Mali country facts and useful travel information for tourists visiting Mali, visa help available for Mali, Mali's climate, languages in Mali, history of Mali.

CAPITAL: Bamako

POPULATION: 12 million

LAND SIZE: 1.24 million sq km

BORDERS: Algeria, Burkina Faso, Ivory
Coast, Guinea, Mauritania, Niger, Senegal

LANGUAGES: French, Bambara

CURRENCY: West African CFA
1 Euro = 655 CFA (stable)
1 USD = approx. 400 CFA (variable)

SEASONS:
Cool (Oct - Feb)
Hot (April - Jun)
Wet (July-Sept)

UNESCO WORLD HERITAGE SITES:
Bandiagara Escarpment, Djenne,
Timbuktu

BEST KNOWN ARTISTS:
MUSIC:
Ali Farka Toure, Oumou Sangare, Salif
Keita, Amadou & Mariam, Habib Koite,
Rokia Traore, Toumani
Diabate,Tinariwen,... (too many to list!)

FILM:
Souleymane Cisse, Yeelen (1987),
Assane Kouyate, Kabala (2002),
Abderrahmane Sissako, Bamako (2006),
October (1993)

Visas are required for all visitors except
citizens of some West African and North
African countries.

An international yellow fever certificate is
required; other vaccinations may be
recommended.

U.S. citizens may obtain more information
and download a visa application online at:

Embassy of Mali
2130 R Street, N.W.
Washington, D.C.
202-332-2249
http://www.maliembassy.us

Canadian citizens:
www.ambamalicanada.org

EU citizens may contact their nearest
Malian Embassy.

Mali Experience Tours welcomes you to the beautiful
West African country of Mali - a country bursting
with authentic history, a safe and politically stable
country whose varied landscape is matched by the
diversity of its many ethnic groups who show
tolerance and respect for each other and a warm
hospitality for strangers: their smiles are the music
in their souls that washes away their daily
preoccupations and struggles.

Mali's founding father is Soundiata Keita. Its history
recounts grand empires such as the Empire of Mali
from the 12th to the 14th century; the Songhai
Empire and the founding of the great cities of Gao,
Timbuktu and Djenne in the 15th and 16th centuries;
and the epoch of the Bambara Kingdom of Segou
which stretched from the 17th century to the late
19th century. Mali gained independence from French
rule on September 22, 1960. Today, Mali is a
multi-party democracy and an increasingly popular
tourist destination.

In addition to the many tourist spots in Mali, with
Mali Experience Tours you will be able to take
advantage of unique opportunities, such as learning
African arts, meeting local villagers and village chiefs
or being initiated into a family of an ethnic group of
your choice through a special ceremony.

During your vacation with Mali Experience Tours, you
may also volunteer to plant a tree to help preserve
cultivable land against the advancing desert and give
a precious gift to Mali's environmental future, or join
one of our special tree-planting programs.

So, dear friends, we await your visit and invite you
to soak up the Malian traditions and culture!