3 Days Desert Tour from Marrakech to Erg Chegaga

Marrakech is an ancient city in Morocco, it was founded in 1062 by the Almoravid Berber ruler Abu Bakr, the cousin of the 5th Almoravid emir, Youssef bin Tashfin, who built several buildings bearing designs from the Sahara and Andalusian characters. It became the capital of the Almoravid Empire. The old part of the city was classified as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1985. It is located on the fertile Haouz plain, at the foot of the snow-capped peaks of the High Atlas Mountains, around 476 km from the sand dunes of Erg Chegaga and 250 km from the Atlantic Ocean, among the red ramparts shaded by thousands of beautiful palm grove which gives it a real charm.

Marrakech will be the starting point of this Erg Chegaga Desert Tour. On the first day of our desert journey, we will pass through the dramatic landscapes of the mountains to the Onilla Valley, formerly known as the caravan trade route between the desert and the High Atlas Mountains. Along the way, admire great examples of Moroccan architecture, such as the old Berber villages. One of these is today a UNESCO World Heritage Site Ait Ben Haddou.

After visiting the most interesting Kasbah in Morocco Ait Ben Haddou, we travel through a very beautiful valley known as the Valley of the Palm Groves. The Erg Chigaga desert tour gives you the opportunity to try camel riding, climb the highest Sahara dunes and watch the sun sink on the horizon, admire beautiful views of the desert and desert landscapes, and spend a night under the stars if the weather permits otherwise in a nomad tent.

Tip: The Erg Chigaga desert tour lasts a minimum of 3 days. On the last day, it will be a long drive from the dunes of Erg Chigaga to Marrakech, so if you are traveling with children, we highly recommend doing this Erg Chigaga desert tour in 4 days instead of just 3 days. We also have a 4-day Erg Chigaga Desert Tour available and it can be booked whenever you want except in the summer as it gets very hot.

• Enjoy the beautiful High and Middle Atlas Mountains with the Tizi n’Tichka including the beautiful Ait Saoun
• Visiting the Onilla Valley and the nearby UNESCO World Heritage Site of Ait Ben Haddou ksar
• Drive along the Valley of the Draa with its gigantic palm grove
• Enjoy the beautiful panoramic view of Kasbahs and small Berber villages along the bank of the Draa River with the high cliffs
• Experience a camel ride in Morocco’s highest sand dunes
• Special experience staying overnight in a camp in the desert and enjoying the sunset
• Experience the beautiful and varied landscapes of southeast Morocco
• Explore the Moroccan food and culture in a very short time

Tizi-n-Tichka:  Tizi Nachka is a mountain pass that runs through the High Atlas and connects the city of Marrakech with the gateway to the desert, the city of Ouarzazate. The road is 2,260 meters high and has many ups and downs. It is considered the highest mountain pass in North Africa. At the highest point, there are several viewpoints over the mountains that one should not miss. During the winter season, the trail can sometimes be closed for short periods due to heavy snowfall.

Kasbah Ait Ben Haddou: Ait Ben Haddou is the most famous Moroccan Kasbah and a UNESCO World Heritage Site. We plan to visit this beautiful walled city before heading to Ouarzazate to visit Kasbah Taourirt and the Atlas Film Studio, where you can see the sets of movies such as Kundun.

Draa Valley:  Draa Valley is a long stunning oasis with the most beautiful Berber villages, palm groves, and lush kasbahs. It also offers stunning landscapes and distinctive rock formations.

Erg Chegaga:  The sand dunes of Erg Chigaga Sahara in southern Morocco, about 60 kilometers from the desert town of M’Hamid El Ghizlane, are less visited as they can only be accessed by 4WD vehicles. The Erg Chegaga dunes are located 476 km southeast of Marrakesh, near the Algerian border. The desert landscape here is wilder and winding along the horizon for about 35 kilometers with some heights of up to 300 meters.

First day: The start of Our Desert Tour from Marrakech to Erg Chigaga

We will depart from your accommodation at 8:00 AM. We head towards Ouarzazate by crossing the highest mountain in North Africa, the Atlas Mountains. We pass the Tizi n’Tichka (2260 m) to reach the village of Ait Ben Haddou, the fortified old ksar with its beautiful Kasbahs. Ait Ben Haddou has served as a natural backdrop for many well-known films and TV series. After lunch in Ait Ben Haddou and visiting the kasbahs, we continue our journey through the village of Agdz and along the panoramic Draa Valley with lush palm groves to Zagora. Before reaching Zagora, we will make several stops along the way for photos and to visit a beautiful Kasbah known as Kasbah Oulad Othmane.

Later, we continue along the Draa Valley one of the largest palm oases in Morocco, and arrive in Zagora, a desert-like city where the ruins of the Almoravid fortress can be seen to this day. You will spend your first night in a regional typical accommodation in the middle of the palm oasis.

Second day: A trip from Zagora to M’Hamid and Erg Chegaga

After breakfast, we head for a short stroll in the oasis before heading southerly and passing the old town of Tamegroute. In this little village, you will visit one of the oldest libraries in Morocco where some ancient books and scripts can be found (Zawiya of Nasiriyya). The surrounding is dotted with palm trees and tamarisk trees. Along the way, you can visit one of the workshops around Tamegroute that bake stylish green pottery in an old-fashioned method.

Later, we continue our journey to the desert village of M’hamed. We will then cross a huge plateau where you will surely be impressed by the wide and huge sand dunes of Chigaga dotted with wild plants and trees. Here we will take a camel ride at sunset and enjoy the most fantastic views before reaching our nomad camp. Prepare for a special evening and enjoy the music of the local nomads by the campfire and the full clear starry sky. If the weather permits it, you can sleep under millions of stars if you wish as it is safe.

The third day: A journey from Erg Chigaga desert to Taznakht and Marrakech

After breakfast at your desert camp and enjoying the sunrise, we will drive from Erg Chegaga along sand dunes in a fascinating wilderness, also along the natural dried-up lake of Iriki. This lake was once full of water and was home to several species of birds.

After a long drive on a desert plateau that was once the rally Dakar route, we come to the paved road and pass the small oasis village of Foum-Zguid, a quiet Berber town, where we take a short break for a Moroccan tea.

On the way, we stop in Taznakht, a former trading center of this great region. This small Berber village is known for the cultivation of saffron and the largest woven carpets in an ancient way. From there we will drive for almost 90 km, through different landscapes, oases, and many traditional Berber villages to reach the intersection between Marrakech and Ouarzazate. We cross the High Atlas Mountains again to Marrakech and bring you to your accommodation or the airport.

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FAQs about Desert Tour from Marrakech to Erg Chegaga

The Price of the 3 Days Desert Tour from Marrakech to Erg Chegaga Includes

• The price of the tour includes a vehicle with a driver/guide, fuel, a camel trek, accommodation, breakfast, and dinner
• lunch and drinks are not included.

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