiced fish soup; delicious, sweet local dates
Drink sweet mint tea or the excellent local mineral water
Ahlaan wasahlaan (welcome)
Unesco world Heritage-listed sites; ancient Roman and Greek cities; beautiful resort towns; local souks and medinas; lslamic culture; historic mosques and hammams; gorgeous beaches; mud-brick desert architecture
Stunning oases nestled in the Saharan desert; Tuaregs-the blue men of the desert; the pottery market at Gharian
Libya’s not date palms and deserts, but if shifting sands and camel trains are your thing, lt’s got desert for days, and a quick jaunt down into the Fezzan will take you boldly where nomad has gone before. For a country that’s been all but swallowed by the Sahara, you’ll be surprised to see how pleasantly Mediterranean it can be.