Qualla: Atar: The Traveler's Gateway https://qualla.com/atar en-us © 2026 Bendyline Wed, 08 Jul 2026 02:40:09 GMT Qualla serial false Qualla support@bendyline.com yes https://qualla.com/_res/siteimages/rsslogo.png Qualla: Atar: The Traveler's Gateway https://qualla.com/atar Atar: The Traveler's Gateway: Introduction https://qualla.com/atar/ There is a railway in Mauritania that hauls iron ore across the Sahara in a train so long - sometimes over three kilometers from end to end - it can take twenty minutes to pass, and for the price of nothing at all you can ride it. You climb into an open ore wagon at Nouadhibou, settle onto the cold black dust, and rattle through the desert night until the train pauses at Choum. There, a scrum of bush taxis and pickups waits to carry you the rest of the way to Atar. It is one of the great rough journeys left on the planet, and Atar is where it delivers you.

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]]> Sun, 14 Jun 2026 00:00:00 GMT https://qualla.com/_m/e/e/w/s/atar-wk/eews-atar-the-travelers-gateway-intro.mp3 0:06 1 full Atar: The Traveler's Gateway: Why Travelers Come Here https://qualla.com/atar/ Atar is a working Saharan town of around 35,000, and most visitors treat it as exactly what it is - a base camp. It is cheaper, generally, than nearby Chinguetti, well stocked with places to sleep, and blessed with both an airport and a regional hospital, which is why it keeps gr...

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]]> Sun, 14 Jun 2026 00:00:00 GMT https://qualla.com/_m/e/e/w/s/atar-wk/eews-atar-the-travelers-gateway-why-travelers-come-here.mp3 0:06 2 full Atar: The Traveler's Gateway: Getting In https://qualla.com/atar/ There are three ways to arrive, in roughly descending order of comfort. You can fly into the airport. You can take the fast paved highway up from the capital, Nouakchott, on a minibus or bush taxi - one of them famously run by a kindly French expatriate - leaving from the Garage ...

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]]> Sun, 14 Jun 2026 00:00:00 GMT https://qualla.com/_m/e/e/w/s/atar-wk/eews-atar-the-travelers-gateway-getting-in.mp3 0:06 3 full Atar: The Traveler's Gateway: Getting Around https://qualla.com/atar/ Atar is small enough to walk, and wandering its streets on foot is the easiest way to get a feel for the place - though some of the auberges and resorts sit well out of the center, so you may need wheels for the last stretch. Taxis gather around the traffic circle in the middle o...

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]]> Sun, 14 Jun 2026 00:00:00 GMT https://qualla.com/_m/e/e/w/s/atar-wk/eews-atar-the-travelers-gateway-getting-around.mp3 0:06 4 full Atar: The Traveler's Gateway: Sleeping and the Lone Cold Beer https://qualla.com/atar/ For a town its size, Atar offers a generous spread of auberges, hotels, and desert resorts, so finding a bed is rarely a problem. Mauritania is a dry country in the alcoholic sense as much as the climatic one, which makes one address worth remembering: the Auberge Bab Sahara, whe...

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]]> Sun, 14 Jun 2026 00:00:00 GMT https://qualla.com/_m/e/e/w/s/atar-wk/eews-atar-the-travelers-gateway-sleeping-and-the-lone-cold-beer.mp3 0:06 5 full Atar: The Traveler's Gateway: Heading Out https://qualla.com/atar/ The real reward of Atar lies in the day trips that radiate from it. At the Garage, the market, or your hotel, you can arrange bush taxis, 4x4s, or even rent a bike to reach the surrounding wonders - and if you simply wander into the market looking adventurous, drivers will find y...

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]]> Sun, 14 Jun 2026 00:00:00 GMT https://qualla.com/_m/e/e/w/s/atar-wk/eews-atar-the-travelers-gateway-heading-out.mp3 0:06 6 full