3 days from Fes to Sahara Tour
“Mountains & Merzouga”
3 days, 2 nights
Start: Fes
End: Fes
Overnight stays in: MERZOUGA/ERG CHEBBI – TODRA GORGE
Introduction
If you don’t have a lot of time and just want a short desert trip that brings you back to Fes, then our 3 days from Fes to Sahara Tour is ideal. This 3 day desert tour takes you through the rugged Middle & High Atlas Mountains to the massive dunes of Erg Chebbi in the Merzouga region of the Sahara Desert – 2 of Morocco’s most scenic destinations. That’s why we call this tour “Mountains & Merzouga”! This round-trip desert tour takes just 3 days & 2 nights, making it perfect for a weekend getaway, but you can start any day of the week.
In addition to stunning scenery, the 3 days from Fes to Sahara Tour features an unforgettable sunset camel trek in the big dunes and a stay in Todra Gorge. This tour also includes a visit to a local souk (market) in a small desert town – a truly unique experience!
Outline
Your 3 days from Fes to Sahara Tour, “Mountains & Merzouga” starts from Fes. Travel through the Middle Atlas Mountains and watch the landscape change as you head to the Merzouga region of the Sahara Desert. Arrive at Erg Chebbi in time for a sunset camel trek in the big dunes. After your camel trek, enjoy a traditional Moroccan dinner and African drumming. Sleep in tents in a desert camp surrounded by small dunes.
The next day, travel to nearby Rissani to visit the local souk (market), where local people do most of their shopping. Afterwards, drive to the scenic Todra Gorge, where you’ll spend the night.
On the final day of your 3 day desert tour, start heading back to Fes but by a different route – into the beautiful High Atlas Mountains. After stopping for lunch in Khenifra, your scenic journey takes you back to Fes via the Middle Atlas Mountains. On the way, stop to see the Barbary apes that live in forests in the mountains.
When we arrive back in Fes in the evening of Day 3, your 3 days from Fes to Sahara Tour will be complete.
Tour Highlights
- Go camel-trekking in the Sahara Desert at sunset
- Enjoy African drumming entertainment
- Experience a local souk (market)
- Spend the night in Todra Gorge
- Have lunch in the High Atlas Mountains
- See Barbary apes in the forest at Azrou
For more information…
For more details about this tour, see the tabs further down this page. You’ll find a detailed itinerary, a route map, & a list of what’s included & excluded in the cost.
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Other short tours from Fes
3 day Desert to Marrakesh Tour – “Detour to the Desert”
This 3 day Fes desert tour takes you camel-trekking in the Sahara, then winds through Dades Valley. Visit Ouarzazate & Ait Ben Haddou before crossing the High Atlas Mountains to Marrakesh.
2 day Sahara Tour from Fes – “Nomad for a Night”
This overnight desert tour from Fes is an unforgettable trip to the Sahara Desert. It features camel-trekking in the dunes, African music, a night in a desert tent camp, & more.
Longer tours from Fes
Can you spare an extra day or two? Check out these 4-day & 5-day tours from Fes:
4 day Fes Desert Marrakesh Tour – “Sounds of the Sahara”
This 4 day Sahara tour from Fes provides a deeper, richer Sahara experience featuring live African music. It also showcases the scenery of the Atlas Mountains & Sahara Desert.
5 days Fes to Marrakesh Tour – “Shifting Sands & Mud Bricks”
This 5 day tour from Fes features 2 nights in the Sahara & stays in Valley of the Roses and Kasbah Ait Ben Haddou in the Atlas Mountains. It ends with a night in Marrakesh.
Details
3 days from Fes to Sahara Tour - "Mountains & Merzouga"
Your 3 days from Fes to Sahara Tour, "Mountains & Merzouga" starts when we pick you up after breakfast at your hotel/riad and start our drive to the Sahara Desert. You’ll see the amazing changes in the landscape as we travel through the Middle Atlas Mountains.
We’ll take a break in Ifrane, a popular ski resort town known as the "Switzerland of Morocco", with its steeply-peaked rooves designed to shed show easily.
Lunch will be in Midelt, the “apple capital” of Morocco.
After lunch, we’ll drive alongside the Ziz Valley. The impressive palm-filled Ziz Oasis stretches for hundreds of meandering kilometres along the valley floor. You’ll have a chance to take some beautiful panoramic photos at a lookout point beside the road.
We’ll pass through Erfoud, famous for its Date Festival each October and known for its fossils and fossil products, then turn off the highway and travel across flat rocky desert to the Saharan region of Merzouga, towards the magnificent sand dunes of Erg Chebbi. Erg Chebbi has the highest dunes in North Africa, and the sight of them rising suddenly out of the desert floor never fails to impress!
At the hotel, your camels will be waiting to take you into the dunes as the late afternoon sun sinks over the sands. You’ll leave civilization behind and travel by camel into the high dunes, where you’ll see the sands change colour as the sun moves across the sky. You’ll have time to explore, take pictures, and watch the sunset before camel-trekking back to the desert camp. There, you’ll enjoy a traditional Moroccan dinner.
After dinner you’ll be entertained with African music – drumming and singing and dancing – around a campfire. You'll spend the night in tents nestled among the dunes.
After breakfast in the desert on Day 2 of your 3 day desert tour, we'll drive to the town of Rissani. You’ll visit the local souk (market), where local people do almost all of their shopping. On Tuesdays, the travelling market arrives, and people flock from nearby villages to shop.
Next we'll travel to the town of Tinghir and the Todra Gorge. You’ll hardly believe you started the day in the Saharan dunes when you see the lush green oasis full of palm trees and farmers’ crops. The scenic Todra Gorge has steep rock walls 300 metres high, making it popular for rock-climbing. The river makes it a nice, shaded picnic spot.
You’ll spend the night at a hotel/riad in Todra Gorge, and you’ll have a chance to walk along the river.
On the final day of your 3 day desert tour we'll start heading back to Fes, but we'll take a different route. After breakfast we’ll drive into the High Atlas Mountains, passing through the Berber village of Imilchil, famous for its annual Marriage Festival in early September.
We’ll have lunch in Khenifra in the High Atlas, then head north towards Fes, travelling through the Middle Atlas Mountains. We’ll stop in Azrou to see the Barbary apes that live in the cedar forests on the mountainsides.
We’ll arrive back in Fes in the evening and drop you off at your hotel/riad. This will complete your 3 days from Fes to Sahara tour, "Mountains & Merzouga".
