El Golea is an oasis

Oasis

In geography, an oasis or cienega is an isolated area of vegetation in a desert, typically surrounding a spring or similar water source...

 town in almost central Algeria

Algeria

Algeria , officially the People's Democratic Republic of Algeria , also formally referred to as the Democratic and Popular Republic of Algeria, is a country in the Maghreb region of Northwest Africa with Algiers as its capital.In terms of land area, it is the largest country in Africa and the Arab...

 lying at the eastern border of the Grand Erg Occidental

Grand Erg Occidental

The Grand Erg Occidental is the second largest erg in northern Algeria, behind the Grand Erg Oriental. This true desert region receives less than 25 cm of rainfall per year. It contains no human villages and there are no roads through it....

 at an elevation of 380 metres. The desert town is a gateway to the Sahara

Sahara

The Sahara is the world's second largest desert, after Antarctica. At over , it covers most of Northern Africa, making it almost as large as Europe or the United States. The Sahara stretches from the Red Sea, including parts of the Mediterranean coasts, to the outskirts of the Atlantic Ocean...

 in the south, and has an estimated 180,000 palm trees within the oasis area. The oasis itself lies beneath an escarpment rising up to 200 metres above. Some of the largest continuous areas of Saharan sand dunes begin just a few kilometres to the west of the oasis. El-Golea has good road connections and an airport

El Golea Airport

-Airlines and destinations:The only airline operating regular flights to/from the airport is Air Algérie, serving the following destinations...

 located 3 kilometers west of the town's center.

The area is inhabited by the Zenete Berbers

Berber (Etymology)

The term Berber is a variation of the Latin original word Barbarian, earlier in history applied by Romans specifically to their northern hostile neighbors from Germania and to the hostile Berbers of North Africa. The variation is a French one when spelled Berbere and English when spelled Berber...

. El Golea has a population of approximately 15,000 (2006 estimate). It is located around 30.57°N 2.87°E. El Golea oasis grows many agricultural products. The grave of Charles de Foucauld

Charles de Foucauld

Charles Eugène de Foucauld was a French Catholic religious and priest living among the Tuareg in the Sahara in Algeria. He was assassinated in 1916 outside the door of the fort he built for protection of the Tuareg and is considered by the Catholic Church to be a martyr...

is located in town.