Merzouga → Dades → Marrakech
This 3-day Merzouga to Marrakech tour starts with a camel trek and a night in the Erg Chebbi dunes, then crosses the Todra Gorge, the Dades Valley, Ouarzazate and Ait Ben Haddou on the way to Marrakech.
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One-way tour: starts in Merzouga, finishes in Marrakech. Want to end somewhere else? Ask us for a custom route. Custom tour
This tour is made for travellers who are already in Merzouga, or arrive by bus, car or plane via Errachidia, and want to continue to Marrakech with a real desert night first. You ride a camel into Erg Chebbi on the first afternoon, sleep at a desert camp and watch the sunrise over the dunes.
The next two days follow the Road of a Thousand Kasbahs: the Todra Gorge, the Dades Valley, the Rose Valley, Ouarzazate and the ksar of Ait Ben Haddou, before the drive over the High Atlas to Marrakech. It is private by default, so we stop wherever you want photos.
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 meet you at your hotel in Merzouga or Hassilabied in the afternoon. You leave your big luggage in the car, take a small bag and ride a camel into the Erg Chebbi dunes for sunset.
At the camp there is dinner, music around the fire and a sky full of stars. You sleep in a tent in the dunes.
Stops: Merzouga · Erg Chebbi dunes · sunset camel trek
Day 2
Get up early for sunrise over the dunes, then ride back to Merzouga, have breakfast and a shower, and start the drive west through Rissani and the oasis of Tinejdad.
In the afternoon we walk through the narrow Todra Gorge, then continue to the Dades Valley for the night, with its red rock formations and kasbahs.
Stops: Sunrise over Erg Chebbi · Rissani · Tinejdad · Todra Gorge (short walk) · Dades Valley
Day 3
After breakfast we drive through the Rose Valley of Kelaat M’Gouna and the Skoura palm grove to Ouarzazate, the gateway of the desert, with the Taourirt kasbah.
Next is the ksar of Ait Ben Haddou, a UNESCO World Heritage site, then the road climbs over the High Atlas at the Tizi n’Tichka pass and down to Marrakech in the evening.
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 an English or French speaking driver. Day 1 is only the camel trek, days 2 and 3 are the long drives, about 700 km in total.
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.
Yes. We pick you up at your hotel in Merzouga, at the bus stop, or in Errachidia if you fly in.
Yes. It is the classic route. Days 2 and 3 are long drives, but there are many stops on the way.
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.
Background reading on Wikipedia and more packages on our other site.
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.
Price on request
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.
Price on request
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.
Price on request
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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