Short on time but set on the Sahara? This four-day private tour takes you from Marrakech to the dunes of Merzouga and back, with the essential stops of the south along the way.
Tour highlights
- Ait Ben Haddou
- Dades Valley
- Todra Gorge
- Camel trek and overnight camp at Erg Chebbi
- The Draa Valley palm groves
Itinerary
Day 1 — Marrakech to Boumalne Dades
We leave Marrakech after breakfast and cross the High Atlas by the Tizi n'Tichka pass (2,260 m). On the southern side we visit the kasbah of Ait Ben Haddou, stop for lunch, and pause by the Atlas Film Studios and the Taourirt Kasbah in Ouarzazate. We continue to Kelaat M'Gouna or Boumalne Dades for dinner and the night.
Day 2 — Dades Gorge, Todra Gorge and the dunes
After breakfast we stop at the viewpoint over the Dades Gorge, then walk into the Todra Gorge between its 300-metre walls. We have lunch in Tinjdad and call at a fossil workshop in Erfoud before reaching the Erg Chebbi dunes. As the light softens we ride camels for about an hour and a half to a camp among the sand, with dinner and a night in a nomad tent.
Day 3 — Merzouga to Ouarzazate by the Draa Valley
We climb the nearest dune for sunrise, then ride back for breakfast. Today's road runs through the Rissani souk, past Alnif — trilobite country — and the oasis village of N'Kob, where we stop for lunch. We visit the Kasbah of Tamnougalt in the Draa Valley palm groves, then cross the Ait Saoun pass to Ouarzazate for the night.
Day 4 — Ouarzazate to Marrakech via Telouet
After breakfast we see the Taourirt Kasbah and the film studios, then spend time at Ait Ben Haddou with lunch in the village. In the afternoon we visit the kasbah of Telouet before recrossing the Tizi n'Tichka to Marrakech, with a transfer to the airport if you are flying out.
