LIBYA: BACK IN THE FOLD

This desert nation was an international pariah until 2003, when it renounced its nuclear program and took responsibility for the airliner bombing over Lockerbie, Scotland.

With the lifting of visa restrictions on U.S. citizens in May, Libya is poised to welcome leisure travelers. Marriott and Intercontinental have announced the construction of large hotels in the capital, Tripoli. “The day we sent out the press release that visas were being granted, bookings came in,” says Perry Lungmus of tour company Travcoa.

Its tours usually revolve around archaeological sites (“situated beautifully on the coast”).

The Libyan coastline is as varied as the moods of its mercurial leader Muammar Qaddai, ranging from rocky cliffs to powdery white sand. At the western end, the seven-mile-long sandbar of Farwa curves out into the water, forming a clear blue lagoon. On the eastern side, the year-old Hotel Al-Burdi is a contemporary, landscaped resort set into a bay and surrounded by cliffs. Most visitors hone in on Libya’s magniicent Roman ruins, particularly Leptis Magna, a nearly complete Roman city on the northern coast. And since the Sahara covers 90 percent of the country, it’s worth giving it a nod, particularly the Acacus

mountain range, with its 12,000-year-old cave drawings.

 

The Tunisian town of Hammamet
boasts a 12th-century casbah.