Private Desert Trek Marrakech to Erg Chigaga: 4 Days

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Free cancellationExcellent quality

1/9

Duration4d

GroupPrivate

LanguagesEN · AR +1

PickupAt your hotel

Trek the Erg Chigaga dunes on dromedary, camp under open sky, and return through the mountains

A private 4-day desert tour from Marrakech combines off-road jeep travel through the High Atlas and Draa Valley with two nights in a desert camp and a full day trekking the Erg Chigaga dunes on camelback. You'll pass through UNESCO-protected Ait Benhaddou, walk date palm oases, ride across 50 km of open desert track, and trek through sand dunes with guides who prepare a traditional nomadic lunch in the shade of tamarind trees. The tour includes hotel pickup, a live guide in English, French or Arabic, all transport, camp accommodation and meals.

Step-by-step itinerary

Day 1 — Ait Ben Haddou to Agdz

Stop for lunch at Ait Benhaddou
Visit Kasbah Taorit and film studios
Walk in Draa Valley oasis
Overnight in Riad Dar Amazir in Agdz

Day 2 — Zagora to Erg Chigaga dunes

Pass through Zagora and Tamegroute
Reach M'Hamid desert outpost
Travel off-road to Erg Chigaga dunes
Stop for tea at Iriki oasis
Overnight in desert camp Sahara Feeling

Day 3 — Trekking in Erg Chigaga dunes

Watch sunrise over Erg Chigaga dunes
Trek on dromedaries through dunes
Lunch under Tamarind trees
Return to camp for sunset and dinner
Overnight in desert camp Sahara Feeling

Day 4 — Return to Marrakech via High Atlas

Jeep journey to dried salt lake of Iriki
Stop for orange juice at Foum Zguid
Lunch and rug shopping in Tazenakht
Drive through High Atlas via Tizi-n-Tichka pass
Arrive in Marrakech in early evening

The Experience

The journey starts south from Marrakech toward Ait Benhaddou, a UNESCO-protected village that has stood in for ancient cities in films like Lawrence of Arabia and The Gladiator. After lunch there, you'll drive into the Draa Valley, where millions of date palms stretch across one of Morocco's most fertile oases. You'll spend the first night in a traditional riad in Agdz with tea service and a full dinner, settling into the rhythm of the route before the desert begins.

Day two takes you deeper south through Zagora and Tamegroute—known for its pottery craft—to M'Hamid, the last outpost before open desert. From there, the jeep leaves the paved road and travels 50 km of track into the Sahara, stopping at the oasis of Iriki for tea before reaching the dunes of Erg Chigaga. You'll sleep two nights in Sahara Feeling camp, a desert settlement in the dunes where the sky opens completely at night.

The trekking day is the heart of the tour. You'll wake for the sunrise—the light moves across the sand in layers of gold—then mount a dromedary after breakfast and ride through the dunes for several hours with your guide. Around midday you'll reach a stand of tamarind trees where the guides cook a traditional nomadic lunch of kebabs and fresh bread in the shade. The afternoon trek brings you back to camp, where you can watch the sunset and eat dinner under the stars.

On the final day, the jeep follows the old Paris-Dakar rally track past the dried salt lake of Iriki and a fossil mountain, then climbs back toward pavement at Foum Zguid. You'll stop in Tazenakht for lunch and a chance to browse rugs from the region's famous weavers, then cross the High Atlas through the Tizi-n-Tichka pass at 2,260 meters—a route lined with oak woods, walnut groves and Berber villages—arriving in Marrakech by early evening.

What’s included

Hotel pickup from Marrakech.
private jeep with driver.
live guide in English, French or Arabic.
accommodation in a traditional riad in Agdz on night one and in Sahara Feeling desert camp on nights two and three.
lunch each day.
dinner and tea service at the riad and in the desert camp.
dromedary trekking through the Erg Chigaga dunes on day three.
all transport through the High Atlas, Draa Valley and Sahara.

Good to know

Easy physical levelStroller friendlyInfant seats availablePets welcomePublic transport nearbyNot for heart conditionsInfants must sit on laps

Operated by Sahara Feeling

Is this one for you?Your guide speaks English, French or Arabic, so book this tour if your group's language matches one of those three. The four-day structure with two nights in the desert camp is what makes a full trekking day possible—a shorter trip would cut either the camp time or the dunes themselves, so this length holds the experience together.