Fes to Merzouga 3-Day Desert Tour

Today we will depart Fes at a comfortable pace, ideally by 8:30am, heading into the Middle Atlas via Ifrane, the curious alpine-style town built by the French in the 1930s, and the Azrou Cedar Forest, home to some of the largest Atlas cedars in the world and a resident troop of wild Barbary macaques, where we stop for twenty to thirty minutes to walk among the ancient trees. Continuing south past Midelt for lunch, the road follows the dramatic Ziz Gorges and then the Ziz Valley, a ribbon of palm groves and mudbrick ksour villages, with several photo stops along the way. Rather than heading straight to Merzouga, we make a worthwhile detour to Rissani, a historic fortified ksar and market town that was once the capital of the Tafilalt region and the birthplace of Morocco's ruling Alaouite dynasty. We explore its atmospheric souk, considerably less touristy than those in Fes or Marrakech, and the earthen walls of the old ksar, before continuing the short remaining distance to Merzouga, where camel handlers meet us for a sunset trek across the dunes to our desert camp, followed by a traditional dinner and an evening of Berber music around the campfire under the stars.

This morning offers the option to wake before dawn and climb a nearby dune in the dark to watch the sunrise transform the desert from soft pink to deep gold — a genuinely memorable experience and one we recommend if you can manage the early start. Afterwards, enjoy a relaxed Berber breakfast at camp. Rather than immediately setting off, this slightly slower-paced itinerary allows a full day to properly experience Merzouga: optional activities can be arranged locally, including a visit to a nearby Berber family for tea, a short 4x4 excursion into the black volcanic hamada plains beyond the dune sea, or simply relaxing at the camp through the heat of the day. As the second evening approaches, we again watch the sun set over the dunes before another traditional dinner and a further night of music and stars — many guests find that this extra, unhurried day in the desert is what makes the trip truly memorable, rather than rushing straight back out after a single night. Lunch today is usually a relaxed, unhurried affair back at camp, giving a proper midday break in the middle of this deliberately slower-paced desert day.

After a final Berber breakfast at camp, we say goodbye to our camel guides and drive back to Merzouga village by 4x4, where your driver awaits for the return journey to Fes. We retrace the Ziz Valley and climb back into the Middle Atlas via Er-Rachidia and Midelt, with a lunch stop along the way, before completing the descent to Fes in the early evening. Over these three days, you will have crossed the Middle Atlas through cedar forests inhabited by wild Barbary apes, explored the historic ksar and souk of Rissani, and spent two nights immersed in the Sahara among the towering dunes of Erg Chebbi — a well-paced desert crossing that leaves genuine time to properly absorb the scale and silence of the Sahara, rather than rushing through it. Lunch en route back to Fes is typically taken in Midelt, a welcome pause on this long return crossing of the Middle Atlas.