Train Ride the Sahara: Mauritania’s Hidden Adventure

One of the world’s least-visited countries, Mauritania is home to a travel experience like none other, inviting daring travelers to embark on an unpredictable journey through the desert.

Mauritania Iron Ore Train on Sand

The desert nation of Mauritania attracts only around 30,000 visitors a year, making it one of the least visited countries in Africa and around the world. The country is not seen as a highly desirable travel destination due to the fact that it is only about 0.5% arable land and one of the least densely populated nations in the world. Mauritania is also one of the poorest countries worldwide, unable to provide the infrastructure required to accommodate more traditional forms of tourism.

However, Mauritania boasts a unique attraction that is rising in popularity among thrill-seeking travelers — a famous iron ore train. Its contents — the iron ore — account for half the country’s exports and are critical to its GDP. The train is known as “the Backbone of the Sahara,” due to its national and day-to-day significance in the lives of locals who rely on the train for personal transportation and its goods. The train is one of the longest in the world; the length of the car itself spans around 1.5 miles and the track stretches over 400 miles across the Sahara. Beginning in the mining town of Zouerat, the train stops again in Choum, where most travelers board. Then, across the next 17 hours, laden with iron ore, the train makes its way to the port city of Nouadhibou, where it empties and sets back to Zouerat. 

The train runs daily, but not on any sort of fixed schedule, requiring no bookings or tickets. It’s hardly a passenger vehicle, as only one of the three daily trains has a paid passenger car attached. Many climb aboard one of the cargo wagons and ride alongside the ore for free. 

The journey has been popularized in recent years by travel blogs and social media. The author of One Step 4Ward, Irish travel blogger Johnny Ward, has even begun to manage trips to Mauritania, leading groups on the train. Ward claims that he has completed the journey seven times, more than any foreigner on the planet. On his blog, he describes the expedition as difficult and cold but also as “one of the best travel experiences of your life.”

Another blogger, the author of Plug Me In Project, described the conditions of riding the train. They emphasize the importance of bringing goggles, gloves, a sleeping bag, a blanket and a face covering — necessary protections against the iron ore dust and frigid nightly temperatures. He wrote about the friendliness of the locals who showed him around the capital city upon arrival and guided him to the station. 

The blog Sophie’s World highlights the thrilling yet unpredictable nature of visiting Mauritania as a tourist.  She notes that it’s important not to make the journey alone, particularly as a female traveler. She also emphasizes the level of respect required for the locals in order to have an enjoyable experience. 

Mauritania is home to one of the most unique travel experiences that the world has to offer, for those who dare to embark on the journey of a lifetime.

Zoe Lodge is a student at the University of California, Berkeley, where she is studying English and Politics, Philosophy, & Law. She combines her passion for writing with her love for travel, interest in combatting climate change, and concern for social justice issues.