3 Days Tour from Marrakech to Merzouga

Day 1: Marrakech - High Atlas Mountains- Kasbah Ait Benhaddou - Skoura - Dades Valley

We will start this 3-day desert tour at 07:30 am, leaving Marrakech for the High Atlas Mountains, which we will cross at 2260 meters of altitude over the Tizi n'Tichka pass. On the way down the other side, passing many traditional Berber villages that line the riversides, we will take one of the side roads leading to a hidden treasure: Kasbah Telouet. This building may not look much more than a ruin until you see the incredible internal rooms; this was one of the residences of the governor or "Pacha" of Marrakech and has terrific and intricate work in its tiles, plaster, and cedar wood.

We continue along the Ounila Valley to another Kasbah. This one is better known as a film set location and has been on the UNESCO World Heritage site since 1987. Kasbah Ait Benhaddou is a fortified ksar on the banks of a river. It was also on the original trade route with salt-laden camels to the Sahara and Timbuktu.

After lunch in a local restaurant, we'll go toward Ouarzazate to discover the famous Atlas Studios and Taourirt Kasbah. Afterward, we'll drive through Skoura palm groves and Rose Valley, where you'll have a stop to explore a local rose cooperative. Next, we'll drive on the main road, crossing Dades Valley, with stops to enjoy the panoramic views of this charming valley and adobe Berber villages before checking into our hotel.

Day 2: Dades Gorge - Tinghir - Todra Gorge - Merzouga Camel Trek and night in the desert camp

After a delicious breakfast, we will visit the unique gorge with its crazy rock formations before we take the highway to Tinghir and its hidden canyon. Todra Gorge is a massive fault in the mountain, some 300 meters high, of vertical rock with a crystal clear river running through it. On the way, you can see adobe villages and kasbahs in the valley; we will stop at some prominent places for you to take photos. Our journey continues south toward Erfoud and finally to Merzouga with its golden dunes of Erg Chebbi.

After a welcome glass of mint tea, you will ride the camels that will take you off into the Erg Chebbi dunes to enjoy the sunset and to your desert camp for dinner and music with the local Berbers around the campfire. If the sky is clear, you will have the added wonder of the stars and Milky Way.

Day 3: Merzouga - Draa Valley - Agdz - Ouarzazate - Marrakech

You will not miss the early sunrise, so you will get a wake-up call. This is a magical time as dawn breaks and the sun chases away the night. The colors change as they move across the golden dunes, and the silence and peace all make it very special and memorable. For some, it can be a life-changing experience. After breakfast at the camp, you return by camel or car, optional, to Merzouga to meet your driver.

Our journey to Marrakech takes us across vast lunar landscapes, desert mountains, and villages with adobe kasbahs, from Merzouga to Alnif and Tazzarine, across to the Draa Valley and the oasis town of Agdz, famous for its dates. Following the oases, we cross the mountains and take a lunch break in Ouarzazate before crossing the High Atlas and descending to the plains of Marrakech. End your 3-day Sahara tour by dropping off at your accommodation or airport.