I haven’t traveled to Libya (yet). The closest I’ve come to Libya was Tunisia in 2018 and Crete in 2023. Fun fact: Libya is the first country name I was able to read in Arabic: ليبيا . Mostly because of a license plate I spotted in Kyiv in 2021.
I hope that you can find posts about Senegal on this page in the future. For now, perhaps read about other countries, such as Morocco or Mauritania?
Things I’d Like to Do in Libya
- Hitchhike with the locals, of course! As I’ve managed to practice my Arabic in a few countries, I’d love to try it with Libyan drivers. Maybe I’ll pick up some specific Sulaimitian/Libyan Arabic
- Visit the capital city Tripoli. I’d like to visit the medina, see the ruins of Oea (Arch of Marcus Aurelius), the Ottoman clock tower, some museums (Red Castle Museum + Royal Palace + Karamanlı House), the Gurgi Mosque and the Tripoli Cathedral-now-mosque. The port of Tripoli is also a point of interest in case ferries across the Mediterranean Sea to Libya restart someday
- Learn about Libya’s recent history from Gaddafi to the two civil wars and the catastrophic Derna dam collapse in 2023
- Visit some areas near Tripoli, such as the Sabratha archaeological site, Surman and Al-Gharabolli national parks (and its lighthouse!), and the Naqaza Mountains.
- Close to the Libya-Algeria-Tunisia border is Ghadamis, which seems like a very cool place to visit in combination with a border crossing in or out
- As for food, I’m down to try bazin (بازين), Libya’s national dish. Preferably a vegetarian version without the mutton, but if I’m sharing someone else can eat the meat. Perhaps there’s a vegetarian version of mbakbaka, rishta, mubatan, shorba, megata (rishtat burma), makaruna imbaukha and hassaa dernawi
- Visit the second-biggest city Benghazi, which has a very impressive lighthouse. It’s also close-ish to the Ptolemais Archaeological Park, the Jebel Akhdar mountains, and the 7th-century Atiq Mosque
- Since alcohol is illegal in Libya (and otherwise potentially dangerous, see bokha and lagbi), I’m looking forward to some nice sober time and lots of foamy Libyan tea with peanuts drinking
- Vegetarian shakshuka for breakfast seems easy to find. I’m sure someone will sell bureek stuffed with cheese or veggies, lentil soup (hassaa adas), potato fritters (aqras batata mabshura) with filfel chuma for a spicy kick, salata mashwiya, and Tuareg bread baked directly in the sand with embers
- For dessert, the Arab world has endless sweet options. The following I’d like to try (again) in Libya: asida (عصيدة), makroud, drua (millet sahlep), ghreyba, pumpkin and behcamel pudding, and kunafah
- Visit some mountainous areas and mountain villages, such as the cave houses in Ghayran. This area in the west of Libya also preserves Berber culture
- In general, I’d love to visit the Tuareg, Amazigh (Berber), and Toubou areas of Libya, which all have their own unique culture tailored to their environment
- Travel off to all three traditional provinces of Libya: Tripolitania, Cyrenaica, and Fezzan. Fezzan is the one that’s the most remote, with the capital Sabha. From there, it would be very cool to travel to Ghat and the Akakus Mountains. The route should feature some oasis towns as well, such as Ubari and Gaberoun
- Cross the land border between Libya and Tunisia and/or the land border between Libya and Egypt. The dream is that one day, there will be a train across the northern Maghreb countries. Until then, taking a bus or hitchhiking across the land border will do just fine
- Learn about Libya’s history from its time as part of the Ottoman Empire (+ the Barbary Wars) to Italian colonization, the fascist Italian-perpetrated Libyan genocide, WWII, British + French occupation, and US interventions
- As part of the Roman Empire under the name Africa Proconsularis (Tripoli) and Crete and Cyrenaica (Benghazi), Libya has some of the most impressive Roman ruins, from Leptis Magna to Cyrene
- Perhaps I’ll spot some cool wildlife, such as gazelles, gerbils, and fennec foxes. I’m not too keen on hyenas, though
- Enjoy time at the beach, especially in the Cyrenaica area near Benghazi
Map of Things to Do in Libya
Here’s a preliminary map I made with all the places I mentioned and then some. Note that I haven’t been to Libya yet, so I can’t advise about open border crossings and such.
Libyan eVisa Process
During trip planning, I stumbled upon information about the new Libyan eVisa system (evisa.gov.ly) in the Facebook group Discovering Libya. Many people are off Facebook now, so it’s a shame if you can’t find this post (April 2024) that the author, Kez Will, keeps updating. I decided to repost it here, but make sure you join the group to see the latest on the Libyan eVisa!
The system is constantly changing and I’ll try to keep up with the changes.
The current cost for the eVisa is US$63 (. All reports indicate no payment issues have been encountered.
The visa is valid for 30 days and you have 90 days from the approval date to enter the country. Be sure to print out a copy of the visa to present to immigration on arrival.
1) All you need is a local individual willing to sponsor you to be able to apply for the eVisa. You will need the following details from your sponsor to fill in the online form
- full name
- phone number
- email address
- address in Libya
You will also need to upload a copy of their passport, (pdf or jpg).
**EDIT** There is now an option to choose no sponsor, in which case, the above documents do not need to be submitted. There have been mixed reports about approvals without a sponsor. It’s a bit of a lottery at this point. It seems chances of getting approved are better with a sponsor. The system appears not to like commas or apostrophes in any fields and when the ‘system busy’ warning come up, it normally means you’ve input something wrong.
2) Once you fill in all your details, you will need to upload a scan of your passport info page and a passport sized photo in jpg or pdf form. Note that some people have only been able to upload the passport in pdf form. The system may also have an issue with the background of the passport photo and reject it if it’s not white enough.
There are still some glitches in the system, but it seems that they are no cause for alarm. You may see some incorrect information on the summary screen once you have made the payment.
If you see your father’s name has been added as your middle name, don’t worry. This is due to Libyan naming conventions and does not affect your ability to enter the country at all.
3) When the visa is approved, you may also find incorrect information, especially dates, on the screen when you look at the approval on the eVisa portal.
In all cases of information discrepancies so far, the information was correct on the actual visa PDF. If you do have any concerns, you can email them about it, but it they may not reply in a timely manner.
4) Just one more thing, you may or may not receive an email when the visa is approved. A lot of people have been approved quickly, but only found out because they logged into the portal.
If you know cool places and things to do in Libya, comment at the bottom of this page so I can always find your suggestions again! Tips are especially welcome if you are Libyan or have lived there for a while
Are you a travel blogger and do you have good posts about Libya? Drop them in a comment below and I’ll read them!
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Photo credits:
Moayad Zaghdani on Unsplash
Z El Baz on Unsplash
Audrius Sutkus on Unsplash
M.T ElGassier on Unsplash
M.T ElGassier on Unsplash
Ahmed Almakhzanji on Unsplash
ABD ALRHMAN ABU ALASAD on Unsplash