Tindouf Military Campement — Trans-Saharan Western Gateway Stopover

Tindouf is the staging city for any westbound Saharan piste into the Grand Western Erg, and this campement — attached to or adjacent to the town’s gendarmerie and military infrastructure — is where overland convoys register, sort paperwork, and bed down before heading south or east. It’s a hardpan dirt lot situation: bring your own shade, water, and fuel margin. Expect military check-ins, passport photocopies, and convoy escorts being arranged here. Not luxurious by any measure, but it’s real, it’s the only game in town, and it’s where the piste genuinely starts.

Tindouf requires permits and military escort for southbound desert travel — confirm with the Algerian consulate before arrival. Fuel up here; next reliable station is hundreds of kilometers away. Road into town is paved from Béchar; condition holds. Cell signal is surprisingly present in town, dead in the erg.

Sahara's western launch pad — paperwork starts here.