The national airline is Air Algérie (AH) (website: www.airalgerie.dz).

None.

Algiers (ALG) (Houari Boumediène) is 20km (12 miles) east of Algiers. To/from the airport: Buses and trains operate to the city from 0600-1900 (journey time – 30 minutes). Taxis are also available. Facilities: Bank, bureau de change, left luggage, shops, post office, tourist information, restaurants and car hire.

Oran (ORN) (Es Senia) is 10km (6 miles) from the city. To/from the airport: Taxis are available to the city. Facilities: Bank, limited catering and car hire.

Annaba (AAE) (Les Salines) is 12km (7.5 miles) from the city. To/from the airport: A bus service departs to the city every 30 minutes. Coach service is available on request and taxis are also available. Facilities: Restaurant, bank and car hire.

Constantine (CZL) (Ain El Bey) is 9km (6 miles) from the city. To/from the airport: There are bus and taxi links with the city. Facilities: Limited.

Main ports: Algiers, Annaba, Béjaia, Oran and Skikda.

Regular shipping lines serve Algiers from Mediterranean ports. Algérie Ferries (website: www.algerieferries.com) runs passenger services connecting Algeria to Marseille (France) and Alicante (Spain).

There is one daily train connecting Algiers with Tunis in Tunisia via Constantine and Annaba. The train has a buffet car and couchettes and a reservation is required for this route. Another daily train runs between Algiers and Marrakech in Morocco. Stops en route are Oran, Fès, Mèknes, Rabat and Casablanca. Reservations are required and a supplement is charged. Air-conditioned coaches and light refreshments/buffet car are available. At present, services are interrupted owing to the closure of the border between Algeria and Morocco and through trains are not operating.

Owing to border closures, land crossings between Morocco and Algeria are not possible at present. The main road entry points are Maghnia (Morocco), Souk-Ahras, Tebessa and El Kala (Tunisia), Fort Thiriet (Libya), In Guezzam (Niger) and Bordj Mokhtar (Mali). There is a good network of paved roads in the coastal regions and paved roads connect the major towns in the northern Sahara. Further south, the only substantial stretches of paved roads are on the two trans-Saharan ‘highways’, one of which runs to the west through Reggane and up through Morocco to the coast, while the other runs through Tamanrasset and Djanet on its way to Ghardaia and Algiers. The precise route taken by trans-Saharan travellers often depends on the season. Please note that many desert ‘roads’ are up to 10km- (6-mile-) wide ribbons of unimproved desert and are suitable only for well-maintained 4-wheel drive vehicles.

Coach: Services are run by Altour (www.altour.com) and SNTF with international routes to Tunisia and Morocco.

Documentation: International Driving Permit required.

Air Algérie operates frequent services from Algiers domestic airport (adjacent to Algiers International) to the major business centres of Annaba, Constantine and Oran. Less frequent services run from Algiers, Oran, Constantine and Annaba to the other less important commercial centres and gateway oases such as Ghardaia (six hours from Algiers) and Ouargla, as well as important oil towns such as In Amenas and Hassi Messaoud. Services are generally reliable, but air travel to the far south may be subject to delay during the dry summer months because of sandstorms. Despite this, air is by far the most practical means of transport to the far south for the visitor with limited resources of time; Djanet and Tamanrasset are the oasis gateways to the Tassili N’Ajjer and the Hoggar, respectively.

Note: The London office of Air Algérie (tel: (020) 7487 5903) can provide a timetable of services and prices, make reservations and issue tickets. There is an Air Algérie office in every Algerian town which is served by the airline. Reservations and itineraries can be arranged from these offices, but as some of the more isolated offices are not connected by computer or fax reservations should be confirmed well in advance. Offices are very busy in the major towns.

Main ports: Algiers, Annaba, Arzew, Béjaia, Djidjelli, Ghazaouet, Mostaganem, Oran and Skikda.

Government ferries service the main coastal ports.

Algerian railways are run by the Société Nationale des Transports Ferroviaires (SNTF). Daily (but fairly slow) services operate in the northern part of the country between Algiers and Oran, Béjaia, Skikda, Annaba and Constantine. The southern routes connect once a day from Annaba to Tebessa via Souk Ahras, Constantine with Touggourt via Biskra (twice a day) and Mohammadia with Bechar.

Traffic drives on the right. Road surfaces are reasonably good. All vehicles travelling in the desert should be in good mechanical condition, as breakdown facilities are virtually non-existent. Travellers must carry full supplies of water and petrol. Travel by road (outside Algiers) in northern Algeria should be avoided, especially after dark.

Coach: Relatively inexpensive coaches, run by the SNTF, link major towns. Services are regular but this mode of travel is not recommended for long journeys, such as travel to the south from the coastal strip. Services leave from the coach stations close to the centres of Algiers and Oran.

Car hire: Can be arranged at the airport on arrival or in most towns. Many hotels can also arrange car hire.

Documentation: An International Driving Permit is required. A carnet de passage may be required. Cars are allowed entry for three months without duty. Insurance must be purchased at the border. Proof of ownership is essential.

Municipal bus and tram services operate in Algiers, its suburbs and the coastal area. 10-journey carnets and daily, weekly or longer duration passes are available. There are also two public lifts and a funicular which lead up to the hill overlooking the old souk in Algiers. An underground system is planned (still several years from completion), plus a new tramway with a multi-route system projected to carry upwards of 200,000 daily passenger trips.

Taxi: It is advised not to use public transport other than taxis recommended by established hotels. All taxis are metered and are plentiful in most cities and major towns, though busy during the early evening in the main cities as many people use them to return home after work. The habit of sharing a taxi is widespread. The amount on the meter is the correct fare, but there are surcharges after dark. Travellers are advised not to use unlicensed taxis, as these are likely to be uninsured.

The following chart gives approximate journey times (in hours and minutes) from Algiers to other major cities/towns in Algeria.

	Air	Road
Constantine	0.45	4.00
Ghardaia	0.55	6.00
Oran	0.50	4.00
Tlemcen	1.00	6.00