Timgad

Timgad, spread across the highlands of northeastern Algeria at the edge of the Aurès mountains, is one of the best-preserved Roman cities anywhere, a UNESCO World Heritage site often called the Pompeii of North Africa. Founded by the Emperor Trajan around 100 AD as a colony for army veterans, it was laid out on a perfect grid, and time and desert sands have preserved it remarkably: paved and rutted streets, the elegant Arch of Trajan, a fine theatre still used today, a forum, temples, baths, a library and thousands of homes stretch across the plain. To walk its ancient streets is to experience the ideal of a Roman town made astonishingly real.

What you actually see

• The Arch of Trajan - the elegant ceremonial Roman arch.
• The grid streets - the perfectly preserved paved city grid.
• The theatre - the fine Roman theatre in the hills.
• The forum and baths - the temples, forum, library and bathhouses.

When to go

Spring and autumn, roughly March to June and September to November, are ideal for exploring the extensive open ruins in mild highland weather, avoiding the hot summer and cold winter of the Aurès plateau. The clear light of these seasons is perfect for the honey-coloured stone and long colonnaded streets.

Honest expectations

Timgad is a large, open archaeological site with little shade, so exploring its streets and monuments takes time and sun protection, and it lies inland well away from the coast. As one of the best-preserved Roman cities on earth, a UNESCO World Heritage textbook of ancient town planning complete with arch, theatre and forum, though, Timgad is an extraordinary and rewarding site.

Nearby

The Roman ruins of Lambaesis and the Aurès mountains lie in the region.