The Golden Dunes of the Sahara Desert
Let's say that after 8 hours of constant non-stop driving, one would expect to arrive in a stunning place. One of those places you would never imagine could exist. Well, that was exactly the case. After well over 8 hours of driving (on the day of my birthday), we did arrive in one of the most exceptional places I have ever seen in my life. Completely different from the desert I had been to previously (not that I had been in too many deserts before).
Throughout the drive, it was extremely interesting to see how the buildings and inhabited areas gradually thinned out as we made our way south, until they vanished completely around half an hour before our arrival. The same thing goes for the environment around us, which gradually changed as we went further along the road: from tall green mountains, to fields filled with yellow flowers, to grey-ish gravel-like lands, to ultimately yellow sand dunes from the distance.
It was at this moment when we noticed the absolute emptiness which was surrounding our vehicle. It was quite bizarre. We went from a normal road in the middle of the desert villages, to the complete end of a paved road which led directly onto the dunes. Our driver took a sharp turn, and our 8-hour drive became a dune bashing experience out of nowhere, as he drove at high speeds through the sand in order to get us to our camp.
Where Merzouga actually is
Merzouga is a village in southeastern Morocco, in the Drâa-Tafilalet region, close enough to the Algerian border that the dunes you climb effectively run along it. The village itself is unremarkable in the best way — low buildings, a few shops, dust. Nobody comes for the village. They come because Erg Chebbi begins where it ends.
One thing worth knowing before you go, because it slightly changes what you think you are looking at: Erg Chebbi is not the Sahara proper. It is a sand sea, cut off from the main body of the desert by hammada, the barren stony plain you will have been driving across for hours. Standing on a dune at sunrise with nothing but more sand in every direction, the distinction stops mattering. But it does explain why the approach feels so unpromising, and why the arrival lands the way it does.
Our camp sits a few kilometres south of the village, near Tannamast, on the western flank of the erg. We never had to think about the last leg at all — the camp arranged the whole journey, and the same vehicle that collected us from the medina in Marrakech kept going until the track gave out and we were on sand. Close enough to civilisation that the logistics never became an ordeal. Far enough that once the engine cut, the only sound was wind moving grains against the side of the tent.
Merzouga Luxury Desert Camp
When the car finally came to a stop, the sun was already low and the dunes around us had turned from yellow to a deep, burnt orange. Merzouga Luxury Desert Camp sits right at the foot of the Erg Chebbi dunes, and the first impression is honestly a little unreal: a cluster of Berber-style tents laid out in the sand, with nothing behind them but more dunes, each one taller than the last.
Calling it a "camp" does not really do it justice. Our tent was essentially a hotel room made of fabric. Inside, there was a king-size bed, a small lounge corner with traditional Moroccan furniture and lamps, and, the part I was most grateful for after more than eight hours in a car, a private bathroom with a proper hot shower and toilet. It is the kind of place where you completely forget you are sleeping in the middle of the desert, right up until you step outside and sand is the only thing you can see.
The rest of the camp is built around the same idea. There is a large communal dining tent, decorated in a traditional Saharan style, where meals are served, and a fire pit out in the open, surrounded by seating, where guests gather once the sun goes down. Everything is close together, yet with the dunes rising on every side, it never feels crowded.
Dune Bashing on Quads
We did not have long to settle in. Almost as soon as we had dropped our bags in the tent, we were handed helmets and walked over to the quads. If the last stretch of the drive had been a small taste of dune bashing, this was the real thing, and this time we were the ones holding the handlebars.
Following our guide, we climbed up the faces of the dunes, rode along their ridges and dropped down the other side, over and over again, while the setting sun turned the sand a different colour every few minutes. The dunes completely mess with your sense of scale: what looks like a small hill from the bottom turns out to be a proper climb, and what looks like a gentle slope from the top turns out to be anything but. It was one of the most fun things I have ever done and, to say the least, a very good way to start a birthday evening.
A small piece of advice: wear something you do not mind getting covered in sand, and bring sunglasses and a scarf to cover your face. You will still find sand in places you did not know existed.
An Aperitif Around the Fire
By the time we got back to camp, we were covered in sand from head to toe, so the hot shower in our tent was more than welcome. Once washed and changed, we headed out to the fire, where we had an aperitif as the last light disappeared behind the dunes.
This was probably the moment the place really sank in. Once the sun is gone, the desert changes completely: the temperature drops quickly, the silence becomes almost total, and the sky above you slowly fills with stars. Sitting by the fire, drink in hand, with nothing in front of us but darkness and dunes, it was hard to believe that we had woken up that same morning in Marrakech.
A Private Birthday Dinner in the Desert
What made the night truly unforgettable, though, was dinner. For my birthday, my girlfriend had organised a private dinner for the two of us, away from the communal dining tent, with a table set just for us.
I am not sure there is a better place to celebrate a birthday. The staff took care of everything, bringing course after course of Moroccan food, and for the whole evening it felt as if we had the desert to ourselves. No phones ringing, no traffic, no noise: just the two of us, a good meal, and an endless sea of sand in every direction. It is one of those evenings I know I will remember for the rest of my life, and I owe it entirely to my girlfriend.
Back to Marrakech
The next morning came far too quickly. After only one night in the desert, our driver was already waiting to take us back to Marrakech, and it was time to say goodbye to the dunes.
The drive back was the same journey in reverse, and watching it unfold the other way round was almost as interesting as the first time. The dunes slowly shrank behind us, the sand gave way to the grey, gravel-like plains, then to the fields of yellow flowers and finally to the tall green mountains, while the villages and buildings gradually reappeared along the road. By the time we arrived back in Marrakech, the desert already felt like a dream.
Before You Go
- Plan for the drive. Merzouga is well over eight hours from Marrakech by car, each way. With a single night at the camp, as we did, you spend more time on the road than in the desert, so it is worth knowing what you are signing up for. For us, it was worth every hour.
- Let the camp organise the transfer. Ours arranged the whole journey, from the pick-up in the Marrakech medina to the drop-off the following day, so we never had to think about the logistics, or about driving on sand.
- Pack layers. Even after a hot day, the desert cools down quickly once the sun sets, so bring something warm for the evening by the fire.
- Arrange special requests in advance. If you are celebrating something, like a birthday, speak to the camp ahead of time about a private dinner or anything else you have in mind.
