Best Tourist Places to Visit in Ghat, Fezzan, Libya, Northern Africa, Africa
Ghat is a city and the administrative centre of Ghat District in the Fezzan region of the Northern African country, Libya. Located in the southwestern part of the nation, Ghat is a renowned tourist destination, mainly famous for its prehistoric rock paintings and mountain ranges Tadrart Acacus and Tassili N’Ajjer surrounding Ghat. Koukemen is a historic fort and popular tourist attraction in the city of Ghat. Ghat is situated between 24°57′ N latitude and 10°19′ E longitude, 668 meters above sea level and around 1300 km southwest of the national capital of, Tripoli.
History of Ghat:
In its long and grand history, Ghat played various roles, including as Trans-Saharan trade route’s important terminal point and as the seat of the Fezzan region. Ghat also witnessed the rule of the Kel Ajjer Tuareg federation, Garamantian Empire and Roman Empire in the past.
How to get Ghat?
Ghat Airport is located around 20 km north of the midpoint of Ghat city. The airport handles flights from Tripoli, served by Libyan Airlines and Sabha, served by Ghadames Air Transport.
Ghat can be reached by bus from most southwestern Libyan cities, including Sabha and Awbari.
Minibuses are mainly used for local travel in Ghat and in addition to minibuses, visitors can also hire car or bike from the local travel agency for comfort and convenient travel.
Food and Shopping in Ghat:
Ghat is a city with many traditional shops with a wide range of local specialties like handicraft products, leather bags and woodcarvings. Ghat’s traditional restaurants are also famous among visitors.
Things to do in Ghat
- Exploring desert
- Shopping
- Walking
Tourist Attractions in Ghat:
Koukemen:
Koukemen is the fortress of Ghat and most important tourist attraction in Ghat. Although the fort is partially ruined, Koukemen draws a large number of tourists throughout the year for its historic importance. It is advised visitors to refer a guided tour for easy exploration of the fort.
Tadrart Acacus:
Tadrart Acacus or Acacus Mountains are a mountain range in the Sahara Desert region near the city of Ghat. It is widely popular for prehistoric rock paintings and engravings and these characteristics led Tadrart Acacus to gain place on the UNESCO World Heritage Sites list. Paintings and carvings at Tadrart Acacus depict elephants, ostriches, camels, giraffes and many other attractive pictures.
Desert areas of Ghat:
Ghat is surrounded by eye-catching desert landscapes. There are also many prehistoric rock paintings in the mountain ranges of Ghat.
Ghat Airport:
Ghat Airport is a landmark site, situated around 20 km north of Ghat city centre. The airport is frequented by both locals and visitors for its nice surrounding environment and beautiful construction.
List of other places of interest near Ghat include:
- Waddan
- Old town of Houn
- Sokna
- Sirte
- Sabha
- Martyrs’ Square in Tripoli
- Arebi Dive Center in Tripoli
- Tripoli’s Red Castle in Tripoli
- Pottery Stalls of Gharyan in Tripoli
- The Arch of Marcus Aurelius in Tripoli
- Tripoli’s Jamahiriya Museum
- Tripoli’s Medina
Best time to visit Ghat:
The best time to visit Ghat depends on visitors’ interest, although the most popular time to visit Ghat is from November to May.
Hotels in and around Ghat:
Ghat houses very few upgraded hotels with selected facilities and services. So tourists can take the suggestion of referring the national capital Tripoli’s hotels to enjoy memorable hospitality services and hotels in Tripoli (around 1300 km from Ghat):
- Al Waddan Hotel
- Alkhaleej Hotel
- Sahara Libya Hotel
- Four Seasons Hotel
- JW Marriott Hotel Tripoli
- Ben Yedder
- Villa Otman Hashaishe
- Kafila Hotel
- Dar Ghadames Hotel
- Al Waha Hotel
- Al Mahary Radisson Blu Hotel
- Corinthia Hotel Tripoli
- Haroon Hotel
- Attawfeek Hotel
- Sara Guardian Hotel