Yefren

Yefren sits on the northern edge of the Jebel Nafusa, an Amazigh town whose old quarters are built in stone on the slope below the modern settlement, with underground olive presses cut into the rock, cisterns and the remains of a Jewish quarter including a synagogue, abandoned when the community left in the middle of the twentieth century. The escarpment gives a long view north over the coastal plain. The name is used for both the town and the surrounding district, which takes in a scatter of villages along the same stretch of escarpment.

What you actually see

• The old quarters - the stone settlement on the slope below the modern town.
• The rock-cut olive presses - the underground pressing chambers.
• The synagogue ruin - the remains of the town's Jewish quarter.
• The escarpment view - the coastal plain spread out to the north.

When to go

March to May and October to November are the comfortable months. Winter in the Nafusa is cold. Summer is hot and dry.

Honest expectations

The old quarters are largely ruined and unstable. Nothing is interpreted or maintained. Travel in Libya requires arrangements through a licensed operator.

Nearby

Gharyan is east, and Qasr al-Haj is southwest.