4 Day Desert Tour from Fes: Merzouga, Nomads and the Middle Atlas

Overview

Highlights

• Two nights in Merzouga: a hotel at the dunes and a Berber camp
• Visit to nomad families and the Gnawa village of Khamlia
• Camel trek into Erg Chebbi at sunset
• Rissani souk and Erfoud fossil workshops
• Overnight in Midelt to break the drive
• Azrou cedar forest and Ifrane on the way back

Itinerary

1. 1

   Day 1 Fes – Ifrane – Midelt – Merzouga

   We pick you up in Fes in the morning and drive south into the Middle Atlas. The first stop is Ifrane, a tidy mountain resort of red roofs and parks that locals call the Switzerland of Morocco. Continue across cedar-covered hills and open plateaus to Midelt for lunch (not included), with the Jebel Ayachi range on the horizon. In the afternoon, the road drops into the Ziz Valley, a dramatic canyon of palms, and on through Errachidia and Erfoud to Merzouga. Check in at your hotel at the foot of the dunes in time to watch the sunset over Erg Chebbi.

   Overnight: Hotel in Merzouga Meals: Dinner

2. 2

   Day 2 Merzouga: Khamlia, nomads, camel sunset and desert camp

   A slow morning after breakfast, then explore the desert around Erg Chebbi. Visit Khamlia, a village where families of Gnawa musicians perform their trance-like music over mint tea, and meet a nomad family living in the open desert to learn how they move with their herds. There is time to relax at the hotel or pool during the hot hours. In the late afternoon, mount your camel and ride about an hour into the dunes. Watch the sunset from the top of a crest, then settle into the Berber camp for dinner, drums around the fire and a starry night.

   Overnight: Desert camp in Merzouga (Erg Chebbi) Meals: Breakfast, dinner

3. 3

   Day 3 Merzouga – Rissani – Erfoud – Ziz Valley – Midelt

   Wake for sunrise, ride back by camel and have breakfast in Merzouga. Drive first to Rissani, the historic capital of the Tafilalet, to stroll its souk and see the gate and old ksour. Continue to Erfoud, where workshops cut and polish fossil-rich marble into tables and souvenirs. After lunch (not included), follow the Ziz Valley north, with a stop at a viewpoint over the palm-filled gorge, then climb to Midelt on the high plateau between the Middle and High Atlas. Arrive in the late afternoon, with time to rest before dinner at your hotel.

   Overnight: Hotel in Midelt Meals: Breakfast, dinner

4. 4

   Day 4 Midelt – Azrou cedar forest – Ifrane – Fes

   After breakfast, an easy drive of about 4 hours brings you back to Fes. On the way, stop in the cedar forest near Azrou, some of the finest Atlas cedars in Morocco, where Barbary macaques often appear near the road. Continue to Ifrane for a coffee break and a walk around its lake and gardens. Descend through farmland to Fes, arriving early in the afternoon, with drop-off at your riad, hotel or the nearest medina gate. You still have time for an afternoon in the medina or to catch an evening train or flight.

   Overnight: — (tour ends in Fes) Meals: Breakfast

Prices

J$ 42,927 (€240) per person

Fixed price per person in a small group (max 17 people).

Prices in euros per person. The amount in your currency is an estimate; payment is processed in USD. Some peak-season dates carry a supplement; you will see it when you pick a date.

Included

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