Desert round trip · From Fes
The favourite round trip from Fes, with a full day in the desert.
About this tour
Three days from Fes gives you what the shorter trip cannot: a whole day in the Sahara without long drives. After crossing the Middle Atlas you have time to explore the villages, mines and nomad camps around Erg Chebbi, listen to Gnawa music in Khamlia and walk in the palm gardens before riding into the dunes for the night.
The route south passes through Ifrane, the cedar forests of the Barbary macaques, the apple town of Midelt and the red canyon of the Ziz Valley. On the way back you visit Rissani's historic souk and a fossil workshop in Erfoud.
It is our most booked tour from Fes: a relaxed, well-balanced itinerary with one night in a hotel at the edge of the dunes and one night in a desert camp.
Best for: Travellers who want a proper Sahara experience from Fes, including families and first-time visitors.
Fes · Ifrane · Azrou cedar forest · Midelt · Ziz Valley · Erfoud · Merzouga · about 458 km · About 7 hours of driving
Your driver-guide meets you at your riad at 8:00 am and heads south out of Fes into rolling farmland, then up onto the forested plateaus of the Middle Atlas. The first stop is Ifrane, a university town of pitched roofs, flower beds and a famous stone lion that feels more European than Moroccan. A few kilometres on, the cedar forest near Azrou shelters troops of Barbary macaques, which often come close to the road.
The road crosses high, open steppe grazed by sheep and dotted with Berber tents before reaching Midelt, the apple capital, for lunch. After the Tizi n'Talghemt pass you descend into the Ziz Valley, a canyon of red cliffs and date palms, and continue via Errachidia and Erfoud to Merzouga. Check in to a hotel at the foot of the dunes and watch the sunset from the terrace, or climb the nearest dune with your camera.
Merzouga · Khamlia · Mifis · nomad camps · Erg Chebbi · About 2 hours of off-road driving
Today is dedicated entirely to the desert. After breakfast at your hotel, set off by 4x4 around Erg Chebbi with your guide. You will stop at the old mining village of Mifis, where galena, the mineral once used to make kohl eyeliner, was extracted, and at the tent of a nomad family, who will offer you tea and bread baked in the embers and explain how they raise their goats and camels.
In Khamlia, listen to a Gnawa performance, a spiritual music brought to Morocco by West African communities centuries ago, then have lunch in the village. The afternoon is for the palm gardens and, after rain, the seasonal flamingo lake. Around 5:00 pm your camels are ready: ride into the dunes for sunset, try sandboarding, and spend the night in a Berber camp with dinner and drums under the stars.
Merzouga · Rissani · Erfoud · Ziz Valley · Midelt · Ifrane · Fes · about 458 km · About 7 hours of driving
Watch the sunrise from the dunes, then ride back for breakfast and a shower. Explore Rissani, the historic Tafilalet capital, whose souk is busiest on Sundays, Tuesdays and Thursdays, and visit a workshop in Erfoud where fossil-rich marble is polished.
The drive north follows the Ziz Valley and crosses the Middle Atlas via Midelt, the cedar forest and Ifrane, arriving in Fes between 5:00 and 7:00 pm.
Every tent is private. Pick the comfort level that suits you; tell us your choice when you book.
Private tents with their own en-suite bathroom, offering a good balance between comfort and the authentic feel of a Berber camp.
Spacious, elegantly furnished tents equipped with air conditioning and heating, so you stay cool on summer nights and warm in winter. Ideal for couples and families.
Absolutely. Every tour is private, so you can add or remove nights, change the camp style, combine routes or start on a different date. Tell us what you have in mind and we will adapt the plan and price.
A private, air-conditioned minivan or 4x4, depending on group size. Our vehicles are under five years old, regularly inspected and insured for tourist transport.
Yes, families travel with us often. Children love the camel ride and the camp. For young children we usually recommend a longer version of the route, with shorter driving days.
Comfortable clothes, a warm layer for the evenings, a hat or scarf, sunglasses, sun cream and closed shoes. For the desert night, a small backpack is enough; your main luggage stays safely in the vehicle.
Both camps have private tents with en-suite bathrooms, hot showers and comfortable bedding. The mid-range luxury camp offers a good balance between comfort and authenticity. The luxury camp adds air conditioning and heating in every tent, plus more spacious, elegantly furnished tents, so you stay comfortable on hot summer nights and cold winter ones.
Before you go
Where the dunes are, the best season to visit and what a night in Erg Chebbi is really like.
Tanneries, madrasas, viewpoints and craft quarters in Morocco's oldest imperial city.
A practical packing list for medinas, mountains and a night in the Sahara, with what to wear in each season.
Related tours
A fast but unhurried taste of the Sahara from Fes: cedar forests and Barbary macaques, the Ziz Valley canyon, sunset on the dunes and a night in a desert camp.
Link Morocco's two great cities through its wild heart: Middle Atlas forests, a night in Erg Chebbi, the Todra Gorge, the Road of a Thousand Kasbahs and Aït Benhaddou.
The one-way crossing with room to linger: two nights around Merzouga, then the Todra Gorge, the Dades and Rose valleys and a night in Ouarzazate before the Atlas.
Eight days from Fes to Marrakech: a guided medina day, Meknes and Roman Volubilis, two nights at the Merzouga dunes, the gorges and kasbahs of the south and a guided day in Marrakech.
