Travel from Ouarzazate to Dar Azawad with stop in Tamegroute

Your adventure begins in Ouarzazate, the southern Moroccan city on the edge of the Sahara Desert, where you are met by a driver and local guide at the airport for the four-hour drive (170 miles) to your hotel in the Zagora province. Entering the Draa Valley, for lunch you stop en route in the southern Moroccan village of Tamegroute, an important religious and scholarly center since the 11th century as the home of the Nasiriyya Sufi order. You visit the library here, once one of the most extensive collections in North Africa, and the artisans producing the town’s unique traditional green-glazed pottery.

Continuing your journey, tonight’s destination is your hotel in a tranquil Saharan oasis, just steps away from the Erg Lihoudi Dunes. Authentic architectural design has been incorporated into a lovely hotel and spa; relax after your journey, perhaps in the swimming pool or hammam (Turkish bath), before a candlelit dinner of fine Moroccan-French cuisine overlooking the palm grove.

Transfer from Dar Azawad to desert via “Seven Kasbahs” excursion via four-wheel-drive vehicle and short camel ride

Today you travel deeper into the Sahara, starting your journey with the seven small villages of M’hamid. A perfect introduction to the history and culture of the region, you learn about the region’s different peoples—the Bounou Berbers, Arabs from Ouled Driss, and the ancient Jewish groups. You conclude the day-long tour at the Museum of Traditional Nomadic Life in M’hamid, including a roof-top meal with locals, and, as the sun sets an hour-long dromedary trek through the undulating dunes takes you to your luxury tented camp in the erg, or the “sand sea” of Ch’gaga. Welcomed with torches, candlelight, and indulgent details at your desert camp, you experience the intensity of the desert night sky.

Full day in desert camp with options of camel ride, dune excursion with easy walk (2½ hours)

As you enjoy morning tea or coffee surrounded by desert tranquility, you can choose your excursion for the day. One option is an easy guided camel trek, during which your guides point out the various landscape of erg and regs (desert pavement), the subtle flora and fauna, as well as stories of nomadic life, pausing midday for an authentic lunch of tagine, bread, and black tea. Alternatively, you may set off for an easy guided walk in the dunes, starting with about an hour transfer in a four-wheel-drive vehicle, with a picnic lunch stop. Returning to the camp in the afternoon, you may choose to indulge in a massage in your tent before later enjoying drinks and dinner under the stars, celebrating this unique desert exploration.

Transfer from the desert camp to Ouarzazate

After a final breakfast overlooking the vast Sahara, you make the return journey to Ouarzazate’s airport for your onward travels.