Things to do in Merzouga: Erg Chebbi beyond the camel ride
What to do in Merzouga besides the camel ride: what fits in one night, what needs a full day around Erg Chebbi, and when each activity works best.
By Ismail8 min read
One night in Merzouga covers the essentials: a sunset camel ride into the dunes of Erg Chebbi, dinner and drums in a desert camp, a sky full of stars and the sunrise from the top of a dune. A second night, or a full day, adds sandboarding and a 4x4 loop around the erg to visit nomad families, hear the Gnawa musicians of Khamlia, see Rissani's market and, after a wet winter, the seasonal lakes. Here is what each one takes, when it works best and what you can skip.
The short answer: one night or two?
Most travellers reach Merzouga in the afternoon after a long drive, about 9 hours from Marrakech or 7 from Fes. They ride into the dunes, sleep in a camp and leave after sunrise. That is what our 3-day Merzouga tour does, and it works, but it leaves room for little more than the camel ride and the camp.
| Activity | Best time | Fits in one night? |
|---|---|---|
| Sunset from a dune | 30–45 minutes before sunset | Yes |
| Camel ride and night in a camp | late afternoon to the next morning | Yes |
| Stargazing | after dinner, best around new moon | Yes |
| Sunrise from a dune | first light | Yes |
| Sandboarding | morning or late afternoon | Only if you arrive early |
| 4x4 loop: nomads, Khamlia, lakes | a morning or a full day | No |
| Rissani market | morning, on market days | On the way out, if the day matches |
Take two nights if you are a photographer (two sunsets, two sunrises), travelling with children, or arriving after a nine-hour drive and would rather not spend your only evening in the desert tired.
Sunset and sunrise from the dunes
The dunes of Erg Chebbi rise up to about 150 metres above the stony plain, and their colour changes fast in the last hour of daylight and the first. You don't need the highest one: any dune with a clear view west (sunset) or east (sunrise) will do.
- Allow time to climb. Soft sand makes every step slow. Follow the ridge rather than going straight up the face, and stop to breathe.
- Be on the crest 30–45 minutes before sunset, when the shadows start to stretch.
- For sunrise, leave camp in the dark with a head torch, and wear a warm layer from November to March.
- Barefoot is pleasant, except at midday in summer, when the sand is far too hot.
Approximate times at Merzouga in the middle of each month, in Moroccan time (GMT, which Morocco now keeps all year):
| Month | Sunrise | Sunset |
|---|---|---|
| November | 06:45 | 17:20 |
| December | 07:05 | 17:15 |
| January | 07:15 | 17:35 |
| February | 06:55 | 18:05 |
| March | 06:25 | 18:25 |
| April | 05:50 | 18:45 |
| May | 05:20 | 19:05 |
| June to July | 05:10–05:25 | 19:20 |
The camel ride and a night in a camp
On our 3-day tour, the camel ride into camp takes about two hours across the dunes, and you ride back after watching the sunrise, in time for breakfast and a shower. The pace is slow and swaying: gentle, but you will feel it in your thighs the next day. Our guide to camel rides in Morocco explains what to expect and how to check that the animals are well kept.
The camp is the evening itself: mint tea on arrival, dinner, then drums and songs around the fire. Camps range from simple nomad tents to tents with real beds and private bathrooms; our page on luxury desert camps in Merzouga explains the difference. Your main luggage usually stays in the vehicle, so you only need a small bag for the night, as in our desert packing list.
Stargazing in the Sahara
Far from city lights and in dry air, the sky over Erg Chebbi is very dark. What you see depends mostly on the moon:
- Around new moon, on a clear night, you see thousands of stars and the Milky Way.
- Around full moon, the dunes glow and you can walk without a torch, but the moonlight hides all but the brightest stars.
New moons this season are on 9 November and 9 December 2026, then 7 January, 6 February, 8 March, 6 April and 6 May 2027; full moons on 24 November and 24 December 2026, then 22 January, 20 February, 22 March and 20 April 2027 (US Naval Observatory). In the few days around a new moon, the moon is either below the horizon all evening or sets soon after dusk. On 14 December 2026, the Geminid meteor shower peaks with no moon in the sky.
A few simple tips:
- Walk about 100 metres away from the camp lights, with someone else, keeping the camp in sight.
- Give your eyes 20 to 30 minutes to adjust. Use a dim or red light: one look at a bright phone screen and you start again.
- Dress for the cold. From November to March, nights can be close to freezing; our guide to what to wear in the Sahara covers layers and hats.
- Photos: a recent phone in night mode, resting on something steady, will catch more stars than you might expect. Turn the flash off.
On winter evenings you see the fainter part of the Milky Way. Its bright centre rises before dawn from about March and is high in the evening sky in summer.
