5 day desert tour from Marrakech: two nights by the dunes, home through the Draa

Overview

This 5 day desert tour from Marrakech is for travellers who want the Sahara to be more than one night and a sunrise. Merzouga sits roughly 560 km from Marrakech, so most of a short tour is spent getting there and back. Here you sleep two nights by the Erg Chebbi dunes, one in a desert camp and one in a hotel at the edge of the sand, with a whole day in between that nobody has planned for you down to the minute.

The way out is the classic road: over the High Atlas by the Tizi n'Tichka pass, through Aït Ben Haddou and Ouarzazate, past the kasbahs of Skoura to the Dades valley, then the Todra gorge and on to the dunes. The way back is different. Instead of retracing your steps, you cross the stony country south of the Jbel Saghro through Alnif and N'Kob and drop into the palm groves of the Draa valley for a quiet last night in Agdz.

Compared with our 4-day Marrakech desert tour, you gain a full extra day in Merzouga and a return through the Draa instead of a night near Ouarzazate. No day goes much beyond 8 hours on the road. To get a feel for the area first, read our Merzouga desert travel guide.

Highlights

• Two nights by Erg Chebbi: a desert camp, then a hotel on the edge of the dunes
• A free afternoon in the sand, at your own pace
• Gnawa music in Khamlia and the market town of Rissani
• Aït Ben Haddou and the kasbahs of the Skoura palm grove
• The Dades valley and a walk into the Todra gorge
• A different road home: Alnif, N'Kob and the Draa valley palm groves

Itinerary, day by day

1. 1

   Marrakech → Tizi n'Tichka → Aït Ben Haddou → Ouarzazate → Skoura → Dades valley

   Pickup at your riad or hotel around 8:00. The road climbs through Berber villages to the Tizi n'Tichka pass, about 2,260 m up in the High Atlas, then winds down the southern side. Time to walk through Aït Ben Haddou, the fortified ksar listed by UNESCO in 1987, and to stop for lunch. After a short pass through Ouarzazate, the town of film studios known as the door of the desert, you follow the oasis road past the kasbahs of Skoura. Evening in the Dades valley, among poplars and red rock.

   About 320 km, 8 hours including stops · Overnight: a hotel or guesthouse in the Dades valley

2. 2

   Dades → Todra gorge → Erfoud → Merzouga, camel ride to camp

   A short drive to Tinghir and a walk along the river in the Todra gorge, where the walls rise to about 300 m and the gap narrows to a few metres. From there the land opens out into stony plain, then palms again around Erfoud. You reach Merzouga in the afternoon, leave your main bag with the driver and ride a camel for about 1 hour into the dunes of Erg Chebbi. Dinner at the desert camp, drums by the fire if the mood is right, and a sky full of stars.

   About 250 km, 6 hours including stops · Camel ride about 1 hour · Overnight: the desert camp in Erg Chebbi (standard or luxury)

3. 3

   A day around Merzouga: Khamlia, Rissani and a free afternoon in the dunes

   Wake early for sunrise over the dunes, which reach about 150 m in places, then ride back for breakfast. In the morning your driver takes you to Khamlia, a village whose musicians keep Gnawa music alive, and to Rissani, the old market town where the stalls sell dates, spices and livestock. The afternoon is yours: climb a dune, walk out into the sand, read in the shade, or simply sleep. In the evening you move to a hotel on the edge of the dunes, with a proper shower and a bed.

   About 80 km of short drives · Overnight: a hotel at the edge of the dunes in Merzouga

4. 4

   Merzouga → Alnif → N'Kob → Draa valley → Agdz

   Breakfast with a view of the sand, then west on the quiet road south of the Jbel Saghro. Alnif is known for its fossils, and you can stop at a small workshop where trilobites are cleaned and polished. N'Kob, further on, is a village of earthen kasbahs. In the afternoon the road comes down to the Draa, the long river valley lined with palm groves, and you end the day in Agdz, close to the old ksar of Tamnougalt.

   About 330 km, 7 hours including stops · Overnight: a hotel or guesthouse in Agdz, Draa valley

5. 5

   Agdz → Ouarzazate → Tizi n'Tichka → Marrakech

   A short climb over the Anti-Atlas brings you to Ouarzazate, then the road heads back over the Tichka pass, with stops where the view opens out over the valleys. You are back in Marrakech in the afternoon, with time left for the medina, a hammam or dinner in Jemaa el-Fna.

   About 270 km, 5 to 6 hours including stops · Drop-off at your accommodation in Marrakech

Hotels and desert camps on this tour

Standard accommodation is included in the price. You can upgrade to superior hotels and camp for €35 per person per night; choose it in the booking panel.

Good to know before you go

Route map

Marrakech → Tizi n'Tichka → Aït Ben Haddou → Ouarzazate → Skoura → Dades → Todra → Erfoud → Merzouga → Rissani → Alnif → N'Kob → Agdz (Draa valley) → Ouarzazate → Tizi n'Tichka → Marrakech

Questions about the 5-day desert tour

What travellers say about our tours

Rated 4.9/5 by 64 travellers on Tripadvisor, across all the tours we run.