Lompoul Desert

The Lompoul desert covers a small area of orange sand dunes between Dakar and Saint-Louis, isolated from the Sahara proper and surrounded by scrub and villages. It is only about eighteen square kilometres, which means you can walk across it, but the dunes are high enough and the sand orange enough that photographs look like somewhere far larger. Camps of Mauritanian-style tents operate among the dunes, and the standard visit is an overnight with a sunset climb and a camel ride.

What you actually see

• The orange dunes - high sand ridges in a small isolated field.
• The tented camps - Mauritanian-style tents set among the dunes.
• The sunset climb - walking up a dune for the light at the end of the day.
• The night sky - clear dark skies with no settlement light nearby.

When to go

November to March is dry, cool at night and the most comfortable. The harmattan can fill the air with dust between December and February. Summer heat makes the dunes punishing.

Honest expectations

It is small, and knowing that in advance prevents disappointment: this is a dune field, not a desert. Camps vary a lot in quality and the better ones book out. Quad bikes churn the sand and are a source of friction with people who came for the quiet.

Nearby

The Dakar-Saint-Louis road passes nearby, and Lac Rose is south towards Dakar.