Sudan is bordered by Egypt, the Red Sea, Ethiopia, Eritrea, Kenya, Uganda, the Democratic Republic of Congo, the Central African Republic, Chad and Libya. Sudan has only recently been developed as a tourist destination, and communications and facilities are still limited outside Khartoum. Travel restrictions are also in force in much of the country owing to the presence of separatist insurgents. There is currently a civil war in the south of the country and this, for obvious reasons, has negatively impacted upon the recent attempt to kickstart tourist growth in the country.

Khartoum, the capital, is situated at the confluence of the Blue and White Niles. Among the tourist attractions here are the Omdurman camel market, the Arab souk and the National Museum. The main areas of archaeological interest include Bajrawiya, Naga and Meroe.

The Dinder National Park, on the Ethiopian border, is one of the largest in the world, and home to numerous species of wild animals. The Red Sea, with the transparency of its water, the variety of its fish and the charm of its marine gardens and coral reefs, is one of Sudan’s main attractions.

Geography
Sudan is bordered by Egypt to the north, the Red Sea to the northeast, Ethiopia and Eritrea to the east, Kenya, Uganda and the Democratic Republic of the Congo to the south, the Central African Republic and Chad to the west, and Libya to the northwest. There is a marked difference between the climate, culture and geography of northern and southern Sudan. The far north consists of the contiguous Libyan and Nubian deserts which extend as far south as the capital, Khartoum, and are barren except for small areas beside the Nile River and a few scattered oases. This gives way to the central steppes which cover the country between 15°N and 10°N, a region of short, coarse grass and bushes, turning to open savannah towards the south, largely flat to the east but rising to two large plateau in the west and south, the Janub Darfur (3088m/10,131ft) and Janub Kordofan (500m/1640ft) respectively. Most of Sudan’s agriculture occurs in these latitudes in a fertile pocket between the Blue and White Niles which meet at Khartoum. South of the steppes is a vast shallow basin traversed by the White Nile and its tributaries, with the Sudd, a 120,000 sq km (46,332 sq miles) marshland, in the center. This gives way to equatorial forest towards the south, rising to jungle-clad mountains on the Ugandan border, the highest being Mount Kinyeti, at 3187m (10,456ft).