Day 1: Marrakech – High Atlas – Ait Ben Haddou – Ouarzazate – Dades Valley
This tour to the desert of Merzouga begins in Marrakech, in the place of your choice: you can do it from the airport, as soon as you land, or from any other point of the Red City, such as your hotel. Our driver/guide will be waiting for you there with a comfortable vehicle for the whole route.
We will cross the High Atlas Mountains through the Tizi N’tichka pass, which offers unbeatable views of the peaks of this mountain range, snow-capped from autumn to spring. The first major stop of this day will be the Kasbah of Ait Ben Haddou: its visit (optional) is full of reasons, including its declaration as a Unesco World Heritage Site and its choice as a filming location in major films and series (Lawrence of Arabia, Game of Thrones).
Crossing Ouarzazate, the Hollywood of Morocco, we enter the road of the ‘thousand kasbahs’, so called because of the large number of adobe fortresses it houses. The Valley of the Roses, first, and the Dades Valley, then, are responsible for bringing color and vegetation to this final stretch of the first day.
A charming riad in the Dades Valley will be the chosen accommodation for dinner and rest in the evening of this first day of route to the desert of Merzouga.
Day 2: Dades Valley – Todra Gorges – Erfoud – Merzouga
With breakfast at the riad begins the second day, where the experiences to live in first person will be even greater. The best appetizer, before reaching the desert of Merzouga, are the Todra Gorges: our vehicle will travel its winding roads safely, but we will also put foot on the ground to know closely its spectacular rock walls and the small sheet of river that has made possible this miracle of nature.
A similar qualification deserves the desert of Merzouga, ‘bathed’ by a sea of fine golden sand dunes. In this town that gives them their name we will have a reference hotel where we will change ‘vehicle’: the four wheels will give way to the humps, as we will get on the backs of our camels to reach the camp of tents (optional and replaceable by a 4×4 vehicle).
The sunset in the dunes of Erg Chebbi will become one of the most special moments of the route to the desert of Merzouga, as well as the contemplation of the stars in a night sky especially clear and bright.
At the end of the day, it will be time to enjoy dinner and a refreshing sleep in the Berber tents of the camp, where not a single detail of comfort is missing.
Day 3: Merzouga – Rissani – N’kob – Ouarzazate
The incomparable sunrise of the desert of Merzouga will welcome you at the beginning of the third day. A spectacle of light and silence followed by a camel ride to return to the hotel in Merzouga, where a full breakfast included in the travel package awaits you. In this hotel you will also be able to wash yourselves in order to continue with more comfort.
Back on the road, the desert of Merzouga will be left behind to continue through other sectors of the Sahara desert, where there are also towns of interest. This is the case of Rissani, which has the largest traditional medina in the south of the country. After Rissani, we will continue through Alnif, Tazarine and N’Kob, all of them small towns that maintain the charm of the old Berber settlements of the desert.
Shortly after, we will deviate slightly from our route in a southerly direction to enter the Draa Valley: in this way we will be able to see in all its magnitude the largest palm grove in North Africa. Before arriving in Zagora, we will retrace our steps to reach Ouarzazate. This city, considered the ‘Gateway to the Desert’, will now be our ‘departure gateway’ the next day, as here we will spend the night in a comfortable hotel, including dinner.
Day 4: Ouarzazate – High Atlas – Marrakech
The fourth and last day of this route through the desert of Merzouga will take us back to Marrakech. But after breakfast, there will still be time to visit one more monument: the spectacular kasbah of Taourirt, one of the largest and best preserved in southern Morocco. Its visit, which is optional, will allow us to appreciate its careful decoration with adobe bricks on the outside and with plasterwork and colored tiles in different passages of the interior.
After the visit, we will hit the road again to complete the last 200 km that separate us from Marrakech. To get to the Red City, we will cross the Atlas through the Tizi N’tichka pass, remembering again the green landscapes and the Berber villages of the first day. Our services will end at the airport of Marrakech or at any other agreed point, with a farewell of thanks, good wishes for the future and hope for a next reunion.
TOURIST PACKAGE INCLUDED
- Pick up and drop off at the airport
- Comfortable private transportation with air conditioning
- English speaking driver / tour guide
- Sandboarding in the desert
- Camel ride
TOURIST PACKAGE EXCLUSIONS
- Plane tickets
- Drinks
- Lunches
- Tickets
