Merzouga - "The door of The Sahara Desert"

One of my goals during the trip around Morocco was to explore The Sahara Desert. I had a taste of this sand land while travelling through Egypt and Tunesia, and I was absolutely blown away by it, so Moroccan side definitely had to be seen.

Dunes of Erg Chebbi, Merzouga, Sahara Desert

How to get to see the Moroccan side of Sahara Desert? I would definitely advise you to do a road trip, as I did, because that way you get to see the places you want and you can stop anytime, anywhere you would like to admire the beauty of the scenery, which - believe me - is really stunning! You won't be able to do it when taking a bus.

So the best way is to drive from Marrakesh or Agadir over the Atlas Mountains to the first "Door Of Sahara Desert", a city called Quarzazate. It's plenty to do and see there (will introduce you to this place in another post as it's really worth to see), so you can easily do a overnight stop here to explore the city itself and a UNESCO World Heritage Site called Ait Ben Haddou. Your next stop could be Dades and Tinghir as they are on the way. Then you can head either to Erfoud and Rissani afterwards, or alternatively - head south to Alnif and then Rissani. Once there, drive through the town and follow the road south-east for 40 km (24 miles), which will take you to Merzouga, as the only access to our destination is through town Er Rissani.

Gate to Sahara Desert, Er Rissani

So what can we say about Merzouga? Well, it's an interesting village on the Sahara Desert in Morocco, on the edge of Erg Chebbi, it's a a 50km long and 5km wide set of sand dunes that reaches up to 350 m high (the highest in Morocco). It's also called "the doors of Sahara Desert".

                            One of the main attractions in the region - camel ride through the desert

Taking a camel safari trip through the dunes, can give you a taste of Berbers' life - you get a chance to sleep overnight in a "Hotel Under The Thousands Stars" - a tent in the middle of the desert:)

And in the early morning, you can climb Erg Chebbi dune to watch the sunrise from this amazing place...

A night away from any civilization - overnight stay in a tent in the middle of the desert... what a way to watch the stars

Sunset...

Sunrise on the Sahara Desert

One of the most interesting things to do is to try sandboarding, so many amateurs of this sport come here from all over the world to enjoy it.

Sandboarding

And I absolutely love the ride on the camels, they are so calm and friendly animals!

Camels... camels... lovely camels everywhere! :D

The best time of the year to visit Merzouga? Well, I would say it's around February to April, when it's spring time here, with temperatures from 25 C to 30 C during the day and cool nights. Summer time is really unbearable because of the heat, but the nights are still pretty cold. Winter months (November to February) are cool, but sunny, with daily temperatures not so high and an occasional drizzle risk (a couple of days per month on average). 

Hope you enjoyed reading about my memories from Merzouga and will be inspired to pay it a visit, when you are around. You can explore the village by foot, as it's small and easily walkable. Just protect yourself from too big heat. And don't miss a chance of enjoying the dunes, getting there by camels, 4WD, quads or motorbike. There is a few desert hotels for more luxury, but my choice would always be a "Hotel Under The Thousand Stars". Would you go for it too?

See you soon,

Martita :)