Sandboarding
Sandboarding is snowboarding on a dune: you stand on the board, or sit on it like a sledge, and slide down a steep face. Many camps and hotels at the edge of the dunes have boards for their guests, sometimes free, sometimes for a small fee, so ask where you are staying.
- The ride down takes seconds. The climb back up, board in hand, is the real workout.
- Pick a steep, smooth slope with soft sand at the bottom, away from camel paths.
- Go in the morning or late afternoon. In summer, midday sand is too hot to fall on.
- Children can sit on the board like a sledge.
A day around Erg Chebbi by 4x4
The erg stretches about 28 km from north to south, and a day by 4x4 shows how much lies beyond the line of camps near Merzouga. On our 5-day Marrakech to Merzouga tour, the third day is spent exactly this way: the dunes by 4x4, a visit to nomad families and a stop in Khamlia to listen to Gnawa musicians, then a rest at the hotel before the camel ride at sunset.
Nomad families
Visiting a nomad family usually means tea in their tent and a glimpse of a way of life that very few still lead. Go with a guide who knows the family, accept the tea, ask before any photo and keep the visit short. Our article on nomads in Morocco explains who still lives this way and how to visit respectfully.
Khamlia and its Gnawa musicians
Khamlia is a small village a few kilometres south of Merzouga. Its people are a Black community whose ancestors came from sub-Saharan Africa, many of them brought north by the trans-Saharan caravans as enslaved people, and they have kept Gnawa music alive here for generations. Gnawa, with its iron castanets and drums, has been on UNESCO's list of intangible heritage since 2019.
Visits are simple: musicians from the village, among them the group known as Les Pigeons du Sable, play a few pieces for visitors in a house in the village, usually over mint tea. It is normal to leave a tip for the musicians. Each summer the village also holds its own three-day Gnawa festival, the Sadaka.
Rissani and Erfoud
Rissani, 35 to 40 km north-west of Merzouga, is the nearest real town and the cradle of the Alaouite dynasty, Morocco's royal family since the 17th century. The mausoleum of Moulay Ali Cherif, the dynasty's ancestor, stands on the edge of town, near the scattered ruins of Sijilmassa, the caravan city that Rissani replaced. Its souk is busiest on Sunday, Tuesday and Thursday mornings, with the livestock market early in the day; sources differ slightly, so check locally. Our 3-day and 5-day tours drive through Rissani after the desert night, and with luck it is market day.
On the way in, Erfoud, about 55 km from Merzouga, is known for its fossil workshops, where black limestone full of fossil sea creatures is cut and polished.
The seasonal lakes
Dayet Srij, a shallow lake a few kilometres from Merzouga, fills only with rain. In a normal year it holds water from about November to May, and in a dry year it can stay empty. When it is full, flamingos often come. Yasmina Lake, at the edge of the dunes, appears only after heavy rain, and filled again after the storms of September 2024, a story we tell in floods in the Sahara. Before you travel, ask us whether there is water this year.
Birds in the desert
Merzouga and Dayet Srij form an Important Bird Area, listed by BirdLife as Merzouga/Tamezguidat. Birdwatchers come mostly in spring for desert species: the desert sparrow, the African desert warbler and the Egyptian nightjar, which breeds here from about late February to September. In wet years, flamingos and ducks gather on the lake. Keep your distance from them: BirdLife names visitors walking up to the birds as the main disturbance there. For more on where to see animals responsibly, read our guide to wildlife in Morocco.
Quads and buggies: a straight word
You will see and hear them: rides of an hour or two are sold all around Merzouga. Our honest view: they are noisy, they share the dunes with camel caravans and camps, and BirdLife has noted vehicles wearing away the sparse plants on some dunes. If you want to ride anyway, follow a guide, wear the helmet and goggles, keep away from the camps at sunset and check that your travel insurance covers it. Our article on the Agafay desert has a full safety checklist for quads and buggies.
When to go, and how many nights
October to April is the comfortable season: warm days and cold nights. Summer is very hot, often 40 to 45 °C in the afternoon, and that is when some Moroccans come for a local custom: being buried up to the neck in hot sand for a few minutes, a traditional remedy for rheumatism. If you are curious, ask a doctor first, especially if you have heart or blood-pressure problems. Spring is the windiest season, when a sand storm can blur the horizon for a few hours. Our guide to the best time to visit the Sahara goes through the year season by season.
So, how many nights?
- One night: camel ride, camp, stars, sunrise. That is our 3-day tour from Marrakech, or the 3-day desert tour from Fes to Marrakech, which spends its first night in the dunes.
- Two nights, or a night plus a full day: add the 4x4 loop, Khamlia, sandboarding and an unhurried sunset, as on our 5-day tour.
- Still choosing your dunes? Our comparison of Erg Chebbi and Erg Chigaga helps you decide.
Tell us your travel month on WhatsApp or through our contact page, and we'll tell you honestly what to expect from the moon, the heat and the lakes.