Our private 3 Day Marrakech To Fes Desert Tour offers an immersive Moroccan experience. The desert as the road between the two great imperial cities. Our 3 day Marrakech to Fes desert tour is a private, one-way crossing from Marrakech over the Atlas and through the Sahara to Fes, with a night at a Berber camp at Erg Chebbi in the middle.
Day one climbs the Tizi n’Tichka to Ait Ben Haddou and on through the Dades Valley; day two runs the Todra Gorge and the Road of a Thousand Kasbahs to Merzouga for a sunset camel trek and a night in the dunes. After sunrise you drive north past Rissani and Erfoud, over the Middle Atlas cedar forests and the macaques of Azrou, into Fes by evening. Private 4×4, English-speaking Berber driver.
Want more desert time? The 5-day Marrakech to Fes desert tour adds two imperial cities.
Our private 3 Day Marrakech To Fes Desert Tour offers an immersive Moroccan experience. This 3-day Marrakech to Fes desert tour packs an incredible variety of experiences into just three days.
| Day | Highlights | Overnight |
|---|---|---|
| Day 1 | Marrakech → Tizi n'Tichka → Ait Ben Haddou → Todra Gorge → Merzouga (sunset camel trek) | desert camp at Erg Chebbi |
| Day 2 | Sahara sunrise → Rissani → Ziz Valley → Errachidia → Midelt | Midelt |
| Day 3 | Midelt → Azrou cedar forest → Ifrane → Fes | Fes |
Pickup at 7:00 AM from your Marrakech hotel or riad. We travel south, climbing over the spectacular High Atlas mountains via the Tizi n’Tichka pass (2,260 m) and pausing for panoramic views of the green valleys below. We descend to the ancient fortified village of Ait Ben Haddou — the UNESCO World Heritage mud-brick kasbah made famous in films like Gladiator, Game of Thrones, and Lawrence of Arabia, which you will explore with your guide.
Following a quick lunch near Ouarzazate, we drive east past palm oases to the dramatic Todra Gorge, walking between its vertical 300-metre red rock walls. We then proceed past the fossil town of Erfoud to Merzouga. Here, a 1.5-hour sunset camel trek takes you deep into the golden Erg Chebbi dunes as the desert sky changes to amber and violet. We arrive at our luxury desert camp, where a warm Berber dinner, live drumming around the campfire, and en-suite tents under a star-filled sky await.
Accommodation: desert camp at Erg Chebbi (dinner and breakfast).
Wake early to climb a dune and watch the magical Sahara sunrise, followed by a camel ride back to Merzouga for breakfast (with optional sandboarding down the dunes). We stop in the historic market town of Rissani, the birthplace of the Alaouite dynasty, to see its vibrant traditional souk. We then head north through the spectacular Ziz Valley — Morocco’s grand canyon — where the road winds along a palm-lined gorge flanked by towering red cliffs, stopping at an overlook above a million date palms.
Our journey continues past the desert outpost of Errachidia and climbs into the Atlas range, arriving in the apple-growing mountain town of Midelt by late afternoon. Here you can enjoy the cool mountain air and relax at your hotel.
Accommodation: hotel in Midelt (dinner and breakfast).
After breakfast, we travel north through the scenic Middle Atlas mountains to the ancient Azrou cedar forest. This pristine forest is home to majestic, centuries-old Atlas cedar trees and playful Barbary macaques — the only wild monkeys in Africa north of the Sahara — who often come down to the roadside. We then stop in Ifrane, a clean, Alpine-style mountain town known as “Little Switzerland” due to its sloped red roofs and green parks, offering a striking contrast to the desert landscapes of yesterday.
We arrive in the ancient city of Fes in the early afternoon, dropping you off at your medina hotel or riad. If you have time, we highly recommend adding an extra day to explore Fes el-Bali, where a local guide can show you the Chouara tanneries, the Bou Inania madrasa, and the historic Al-Qarawiyyin university. When you are ready, send us a message.
Our private 3 Day Marrakech To Fes Desert Tour offers an immersive Moroccan experience.
Our private 3 Day Marrakech To Fes Desert Tour offers an immersive Moroccan experience.
Our private 3 Day Marrakech To Fes Desert Tour offers an immersive Moroccan experience.
See the full route of our 3-day Marrakech to Fes desert tour on the map below:
Route: Marrakech → Tizi n’Tichka → Ait Ben Haddou → Ouarzazate → Todra Gorge → Merzouga (Erg Chebbi) → Rissani → Ziz Valley → Errachidia → Midelt → Azrou → Ifrane → Fes
Total distance: ~1050 km (one-way)
