Ali Sabieh

Short description of Ali Sabieh

Ali Sabieh is the second town of the country, set among ochre hills and red sand dunes about an hour up the old railway line from the capital. The old metre gauge to Ethiopia built the place and its station and viaducts still stand, though only freight runs on the new line today. The Grand Bara spreads out below, a dry lake bed so flat and hard that people sail wheeled yachts across it. The Ethiopian border post at Guelile lies a few kilometres off and keeps a steady traffic of freight trucks moving through the town all day.

AI edited

Recommended length of stay

Travel seasons at a glance

Best time to visit: December – February

• Jan
• Feb
• Mar
• Apr
• May
• Jun
• Jul
• Aug
• Sep
• Oct
• Nov
• Dec

All highlights and sights

1. The red dunes and the ochre massif
2. The Grand Bara and its sand yachting(Day trip)
3. The town market
4. The colonial railway station
5. The old line viaducts at Holl-Holl(Day trip)
6. Viewpoints in the Arrei mountains

Ways to get there and away

Airports nearby:

• JIB Djibouti-Ambouli Airport (Djibouti City) · 65 km northeast(recommended)
• DIR Aba Tenna Dejazmach Yilma International Airport (Dire Dawa) · 194 km southwest
• JIJ Gerad Wilwal International Airport (Jijiga) · 204 km south

Nearest seaports:

• ferry port near Djibouti City · 68 km northeast
• Tadjoura · 72 km north

Nearest railway station:

Nagad (Djibouti City) · 67 km northeast

Ports: © OpenStreetMap contributors

Map view

Distances

More travel destinations in Djibouti

• Lake Assal
• Lac Abbé
• Djibouti City
• Moucha Island
• Obock
• Tadjoura
• Dikhil