The Sahara starts here

Morocco Sahara tour

If you’re strapped for time and the drive to the dunes at Merzouga is a bit too far to fit into your schedule, you can still experience the real desert with this Morocco Sahara tour. From Marrakech it will save you about a day, but the desert experience is practically the same. During our Morocco Sahara tour, you'll trek into the desert on camel back and sleep under the stars or in a traditional Bedouin tent. The dunes at Zagora are spectacular, easy to get to from Marrakesh, and the drive past the infinite palm trees of the Draa Valley is amazing.

Duration	4 days / 3 nights departs daily from Marrakech	Accommodation	A cosy hotel in Zagora and a traditional bedouin tent in the desert at M'Hamid. Comfort levels 2 and 4 (see accommodation).
Price	Please see our Contact Us page for more details	Includes	3 nights' accommodation with breakfast, traditional evening meal in the desert, camel trek with guide.
Transport	Hire car, camel	Excludes	Car hire, other meals, drinks, tips during camel trek. Optional: luxury comfort tent.

Day 1: Marrakech - Aït Benhaddou

Travel time: 5 hours

After breakfast your hire car will be delivered to your accommodation and you'll set off on your Morocco Sahara tour. Click on our driving in Morocco page for some useful tips about driving in Morocco.

As soon as you leave Marrakech, you’ll follow a well-maintained road to the High Atlas Mountains. After about an hour, the road will become one of the most scenic routes in Morocco, passing terraced wheat fields, cacti, waving palm trees and endless views. You’ll pass through tiny villages, and see old men on donkeys slowly lumbering uphill. In the distance, you be able to make out the snow-capped peaks of the Atlas Mountains on the horizon. As the road begins to descend, the scenery changes drastically and suddenly you find yourself entering a desert-like area. Shortly after the exit for Aït Benhaddou, you’ll see the imposing kasbah Aït Benhaddou looming up from the desert, fringed by palm trees and a shallow river.

Morocco Sahara tour - Kasbah Aït Benhaddou

You'll spend the first night of your Morocco Sahara tour in Aït Benhaddou, where you'll stay in a stylish kasbah-style palace hotel. This small oasis has a couple of tastefully decorated rooms, a lovely pool surrounded by shaded bedouin tents and a terrace overlooking the kasbah where they serve wonderful food in the evenings.

In the afternoon, you can make your way across the river to explore. At the gate, you’ll pay a small entrance fee (approx £1) and enter a medieval with a warren of narrow lanes leading deep into the kasbah. At the top of the kasbah, there’s a fantastic view across the citadel and the surrounding countryside.

If you fancy something to eat, walk to the right side of the kasbah and cross the river to the restaurant Timalt. You can also book a camel ride or rent mountain bikes here.

Day 2: Aït Benhaddou - Ouarzazate - Zagora - Mhamid

Travel time: 5.5 hours

After breakfast it’s time to hit the road again and drive to Ouarzazate (1.5hrs), a small town built in kasbah-style. You can stop off here to fill up, use the cash machine and stock up on snacks for your Morocco Sahara tour.

As you leave Ouarzazate, the barren landscape opens up as you drive across a huge wide expanse. After an hour you’ll reach Agdz, at the edge of one of Morocco’s lush Draa Valley. Just before Zagora, you'll find that the road is lined with date sellers, their sweet, sticky delicacies laid out in pretty orange boxes. As the road begins to climb you’ll pass millions and millions palm trees that stretch out as far as the eye can see - an extraordinary sight. Then the majestic gates of Zagora will come into view and you'll enter the city across a wide, dusty street.

Morocco Sahara tour - all roads lead to...

Morocco Sahara tour - 52 days to Timbuktu

If you turn right at the roundabout at the end of the main street you can take the obligatory picture at the famous sign: 52 days to Timbuktu - by camel. Back on the roundabout turn left, cross the river and turn left at the T-junction to reach your hotel.

Your hotel is surrounded by rustling palm trees and run by a friendly French lady called Brigitte. Once you’ve checked in, prepare a small overnight backpack (don’t forget a warm sweater) for your Morocco Sahara tour. After you’ve received a small briefing there’s time for a refreshing dip in the pool before you drive on to the edge of the desert. It’s a 2 hour drive and once you’ve passed the small town of Tamegroute you’ll spot a solitary giant orange sand dune on the horizon, your first glimpse of what lies ahead…

When you arrive in M’Hamid on the edge of the Sahara, you’ll find your ‘ship of the desert’ waiting for you. You'll clamber onto the back of your camel and gently plod into the sand dunes like a true desert nomad. The sensation of being surrounded by endless desert is incredibly calming and the silence is overwhelming.

You'll arrive at your bivouac, a small camp of camel-hair tents, nestled in between the sand dunes. First, you can grab a glass of mint tea and then take a walk along the rim of the sand dunes as the sun begins to set. Later that evening you’ll tuck into a traditional meal prepared by the camel boys. There’s coffee, tea or water so if you want anything else to drink you can bring your own. After dinner, you can stare up at the starry sky as the camel boys play traditional instruments. The nights can get very chilly in the winter months, so you’ll probably want to crawl under the camel-hair blankets in your tent, but if it’s not too cold you can drag your mattress outside and fall asleep under the stars.

Day 3: M'Hamid - Zagora

Travel time: 2 hours

You’ll be woken before dawn, just in time to see the sunrise. For the best view, climb to the top of one of the sand dunes around the camp. As the sun slowly rises, the desert changes from deep purple to golden orange and you savour the peace and stillness of the dunes.

Once the sun is high in the sky and the temperature begins to climb you’ll climb back onto your camel and ride back to M’Hamid. Here you’ll exchange your camel for your hire car, and your Morocco Sahara tour comes to an end. A camel trek is quite exhausting, which is why we’ve arranged an extra night in the French hotel in Zagora before you continue on your trip. It’s about two hours drive from the desert to Zagora. In the evening you can enjoy dinner under the palm trees beside the beautifully lit pool.

Day 4: Zagora - End of module

After breakfast it’s time to leave Zagora and continue your trip. From Zagora you can travel back north to Marrakesh, or head west to Agadir which is on the coast. We always suggest a night stop in Ouarzazate on the way as the drive from Zagora to Agadir or Marrakesh takes about 8 hours.

Below we’ve outlined two suggestions, but you can always decide your own route if you prefer.

If you’re heading to the coast, you could drive via the mountains at Tafraoute. During our Morocco Off the Beaten Track tour you’ll stay in a traditional Berber home and experience rural life. You’ll visit small mountain villages on foot and cycle through a landscape of bizarre rock formations.

For a culinary experience, try our Couscous in the Souks. One of the best ways to get to know a country is through its local cuisine. Gemma has lived in Marrakech for a long time and hosts cooking classes for small groups. First she’ll take you shopping for ingredients in the local souks. It’s a chance to experience Marrakech like a local, and not just as an outsider. Then, she'll teach you what to do with all your fresh ingredients as you discover the secrets of Moroccan cooking.

Click here for a map of Morocco.

Morocco Sahara special stay

If you want something really special, you can stay in our upgrade option in. You'll stay in a luxurious riad where wealthy merchants used to live. As it is located in the medina, everything you need is within walking distance.