Algeria is malaria-free. Sand flies inland are the bite to plan for.

Are there mosquitoes in Algeria? Yes, mostly on summer nights, but there's no malaria. WHO certified Algeria malaria-free in 2019, and CDC lists no dengue, chikungunya or Zika. The bite to plan for is the sand fly, which spreads cutaneous leishmaniasis on the steppe and the edge of the Sahara.

No malaria, and one yellow fever rule

CDC's Algeria page has no malaria section and recommends no malaria medicine. WHO certified Algeria malaria-free in May 2019, the second country in its African Region to get there, after Mauritius. Cases still turn up in the far south, nearly all brought in from abroad, and WHO lists 3,106 of the 3,107 cases recorded in 2024 as imported. CDC doesn't recommend the yellow fever vaccine, and Algeria requires proof only from travelers 9 months or older arriving from a country with yellow fever risk, including layovers of more than 12 hours there.

Sand flies inland

Phlebotomine sand flies bite from dusk to dawn and spread leishmaniasis, which CDC lists for Algeria. The country has one of the largest burdens of the skin form, cutaneous leishmaniasis, in the world. Cases were notified in all 48 provinces from 2010 to 2019, 93,838 in all, led by M'Sila (28,836) and Biskra (20,549) on the steppe and the pre-Saharan fringe. A 2025 review found the disease spreading into new areas, and the visceral form is endemic too.

Sand flies tend to be active from about May to October. On family visits or trips inland in those months, cover up after dark, put repellent on exposed skin, wear permethrin-treated clothing and sleep in a screened or air-conditioned room or under a net. A daytime visit to a steppe town falls outside sand fly hours. A skin sore that doesn't heal in the weeks after the trip is a reason to see a doctor.

Summer nights on the coast

On the coast, Algiers and Oran included, summer nights have a reputation for plenty of mosquitoes. They are mostly Culex, which bite in the evening and at night and carry West Nile virus. West Nile isn't on CDC's Algeria page. Published studies record sporadic human cases up to 2013–2014, in Timimoun and Guelma, and a 2026 antibody survey points to past outbreaks, possibly in Oran around 2010 and in Jijel and Tizi Ouzou around 2017–2018. No human cases have been reported for 2025 or 2026. Keep windows screened or shut, run the air-conditioning or a fan, and put on repellent before evenings out.

When to go

November to April tends to bring the fewest bites and is also the Sahara season for Djanet and Tamanrasset. July to October tends to be the worst, with mosquitoes on the coast at night and sand flies active inland, and it's when many family visits fall.

Where you're going

The State Department advises against travel to areas near Algeria's southern and eastern borders, Tamanrasset among them, as reported; check the current advisory. Combining Algeria with a neighbor? Our Tunisia and Morocco briefings cover the next stop.

Two last notes. Algeria is on CDC's Global Polio notice, under which adults who completed the childhood series may get a single lifetime polio booster, so ask a travel clinic about it. CDC also says schistosomiasis is found in Algeria, so avoid swimming in fresh water. And as on any trip, a fever during or after it means a doctor visit, and you tell them where you were.

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