The Ait Ben Haddou ksar and the river, seen from above through a gap in a stone wall

Private tour · 3 days

3-day desert tour from Ouarzazate to Marrakech

A private 3-day desert tour from Ouarzazate to Marrakech. Along the way: the Dades Valley, the Todra Gorge, the Erg Chebbi dunes and Ait Ben Haddou, and 2 nights in the desert. Three days are enough to travel without rushing and sleep among the dunes.

Tour highlights

  • The Dades and Todra gorges in a single day
  • A nomad family, the Gnawa music of Khamlia and the Mfis mines
  • From the desert to Marrakech along the kasbah road

Day-by-day itinerary

  1. Day 1 · Ouarzazate · Skoura · Valley of Roses · Dades · Todra · Merzouga

    We leave Ouarzazate through the Skoura palm grove and the Valley of Roses, look into the Dades Gorges and stop at the Todra Gorge, explored on foot. Via Tinghir and Erfoud we reach Merzouga for sunset on the dunes, by camel or by 4x4.

    Night: Desert camp

  2. Day 2 · 4x4 excursion around Merzouga

    A full day to see what lies around the dunes. We head out by 4x4 on the tracks around Erg Chebbi and visit a nomad family, who still live in tents as they always have, for tea. In Khamlia, the Gnawa village, we listen to their music, which came from sub-Saharan Africa. Then the old Mfis mines, the black desert scattered with fossils and, if it has rained in winter or spring, the lake at Dayet Srij. In the afternoon, free time on the dunes: sandboarding or simply the sunset.

    Night: Merzouga

  3. Day 3 · Merzouga · Todra · Dades · Ouarzazate · Ait Ben Haddou · Marrakech

    A long day, from the desert to Marrakech. After sunrise we pass the Todra Gorge and the Dades Valley, cross the Skoura palm grove and stop at Ouarzazate and Ait Ben Haddou. The last stretch is the High Atlas over Tizi n’Tichka, arriving in Marrakech in the evening.

The hairpin road winding down through the Dades Gorges
Towering rock walls on both sides of the path through the Todra Gorge
Crest of an Erg Chebbi dune lit by the orange evening light
Tents of a nomad family in the Merzouga desert

What’s included

Included

  • Pick-up from your accommodation in Ouarzazate and drop-off in Marrakech
  • Private air-conditioned vehicle
  • Multilingual driver for the whole trip
  • Accommodation: 2 nights, including the nights in the desert
  • Breakfasts
  • Dinner at the desert camp

Not included

  • Lunches
  • Other dinners (on request: ask when you book)
  • Monument entry fees and local guides
  • Tips

Places along the route

Dades Valley and Gorges

The Dades Valley opens out between the High Atlas and Jebel Saghro, lined with earthen kasbahs, small fields and strikingly shaped rock formations. Further up, the road squeezes into a gorge and climbs in tight hairpin bends to a well-known viewpoint, an ideal spot to stop and take in the scale of the landscape.

Todra Gorge

Near Tinghir, the Todra river has carved a narrow canyon between limestone walls that rise almost vertically. Walking along the floor of the gorge, beside the stream and beneath those cliffs, is genuinely awe-inspiring, and the valley leading up to it is dotted with palm groves and mud-brick villages.

Erg Chebbi Dunes

Erg Chebbi is the great sea of orange sand dunes rising beside Merzouga, on the edge of the Moroccan Sahara. At sunrise and sunset the light shifts colour across the ridges, making it the perfect place to walk barefoot on the sand, ride a camel or simply soak up the silence.

Khamlia

Khamlia is a small village near Merzouga known for its Gnawa community, descendants of people from sub-Saharan Africa. Here you can listen to their music, built on the guembri, metal castanets called qraqeb and call-and-response singing, over a glass of mint tea. It is a warm, close-up introduction to a musical tradition deeply rooted in Morocco.

Aït Ben Haddou

This earthen ksar, built on a hillside above the Ounila river, has been a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1987. Its mud-brick houses and towers, linked by lanes climbing to an old granary, have appeared in many films. Crossing the river and walking to the top rewards you with one of the south’s most photogenic views.

Tizi n’Tichka Pass

At 2,260 metres, Tizi n’Tichka is the mountain pass that carries the road across the High Atlas between Marrakech and Ouarzazate. The route winds past Berber villages, terraced fields and russet slopes, and it is well worth pausing at the top to watch the landscape change as you head south.

Is this the tour for you?

It’s a well-balanced length: enough time to see the highlights of the route without spending the whole day in the car, and to enjoy sunset and sunrise on the dunes.

As it ends in Marrakech, you don’t retrace your steps: it works well if your trip continues from there or your flight home leaves from Marrakech.

It includes a full day in Merzouga to explore the area around the dunes by 4x4: a nomad family, the Gnawa village of Khamlia, the Mfis mines and, if it has rained, the lake at Dayet Srij.

The night in the desert

You reach Merzouga in the late afternoon, in time for sunset over the dunes. The camel ride to the camp is optional: if you prefer, the transfer is done by 4x4 and you miss nothing.

At night, the desert sky with no lights around. In the morning it is worth getting up early: sunrise over Erg Chebbi is one of the best moments of the trip.

For a more comfortable night, we recommend Tassili Luxury Desert Camp, our sister camp in Erg Znaigui, with private-bathroom tents. Ask when you book and we will include it in the proposal.

Berber guide leading three travellers on camels across the dunes

Time on the road

Marrakech to Merzouga is about 560 kilometres across the High Atlas: with stops, 10 to 12 hours on the road.

It is a private tour: we stop for photos, meals or a stretch whenever you like, and you set the pace of each day.

Make it yours

As the tour is private, the itinerary can change: start on another day, add or drop a night, or finish in a different city. These are the most requested options:

How to book

Message us on WhatsApp or by email with your dates, how many you are and where you are starting from. We reply with a proposal, a fixed price and what it includes, with no obligation.

Frequently asked questions

Is the tour private?

Yes. The vehicle and driver are for your group only, with no other travellers, so stops and timings adapt to you.

Do I have to ride a camel?

No. The camel ride is optional: if you prefer, the transfer to the camp is done by 4x4.

Where do we sleep?

There are 2 nights: the first at the desert camp and the second in Merzouga. The proposal tells you the exact accommodation for each night.

Which meals are included?

Breakfasts and dinner at the desert camp. Lunches are not, as we stop wherever you like along the way. Other dinners are on request: if you’d like them, tell us when you book and we’ll include them in the proposal.

What language does the driver speak?

Our drivers speak several languages, including English. If you need Italian, just ask when booking.

How much does the tour cost?

It depends on how many of you are travelling, the dates and the type of accommodation. The vehicle and driver are a fixed cost, so the more of you there are, the less it costs per person. Message us on WhatsApp and we’ll send you the price and availability the same day.

When is the best time to go?

Spring and autumn are the most pleasant; summer is very hot in the middle of the day, and winter nights in the desert are cold.

More tours from Ouarzazate

Tassili Luxury Desert Camp at dusk, with the tents lit up
The tents of Tassili Luxury Desert Camp among the dunes

Where to sleep in the desert

A night in a private tent

If you want to stay longer in the desert, Tassili Luxury Desert Camp has ten tents with private bathrooms in Erg Znaigui, away from the main camp area.

  • Ten private tents
  • A private bathroom in every tent
  • In Erg Znaigui, away from the main camp area
See the tents
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