Camping

Free Camping:

if you have your own camping gear and you prefer to camp free (away from camping sites), then there will be no costs involved. Sleeping in the Sahara amid sand dunes and under a quilt of dazzling stars is absolutely free, and also amazing if you have a mythical background about the sky.  Several travel guides recommend to use this method at least once or twice, as it is an experience unlikely you will encounter elsewhere. However, desert winter months are very cold at night, and can drop below freezing point (between November and February), and therefore if you are travelling during this period, a good tent and heavy sleeping bags are needed. The recommended time for travel across the desert is between October and April, and most tours to the Acacus region do not take place between the end of May and August.

 

Camping Sites:

Permanent camp sites are available in several places. Most tour operators provide tents, sleeping bags and mattresses; although bringing your own sleeping bag is more hygenic in our opinion. These camps consist of thatched huts with shared shower facilities, a kitchen, small resturant, fold up tables, and electricity source for your campervan. Some reports stressed the need that these camps are used only when necessary to reduce the strain put on local water resources. Be prepared to experience some fly and mosquito nuisance, locally reduced by fire-smoke, leaving light on, eating raw garlic or using nets. This is part of the Sahara's wild life, as preserved in the local name "Waw an-Namus" or "Waw al-Namous", which means 'oasis of mosquitos', due to the small lakes around the extinct volcano.

 

 

Tekerkiba is an excellent camping site at the entrance of the Ubari lakes region.

 

Camping Sites:

There are several camping sites nearby, including:

• Fezzan Park (Sabha)
• Fezzan Camping (Tekerkiba)
• Tekerkiba Tourist Camping (Tekerkiba)
• Camping Africa Tours (Tekerkiba)
• Wat Wat Camp (Ubari)
• Germa Camp (Germa)
• Eirawan Camping (Germa)
• Timbuktu Camp (Germa)
• Al-Faw Camp (al-Uwaynat)
• Rifaq as-Sahara (Ghat)
• Sergio Camp (Acacus)
• Dar Awis (Acacus)
• Waw al-Kabir

 

 

Camping Guidelines:

 

• Please Remember not to leave any rubbish behind and do not burry it; only bury your own waste where there is no toilet.
• Tins, plastic, batteries, glass, tampons, condoms and other artificial material should be taken back to camping sites for proper disposal or to the nearest village or town. If you see members of your tour operator abusing this convention, do not feel embarrssed to remind them. Some tourists minimize this by taking their own supplies in reusable containers.
• Not many people know why water bottles are shaped the way they are (with lines and grooves across them); these lines are designed for squashing the bottle to a fifth of its original size, as follows: remove the top, place your hand under the bottle, then push the top of the bottle all the way down and immediately replace the top (the lid) befor ereleasing it to prevent air going back in. Like this you will end up with much less rubbish to carry back.
• Do not take wood from living trees, only use dead wood found about, and therefore it is a good idea to collect good wood during your day travel to use at night, rather than wait until dark and then start looking for wood in the desert.
• Do not pour water over prehistoric paintings in order to bring their colour out for good photos, as has been reported, and do not scratch, sign or autograph your name near the painting. Free software is available online which allows one to retouch photos with one click. Do not break any peices to sell online.

 

 

Camping Fees

Camping away from camping sites is free. Camping in camping sites involves paying small fee. If you have booked your holiday with a Libyan tour operator, then these fees are often included in the final price.

• Thatched hut = €6 per a person
• Setting up own tent = €3
• Parking vehicle & connecting it to electricity source = €6