Sudan has a coastline of 850 km along the Red Sea, and borders with 9 other African countries. Sudan was formerly the largest country in Africa but following the split of South Sudan in July 2011, Sudan has dropped to third place after Algeria and the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Sudan is dominated by the Nile and its tributaries; The Blue and the White Nile meet in Khartoum, Sudan's capital, to form the River Nile, which flows northwards through Egypt to the Mediterranean Sea. The population of Sudan is almost 40 million people.

Map of Africa 

In the old days, Sudan was known to the Egyptians as Kush and had strong cultural and religious ties to Egypt. In about 750 BC a Kushite king conquered Upper Egypt, became ruler of Thebes and thereby divided Egypt into two. His successor reunited Egypt and founded a line of kings who ruled Kush and Thebes for about a hundred years. The ties to ancient Egypt can still be seen today in the northern deserts of Sudan, where pyramids and other ancient sites are littering the place.

Unfortunately Sudan is today better known for the armed conflicts within its borders that continues to go on, and the difficulties getting sufficient humanitarian aid to affected populations in areas like for instance Dafur.

Because of this situation travel anywhere in Sudan, including Khartoum and the adjacent town of Omdurman, is potentially dangerous. Sporadic violence instigated by militias has occurred in South Sudan, where militia forces have attacked locations. The Sudanese Government requires that anyone seeking to travel outside a 25 kilometer radius of Khartoum obtain a special permit. 

Sudan therefore has no real tourist industry, and although Sudan has a lot of natural and historical attractions to offer, it is one of the least visited in Africa.