Timbuktu

Built in 1327 and is the largest and most impressive of the three mosques. There's an army barracks just to the south of the mosque, taking photos with caution is recommended.

Built in 1400 AD, the mosque is a prime example of the earthen architecture of the Sudano-Sahelian style. It was partly destroyed in 2012 but has since been reconstructed.

Has an impressive minaret and is worth a visit. The mosque doubles as an madrasah, an Islamic learning centre.

German explorer Heinrich Barth made an incredible five-year journey across Sahara and reached Timbuktu in 1853. This tiny museum containing reproductions of Barth's drawings and extracts of his writings.

Has an interesting mix of artifacts and contemporary folk art, albeit the museum feels a bit dusty. Some artifacts have however been stolen in the recent civil war. Also contains the original well of Bouctou around which the city was founded.

Commemorates the ceremonial burning of 3000 weapons in March 1996, in honor of the end of the Tuareg rebellion. Many of the old guns are embedded in cement at the base of the monument. The monument is in a rather bad shape, perhaps fitting as the relations between the Tuareg and Mali government have deteriorated.

Alexander Gordon Laing (1794–1826) was the first European to reach Timbuktu, but was murdered shortly after his departure. (Older photographs show that this house has been either very extensively restored or, more likely, completely rebuilt.)

René Caillié (1799–1838) was the first European to reach Timbuktu, in 1828, and to return home.