Marrakech to Erg Chegaga Desert Tour – 3 days

Erg Chegaga Desert Tour from Marrakech 3 days:

Embark on this 3-day desert tour from Marrakech to the wild and still untouched dunes of Erg Chegaga, a perfect place to escape the busy cities and find your soul in the middle of windswept dunes.

You cross the magnificent landscape of the Atlas Mountains and the beautiful Draa Valley with its lush date palm groves, fortified kasbahs and beautiful Berber villages for a memorable overnight in a nomad luxury camp among the Erg Chegaga dunes.

This dream tour will take you to the UNESCO World Heritage Site of Kasbah Ait Ben Hdaou and Kasbah Telouet. The highlight of this desert adventure includes a sunset camel ride and a celestial overnight in the golden dunes of the Erg Chegaga Desert.

Highlights:

• Travel through the scenic landscapes of the Atlas Mountains and beautiful Berber villages.
• Tour ancient Kasbahs: Kasbah Teleout and, the UNESCO World Heritage Site, Kasbah Ait Ben Haddou.
• Embark on a camel trek at sunset, try sandboarding, take epic photos and dance to nomad music.
• Taste delicious traditional local food and stay in your private tent in a luxury desert camp.
• Drive through the Draa Valley with its fortified kasbah, huge palm groves and green oases.
• Learn about pottery crafts in Tamgroute village and visit a carpet cooperative in Taznakht.

What is included:

• Transport in a private air-conditioned & comfortable 4WD vehicle
• Experienced English-speaking nomad driver-guide
• Pick-up from and drop-off at your hotel in Marrakech
• Meals: breakfast & dinner – with vegetarian and vegan options available
• One night in a comfortable hotel with air-conditioned rooms with private bathrooms
• vOne night in a luxury desert camp in Erg Chegaga under private & comfortable tents equipped with private bathrooms and shower
• A camel ride for about two hours with a guide in Erg Chegaga and free sand-boarding, if desired
• Berber drumming & music in the desert camp
• vHiking amid beautiful scenery and free time to explore the sites of interest
• Tea/ coffee in the desert camp

What is not included:

• Lunches
• Local guides
• Entrance fees
• Tipping

Itinerary:

1st day: Marrakech – Agdz

Morning departure from your hotel in Marrakech at 08:30, heading south on your 3-day desert tour to Erg Chegaga dunes. You travel across the magnificent Atlas Mountains and through beautiful Berber villages. From these mountains, the views over the valleys and the Berber villages perched on the mountainsides, sometimes barely distinguishable from the mountains themselves, are spectacular.

After crossing the Tizi-n-Tichka pass (2260 m), the highest peak in North Africa, you take a side road to Kasbah Telouet. The Kasbah was the seat of the El Glaoui family, thus sometimes also called the Palace of Glaoui.

From here, you continue to descend the mountains until you finally reach Kasbah Ait Ben Haddou, which you will visit after lunch. This is the most famous kasbah in all of Morocco and is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The Kasbah is also renowned for its use as a filming location for many Hollywood blockbusters including “Alexander the Great”, “The Mummy,” “The Jewel of the Nile,” and “Kingdom of Heaven”.

Having crossed Ouarzazate, you travel south over the Anti-Atlas Mountains as far as Agdz, a oasis town well-known for the variety of palm dates. As you start to descend the Tizi-n-Tinfifite pass (1660m), you will be amazed by the splendid views of the extensive green oases and the innumerable palm trees, all indicating the beginning of the Dra’a Valley.

You will spend the night in a beautiful guest house at the edge of the valley.

2nd day: Agdz – Erg Chegaga

After breakfast, continue your 3-day Erg Chegaga desert tour from Marrakech, travelling south alongside the ancient Caravans Road as far as Zagora, the last major town before the Sahara Desert. Here, you visit a local green pottery co-operative and the old Quranic library in Tamgroute village.

Then, you continue further south as far as M’hamid, the end of the paved road and the venue for lunch. In the afternoon, you continue to Erg Chegaga dunes with about 65km of off-road driving through the varying features of the Sahara; ‘erg’ (dunes), ‘hammada’ (stony desert) and oases.

You then arrive at the dunes of Erg Chegaga for a sunset camel ride to reach the desert camp near the dunes of Erg Chegaga (300m). From the top of the dunes, the sunset is spectacular. Here, at Erg Chegaga dunes, you will have dinner and spend the night in a desert camp among the big dunes.

3rd day: Erg Chegaga – Marrakech

If you wake up early enough, you can witness the serene spectacle of the sunrise, as it gracefully bathes the dunes in an enchanting array of colours. You will also have time to wonder about the dunes and enjoy some moments of pure peacefulness in this magical setting.

Back at the camp, breakfast is served. Then your 3-day Erg Chegaga desert tour from Marrakech continues through another 90km of the Sahara Desert with varying scenery: Lake Iriqui, where you are likely to experience a vast mirage in the heat, the mountains, with the opportunity to look for fossils.

From here, you travel west following the old track of “Rally Paris-Dakar” as far as Foum Zguid, the first village after the desert and the venue for lunch. Then, you drive north along paved roads and past fantastic rock formations to the small town of Taznakht, famous for its Berber carpets and rugs. If interested, you can visit a display room with looms and women at work.

After a tea break in Ouarzazate, you cross the Atlas Mountains via a different road. You will stop at panoramic viewpoints for photos and stretch your legs along the way. You arrive in Marrakech by the end of the afternoon.

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