Our Destinations
This six-day route takes the long way to Erg Chigaga. It runs through the Dades Valley and the Todra Gorge, over the Jebel Sarhro and down the Draa Valley, spends two nights in nomad tents among the Chigaga dunes (also spelled Chegaga), and returns by the old Paris–Dakar rally road, Ouarzazate and Ait Ben Haddou.
Tour highlights
- The Dades Valley, the Skoura palm gardens and a one-hour hike in the Todra Gorge
- The Jebel Sarhro and the Tizi n’Tazazert pass
- Agdez, an old caravan stop known for its dates
- Zagora, the Jewish quarter of Amzrou and Tamegroute’s Koranic library
- Two nights in nomad tents at Erg Chigaga, with a visit to a nomad family and a picnic in an oasis
- The old Paris–Dakar rally road, Iriqui lake and the fossil mountain
- Taznakht, a Berber village famous for its carpet makers
- Ait Ben Haddou and the old caravan route through Telouet on the last day
Good to know
- The tour starts at your Marrakech riad or hotel on day 1 and ends in Marrakech on day 6.
- It is a private tour: your own driver for the whole route, with a 4×4 on the Paris–Dakar road on day 5.
- Lunch on day 2 is a picnic that you buy before leaving the Dades.
- Nights 1, 2 and 5 are in hotels (Dades Valley, Agdez, Ouarzazate); nights 3 and 4 are in nomad tents.
- Nights in the desert can be cold in winter and days hot in summer, so pack layers, a scarf and sun protection.
- Send us your dates and group size and we will get back to you with availability and a quote.
Want a shorter version? The 5 day nomad desert tour and the 3 day Erg Chigaga tour reach the same dunes in less time. You can also ask us to tailor a route, read what past travellers say or get in touch.
Included and Excluded
- Private tour with your own driver, with a 4×4 on the Paris–Dakar road on day 5
- Pick-up at your Marrakech riad or hotel on day 1
- Night 1 in a hotel in the Dades Valley, with dinner
- Night 2 in a hotel in Agdez, with dinner
- Nights 3 and 4 in nomad tents at Erg Chigaga, with dinner and entertainment
- Night 5 in a hotel in Ouarzazate
- Picnic lunch on day 2 – you buy it before leaving the Dades
- Anything not listed here – please confirm meals, drinks and entrance fees with us when you book
Tour route
- Marrakech – Tizi n'Tichka – Ait Ben Haddou – Skoura – Dades – Todra Gorge – Jebel Sarhro – Tizi n'Tazazert – Agdez – Zagora – Tamegroute – M'Hamid – Erg Chigaga – Lac Iriqui – Taznakht – Ouarzazate – Ait Ben Haddou – Telouet – Marrakech
Itinerary
Your driver picks you up early from your Marrakech riad or hotel and the road climbs through the High Atlas by the Tizi n'Tichka pass, with big mountain views and Berber villages along the way, passing through Ait Ben Haddou. It then reaches the palm gardens of Skoura at the start of the Dades Valley, nicknamed the Valley of a Thousand Kasbahs and counted among the most beautiful areas of Morocco. The evening and the night are at a hotel in the Dades.
After breakfast you drive on to the Todra Gorge and hike for about an hour through the landscape. The route then crosses the Jebel Sarhro and the Tizi n'Tazazert pass, with views over mountains and valleys. Lunch is a picnic that you buy before leaving. In the afternoon the road follows the palm-lined Draa Valley to Agdez, an important stop on the old caravan route and known for its dates, where dinner and the night are in a hotel.
From Agdez the day runs south through the Draa Valley: Zagora with its palm groves and the Jewish quarter of Amzrou first, then Tamegroute, where the Koranic library and the underground kasbah are the main sights. M'Hamid, the last town before the desert, is the stop for lunch, and you then drive out to the Chigaga dunes. Dinner comes with entertainment, and the night is in a nomad tent.
A day in the desert itself: you head off the main tracks, stop to meet a nomad family and learn about their way of life, and picnic in an oasis. The afternoon is free to enjoy the dunes around the camp. Dinner is followed by music, and you sleep in a tent woven from thick goat and camel hair.
After the sunrise and breakfast, the 4×4 follows the former Paris–Dakar Rally track toward Foum Zguid, crossing the Iriqui lake bed and passing the fossil mountain on the way. Lunch is in Taznakht, a Berber village famous for its carpet makers, and the afternoon drive goes straight to your hotel in Ouarzazate.
After breakfast you visit Ait Ben Haddou, the UNESCO World Heritage village whose earthen kasbah has been a location for Gladiator and many other films. Lunch is in a local restaurant. The afternoon follows the old caravan route through the Atlas and the village of Telouet back to Marrakech.
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