UNESCO World Heritage: Essaouira; Xinhua

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Photo taken on Dec. 18, 2013 shows the gate of the old city of Essaouira, Morocco. Essaouira is an exceptional example of a late-18th-century fortified town, built according to the principles of contemporary European military architecture in a North African context. Since its foundation, it has been a major international trading seaport, linking Morocco and its Saharan hinterland with Europe and the rest of the world. Essaouira was inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage list in 2001.

Source: UNESCO World Heritage: Essaouira

Holidays in danger zones; The Guardian

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Algeria – Timgad

As Libya launches a drive to attract tourists, we look at other countries that come with FCO warnings and the travel operators that offer a chance to explore them.

Egypt

Why go? Egypt’s tourism has been hammered since the 2011 revolution and the instability that followed, with many tourists and tour operators abandoning Cairo. The main tourist sites, including the Pyramids and Luxor, are more or less deserted. While Cairo and parts of the Sinai peninsula, particularly the north, should probably be avoided, it is still possible to visit the southern Sinai beach resorts.

What the Foreign and Commonwealth Office says: Advises against all travel to some parts of the country, especially North Sinai, because of the significant increase in criminal activity and recent terrorist attacks on police and security forces that have resulted in deaths.

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