Fes → Merzouga → Marrakech
This 3-day Fes to Merzouga desert tour is a one-way road trip: you start in Fes, sleep a night in the dunes and finish in Marrakech.
We're still finishing the details on this page. Ask us and we'll send you what's included, the timings and the price in writing.
One-way tour: starts in Fes, finishes in Marrakech. Want to end somewhere else? Ask us for a custom route. Custom tour
The tour gets you from Fes to Marrakech by way of the Sahara. You leave Fes in the morning, cross the cedar forests of the Middle Atlas and reach the Erg Chebbi dunes at Merzouga in time for a sunset camel trek to your desert camp. Over the next two days you head west through the Todra Gorge and the Dades Valley, stop at Ait Ben Haddou and cross the High Atlas to Marrakech, where we drop you off.
Because it's one-way, it works well if you're arriving in Fes and flying home from Marrakech, or carrying on from there. It's a tight itinerary. The first and last days are long drives, so it suits people who are short on time and don't mind a lot of hours in the car. Prefer a slower pace? The 4-day and 5-day versions give you more time in the desert and on the road.
You can book it as a private trip with your own vehicle and driver, or join a shared tour with other travellers. If you need to end somewhere else, back in Fes for example, we can set that up as a custom tour.
Day 1
We leave Fes early and climb into the Middle Atlas. You pass Ifrane, a neat little town that looks more Alpine than Moroccan, then drive through the cedar forest near Azrou. Barbary macaques often hang around close to the road here. Watch them from a distance and please don't feed them, because it makes them ill and teaches them to rely on people. The road then crosses the high plateau to Midelt and drops into the Ziz Valley, with its gorges and long strip of palm groves, before passing Erfoud on the way to Merzouga.
It's a long day in the car, we won't pretend otherwise. The plan is to reach the edge of the Erg Chebbi dunes in the late afternoon, in time to ride a camel out to your desert camp as the sun sets. Dinner and the night are at the camp.
Stops: Ifrane · Azrou cedar forest (Barbary macaques) · Midelt · Ziz Valley gorges and palm groves · Erfoud · Sunset camel trek in Erg Chebbi
Day 2
Get up early for sunrise over the dunes. Then you ride or walk back to the edge of the erg for breakfast, and a shower if one's available. We head west through Rissani, the old market town of the Tafilalet, and the oasis of Tinejdad with its palm groves and earthen ksour.
In the afternoon we stop at the Todra Gorge near Tinghir. Limestone walls rise straight up on both sides of a narrow riverbed, and there's time for a short walk. You finish the day in the Dades Valley, with dinner and the night in a hotel, guesthouse or kasbah.
Stops: Sunrise over Erg Chebbi · Rissani · Tinejdad · Todra Gorge (short walk) · Dades Valley
Day 3
After breakfast you follow the Dades Valley west. The road runs through the Rose Valley area around Kelaat M'Gouna, known for its spring rose harvest, then past the palm groves and kasbahs of Skoura. Beyond Ouarzazate we stop at Ait Ben Haddou, the fortified earthen ksar on the UNESCO World Heritage list.
The last stretch takes you over the High Atlas by the Tizi n'Tichka pass, one of the highest road passes in Morocco. Expect lots of bends and big mountain views on the way down to Marrakech. You arrive in the evening and we drop you at your hotel or riad there. The tour doesn't go back to Fes.
Stops: Rose Valley / Kelaat M'Gouna · Skoura palm grove · Ouarzazate · Ait Ben Haddou (visit) · Tizi n'Tichka pass · Marrakech
You travel in an air-conditioned vehicle with a driver. On a private tour it's just your group in the vehicle; on a shared tour you're in a minibus with other travellers. We'll confirm which languages your driver speaks when you book. Driving times are approximate and already include stops for photos, breaks and meals.
2 breakfasts and 2 dinners are usually included, at the camp and in the Dades Valley. Lunch isn't included. Your driver stops at local restaurants on the way.
No. It's one-way: it starts in Fes and ends in Marrakech. If you need to finish in Fes or somewhere else, ask us for a custom tour with a different ending.
It's enough to see the desert and the main sights between Fes and Marrakech. Just know that the first and last days are long, roughly 8–9 hours on the road with stops. For more time in Merzouga, have a look at the 4-day tour.
On a private tour the vehicle and driver are only for your group, and you choose the start date. On a shared tour you travel in a minibus with other people on set dates. Tell us your dates and we'll go through both options with you.
Yes. It stays in the vehicle while you're at the camp. Just bring a small bag with what you need for the night in the desert.
Yes. Tell us their ages when you ask for a quote. Young children usually share a camel with an adult, and on a private tour you set the pace.
4 daysFes → Merzouga → Marrakech
Our 4-day Fes to Merzouga desert tour runs one way to Marrakech, with a whole day in Merzouga and a night at a desert camp.
from €190 per person
5 daysFes → Merzouga → Marrakech
Our 5-day Fes to Merzouga desert tour is the slowest way across to Marrakech, with a full day in Merzouga and a night at Ait Ben Haddou.
from €250 per person
3 daysMarrakech → Merzouga → Fes
Our 3-day desert tour from Marrakech takes you over the High Atlas to the Merzouga dunes for a night in a desert camp, and finishes in Fes.
from €120 per person
Camel treksOur sunset camel trek in Merzouga is a slow, guided ride into Erg Chebbi that gets you to the top of a dune as the sun goes down.
from €20 per person
Camel treksThe sunrise camel trek in Merzouga leaves in the half-light and gets you onto a dune crest in Erg Chebbi just as the sun comes up.
from €20 per person
Sunset, stars & photographyDesert stargazing in Merzouga: a short night walk into the dunes, away from camp lights, to look at the sky with the naked eye.
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