Despite being Africa‘s largest country, nearly 90 percent of Algeria is left uninhabited due to the vast Sahara Desert, which occupies the majority of the country and where temperatures soar up to 51 degrees. 

This gargantuan country spans a staggering 919,595 square miles, making it around 10 times larger than the UK.

Due to the arid conditions of the south, about 91 percent of the population lives along the Mediterranean coast, which boasts hot summers and fresh winters, despite the fact the coast takes up just 12 percent of the country’s land mass. 

Despite its land mass, the UK dwarfs Algeria in terms of population, with the UK counting 660 people per square mile compared to the 38 in Algeria, according to World Population Review.

Unsurprisingly this largely untouched country is rich in natural resources, and it boasts seven UNESCO World Heritage Sites. 

The first site to be included in the prestigious UNESCO list was, in 1980, Al Qal’a of Beni Hammad, a fortified palatine city.

The most recent site added to the list, in 1992, was Kasbah of Algiers, a citadel within the capital city. 

The country is also enjoying its biggest tourism surge in the past 20 years, with more than 2.5 million people visiting in 2023. The government wants to increase this fivefold by 2030.

As of 2023, Algeria had the highest defence spending budget in Africa, around £7.6 billion ($10 billion), and Algeria and Morocco accounted for 82 percent of the total military spending in North Africa in 2023.