What budget to travel Mauritania? Money and currency

What budget for activities and outings Mauritania?

In Mauritania, the immensity of the desert will be your playground! The Atlantic Ocean is also a magnificent counterpart to the Sahara, with its immense beaches and its designed coastline. If you like walking, hiking, trekking or camel trekking will make you a happy traveler.

Cash is the only form of payment possible in Mauritania for most of your purchases: at the market, in the cab, at the hostel, at the restaurant... With the exception of the rare luxury addresses which sometimes accept credit cards.

Currency. Please note that the obligation to declare all of your foreign currency upon entering Mauritania was abolished by circular N° 006/GR/98 issued by the Central Bank of Mauritania on July 27, 1998. If a customs officer should ask you to comply with this constraint, be firm and refuse. It is forbidden to take ouguiyas out of the country and, in any case, you will have great difficulty changing them upon your return. If you come to Mauritania from Mali or Senegal, you are not allowed to enter the country with CFA francs. The problem is therefore, on the one hand, to plan approximately the money needed for your stay before leaving, and on the other hand, not to convert too much of your currency into ouguiyas once you are in the country. The commission charged by Mauritanian banks to change your currency into ouguiyas is about 2%.

Banking. There are many bank branches in Nouakchott and many of them have recently been equipped with ATMs that accept Visa cards. In theory, there is no need to carry large sums of money with you... In practice, the commissions charged by European banks on withdrawals in Mauritania remain high (€4-5 per withdrawal), and importing cash to be exchanged locally remains the most economical solution. To change euros into ouguiyas, you will be strongly solicited in the street, around the central market. For large sums of money, prefer bank branches (Société Générale), where you will benefit from a better rate than in the street... but it all depends on the exchange rate.

Outside the capital, ATMs accepting Visa cards are available in Nouadhibou and Atar. Elsewhere, you will have to bring ouguiyas, because the exchange is not practiced there, or at not very advantageous rates, as it is the case in Rosso.

What budget to eat Mauritania?

It all depends on the standing of the establishment. You can have lunch or dinner of local dishes (or international dishes if you are in Nouakchott or Nouadhibou), between 250 and 400 MRU per plate. In the high-end hotels in the capital, you will have to count a little more. And even if, sometimes, some addresses seem to leave something to be desired at first sight, the service is always attentive, and you will always eat to your heart's content.

What is the budget for accommodation Mauritania?

Hotels. There are many hotels in Nouakchott and Nouadhibou. Apart from a few luxury hotels (but no international chain present), some small hotels are pleasantly surprising by their standing, not always so far from European standards. Outside the two main cities of the country, you will not find many hotels, but a lot of hostels of different levels of comfort.

Bed and Breakfast. Bed and breakfasts often offer the best value for money and allow you to stay directly with the locals, which allows more authenticity and more exchange with your hosts.

Hostels. Hostels constitute the majority of accommodation in Mauritania. They often offer several types of accommodation, in rooms or in tents, and thus adapt to most budgets and comfort requirements. They are very friendly places where people talk about their days and their little adventures over a glass of tea. The comfort is often spartan.

Campsites. There are relatively few campsites in Mauritania. They are often not financially interesting compared to the hostels, but some are located on the ocean and seduce by their exceptional setting.

Travel budget Mauritania and cost of living

Some price ideas:

A cab ride: 20 MRU on average (if shared cab).

A pack of cigarettes: from 70 MRU to 100 MRU depending on the brand.

A sandwich: 90 MRU.

A dish in a small restaurant: from 150 MRU to 200 MRU.

A bottle of water: 10 MRU (75 cl).

A liter of gasoline in Nouakchott: 43 MRU (38 MRU per liter of diesel).

A baguette, a chocolate bread, a croissant: 10 MRU.

If your trip is based on hotels with air-conditioned rooms and restaurants of an equivalent standard, it may cost you quite a bit of money, between 3,000 MRU and 5,000 MRU per day (or 70 € to 120 € per day). On the other hand, you can live well in Mauritania by spending only MRU 300 to MRU 1,200 (€7 to €30) per day, if you frequent small inns and neighborhood restaurants.

Getting around within the country is the most difficult problem to solve. If you rent a vehicle, it will have to be a 4x4 unless you only want to drive on paved roads, a prospect that is not very interesting. Renting a 4x4 with a driver costs about 3,500 MRU per day (around 85 €), not including fuel. The other solution is to travel within the country with local means of transport, collective cabs or even trucks. In this case, count on 80 MRU to 100 MRU per 100 km. However, beware of the lack of comfort of this solution (imagine a rusty Mercedes with 10 people on board), reserved for the most reckless for long journeys.