Life has flourished for centuries in Algeria’s Saharan oases — home to some of North Africa’s most striking architecture. One of the most rewarding to visit is Timimoun, located in the north on the shores of an immense sand sea of over 23,000sq miles. It’s nicknamed La Rouge (‘the(fortified towns) with distinctive pastel-coloured dwellings. These citadels have been recognised by UNESCO for their ‘exceedingly original architecture’ and for conserving ‘practically the same way of life and the same building techniques since the 11th century’.
