Salt air reaches you first, drifting up from a Mediterranean shoreline where fishing boats rest in the harbours. Head inland and the water lives on in mountain streams and the green patches of oases, until the land opens into dunes that ripple like a sea of sand.

The north has mild winters with rain, while the Sahara that covers most of the country is dry and very hot by day, so the season you pick shapes the route. Spring and autumn suit the coast, winter the desert. A Local Friend shares a favourite spot and the story behind it, be it a quiet cove or a tea stop.