Fewer than 5,000 tourists visit Mauritania each year. If you're planning to be one of them - for the infamous iron ore train, the ancient desert cities, or simply the adventure of going somewhere almost nobody goes - this is everything you need to know before you arrive.

Nouadhibou sits at the very tip of a narrow peninsula jutting into the Atlantic, split down the middle by the Moroccan border. It's where you'll end up after riding Mauritania's Ore Train. It's not a destination in the conventional sense, but as a final stop on a Mauritania trip, it's a surprisingly good one.

Mauritania's Adrar region is unlike anywhere else on earth - and most people never make it here. Everything you need to know to visit the gems of this ancient heart of the desert, including Chinguetti, Atar, Ouadane, and the Eye of the Sahara.

Most people pass through Nouakchott on the way to the iron ore train. They're missing out. Mauritania's capital is chaotic, fascinating, and - in parts - genuinely surprising. Here's what to know.