3-Day Merzouga Desert Tour from Marrakech with Camel Trek
Out of Marrakech over the High Atlas, east along the Dades and the Todra, and then south into the sand. Two nights away: one in a hotel at Tinghir, one under canvas inside Erg Chebbi, with a camel each way across the dunes. It is the most-reviewed departure on this road by a factor of two.
Your three days on the desert road
One camel per person, both ways
A camel each at sunset going out and again at sunrise coming back, rather than a shared string. Not every trip on this road does that.
Ait Ben Haddou on the way through
The earthen ksar UNESCO listed in 1987 is a stop rather than a photograph from the road, and the itinerary gives it real time.
A hotel bed on night one
Tinghir, not a tent. The night in the sand is the second one, which is the shape almost everyone wants.
Sandboarding at the camp
Boards are at the camp and the slip face is fifty metres from the tents.
Both meals on both nights
Two dinners and two breakfasts are inside the fare. Lunches are not, on any day.
What the 560 kilometres actually contain
The N9 leaves Marrakech and climbs to Tizi n’Tichka at 2,260 metres, the highest major pass in North Africa. On the far side the landscape changes completely. Red earth, palm valleys and kasbahs replace the plain. Ait Ben Haddou comes first, then Ouarzazate, then the long run east.
Day one ends at a hotel in Tinghir. That is seven or eight hours of driving with stops every couple of hours. Day two is shorter and better: Todra Gorge in the morning, Erfoud around midday, and the edge of the erg in the late afternoon with the camels waiting.
Why this one and not the identical-looking others
Several operators sell three days from Marrakech and the routes overlap almost exactly. What separates them is what the fare covers. This one covers a great deal: accommodation in Tinghir and in the camp, a camel each at sunset and sunrise, sandboarding, an air-conditioned minibus with fuel, and pickup and drop-off at your Marrakech hotel.
The published departure cap is 200 travellers. That is a figure about the whole departure rather than about your vehicle, which is an air-conditioned minibus. If a firm small-group number matters to you, the departures from Marrakech page sets out which trips cap at fifteen or eighteen instead.
The three days on the desert road, step by step
- Pick-up in Marrakech
- Tizi n'Tichka pass and Ait Ben Haddou
- Overnight in Tinghir
- Todra Gorge, then Erfoud
- Camel trek into Erg Chebbi at sunset
- Night in the Merzouga desert camp
- Sunrise camel ride back out
- Return over the High Atlas to Marrakech
Who this suits, and who should book something else
This one is for you if: Anyone who wants the Sahara out of Marrakech and is comfortable with two long driving days to get it. It suits couples, friends travelling together and families with teenagers. Twelve thousand reviews sit behind it, so very little about the trip is a surprise by the time you board.
Book something else if: Anyone who wants more than one night in the sand, because you arrive at dusk on day two and leave before dawn on day three. If that ratio bothers you — and for some people it should — the four-day departures give you two nights and a whole day at Merzouga itself for about a hundred dollars more. Anyone who cannot face a nine-hour driving day should look at the Merzouga-based overnight and get themselves south another way.
What’s included
In the fare
- Accommodation in a Hotel in Tinghir
- Accommodation in the desert camp in Merzouga
- Camel ride in the sunset and sunrise ( One Camel each )
- Transport by air-conditioned Minibus (fuel included).
- Sandboarding
- Pick up in Marrakech depending on the hotel location & Vehicle accessibility
- Drop off in Marrakech depending on hotel location and vehicle accesibility
- Breakfast (2)
- Dinner (2)
Not in the fare
- Lunches and drinks
- Local Guide in Ait Ben Haddou Kasbah
- Tips and gratuities
Where you are collected
Marrakech. Fes to Merzouga desert tour lists every departure with its own meeting point, and the map page explains how to read a listing that names Hassilabied or Khamlia rather than Merzouga itself.
Know before you go
- Carry cash for lunches. Lunches and drinks are excluded on all three days. A roadside set menu runs roughly 110–130 dirhams and there is no card machine at most of the stops.
- The Ait Ben Haddou guide is separate. The local guide inside the ksar is not in the fare. Two operators on this road price it at two euros a head.
- Day three is the long one. The return is a single push back over the Atlas. Reviewers who found the trip hard almost always name this day rather than the desert.
- Pick your tent tier at booking. Standard, deluxe and luxury are chosen when you pay, not on arrival. The step to a private bathroom is usually the smallest one in price.
- Pack a warm layer whatever the month. A January night near the erg falls to about 6 °C after a 19 °C afternoon. The camps carry blankets rather than heating.
- Winter can move the route. Snow closes Tizi n’Tichka in some winters between November and March. Operators reroute or delay rather than cancel, and this fare refunds in full at 24 hours.
Photographs from the road and the camp
What travellers said about these three days
Charaf was a great guide and Oubran a good driver. I was surprised by how much was included for the price. The one drawback is the amount of driving, and they broke it up with plenty of stops.
Ross C. · May 2026
Three days from Marrakech to Merzouga and one of the best trips I have done. We crossed the Tizi n’Tichka pass, spent proper time at Ait Ben Haddou and came through the valleys on the way east. The camp at the end earned all of it.
Kevin B. · April 2026
An excellent experience and good value, but they are long days. Day one and day two are manageable and day three is a haul. Our van was completely full, which did not help on the last stretch.
Melanie G. · April 2026
Frequently asked questions
How much of the three days is actually spent in the desert?
Is lunch included?
How big is the group?
Do we get one camel each?
What happens if it snows on the pass?
Can I be dropped in Fes instead of Marrakech?
The other departures worth comparing
- Fes: Best Fez to Marrakech via Merzouga Desert Dunes, 3 Days Tour
- Camel Trekking & 1 Night in Merzouga Desert Camp
Merzouga Desert Tours has all of them in one grid, with prices and group caps.