The shortest way to sleep in the Sahara from Fez: the Middle Atlas and the Ziz valley, a camel ride at sunset and a night in our camp.
If you have only two days, this tour still gives you the most important thing: a sunset among the dunes of Erg Chebbi and a night under the stars in our camp. The drive is long but beautiful, through cedar forests, high plateaus and the palm canyon of the Ziz.
We leave Fez early so that you arrive in Merzouga in time for the camel ride, and the next morning, after the sunrise, we return to Fez by the same scenic road, with stops wherever you like.
Highlights
Ifrane and the cedar forest
Ziz valley viewpoints
Sunset camel ride
Night in our camp in Erg Chebbi
Sunrise over the dunes
Day by day
Day 1
Fez – Ifrane – Midelt – Ziz valley – Merzouga, camel ride and night in our camp
Departure from your riad in Fez in the morning, heading south through the olive groves and wheat fields to the Middle Atlas. We pass Ifrane and stop in the cedar forest to see the Barbary macaques, then cross the high plateaus to Midelt for lunch. In the afternoon we descend the Ziz gorges, where the river has opened a canyon in the mountains, and follow the valley of palms past Errachidia and Erfoud to Merzouga. There your camel is waiting at the edge of Erg Chebbi. You leave your main luggage in the car and ride into the dunes with your cameleer, watching the sand change colour with the setting sun, until you reach our camp. Dinner in the camp, Berber music around the fire and a night in your private tent with bathroom.
Day 2
Merzouga – Ziz valley – Midelt – Ifrane – Fez
After the sunrise over the dunes and breakfast in the camp, you return to Merzouga by camel and we set off north. We follow the Ziz valley, a deep canyon filled with thousands of palm trees and dotted with old ksour, and stop at a viewpoint over its blue lake near Errachidia. The road climbs through the Ziz gorges and the tunnel of the Legionnaire to Midelt, the 'apple city', at the foot of the Jebel Ayachi, where we stop for lunch. In the afternoon we cross the Middle Atlas, with its cedar forests where Barbary macaques come close to the road, and pass through Ifrane, a mountain town with sloping roofs nicknamed 'the Switzerland of Morocco'. We arrive in Fez in the early evening and your driver accompanies you to your riad in the medina.
Included
Private air-conditioned vehicle
Local driver-guide
Pick-up and drop-off at your riad, hotel or airport
Nights in riads, kasbahs and guesthouses
Dinners and breakfasts
Camel ride with cameleer
Night in our desert camp in Erg Chebbi
Not included
Lunches
Local guides in the cities (on request)
Entrance fees to monuments
Tips
Good to know
Pick-up between 7:00 and 8:00 at your riad, hotel, airport or port. Bring a small bag for the desert night: big luggage stays in the vehicle. Hotels can be upgraded on request.
No payment is needed to book: you pay on arrival in cash (dirhams or euros). Free changes if the weather is not good.
Questions
Are the tours private?
Yes. Only your group travels in the vehicle, with your own driver, and the program can be adapted.
Where do the tours start?
Wherever you are: your riad or hotel in Marrakech, Fez, Tangier, Casablanca, Agadir, Ouarzazate, Errachidia or Essaouira, or the airport or port when you land.
Which camp do we sleep in?
In our own camp in Erg Chebbi, with private tents, bathrooms with hot shower, dinner and breakfast, and Berber music by the fire.
Can I change the itinerary?
Yes, every tour is private and flexible: add nights in the desert, a quad or buggy ride, a different finishing city or better hotels. Just tell us when you write.
