6-day private tour · Fes → Marrakech
6-Day Desert Tour from Fes to Marrakech
A private 6-day desert tour from Fes to Marrakech — a guided day in Fes, cedar forests and the Ziz Valley, two-plus days around the Erg Chebbi dunes with a camel trek and desert camp, the Todra and Dades gorges, the Valley of Roses and Ait Ben Haddou.
About This Tour
6 days -5 nights · Fes → Marrakech
Dreaming of the deep south of Morocco? This private 6-day desert tour from Fes to Marrakech is our most complete north-to-south journey — unhurried enough to enjoy every landscape rather than race through it. From the cedar forests of the Middle Atlas to the snow-capped High Atlas, the palm-studded Ziz Valley and the Erg Chebbi dunes of the Sahara, it strings the country’s finest scenery into one seamless trip.
You’ll start with a guided day in Fes, sleep beside the dunes with a camel trek and desert camp, explore nomad country by 4x4, and wind through the Todra and Dades gorges, the Valley of Roses and UNESCO-listed Ait Ben Haddou before reaching Marrakech. Fully private and easy to tailor.
Tour Highlights
The best of this journey
Photo Gallery
6-Day Desert Tour from Fes to Marrakech
Tour Itinerary
Day by day, 6 days
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Iti1
Day 1: Guided sightseeing in Fes
Your 6-day tour begins in Fes with a private, air-conditioned vehicle and a local bilingual guide. You’ll explore the world’s largest living medieval medina — a UNESCO World Heritage Site — including the Andalusian Mosque, the famous tanneries, the El-Attarine Madrasa and the Al-Qarawiyyin quarter.
You’ll also see the Nejjarine Museum, the Royal Palace gates and the blue Bab Boujloud gate, taking in the most important monuments before returning to your riad in Fes for dinner and the night.
Today is on foot with a licensed local guide, because the old city is a place you have to be walked through to understand.
In Fes that means Fes el-Bali, the walled medina founded in the ninth century, the Chouara tanneries seen from the terraces above, the Al-Qarawiyyin mosque and university, and the mosaic and brass workshops still working in the lanes.
The medina holds some nine thousand lanes, and the ones that matter are the ones a local knows: the brass beaters, the dyers' souk, the bread ovens.
The mosaic workshops still cut each zellij tile by hand with a chisel, which is the only way the pieces lock without a gap.
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Iti2
Day 2: Fes → Ifrane → Azrou → Boulaajoul
After breakfast you’ll leave Fes for the mountains, passing through Ifrane, a 1930s French-built resort town, then the Azrou cedar forest to watch its wild monkeys.
Most of the day winds through beautiful forests, springs and Berber villages before you arrive at Boulaajoul, where you’ll check into a hotel or riad for dinner and the night.
E una giornata di strada nel senso migliore: il paesaggio cambia di continuo e si passa per Fes, the oldest of the imperial cities and Ifrane, with its alpine roofs and cedar-lined streets.
Las paradas las decides tu: un mirador, un cafe de carretera, un pueblo que merece diez minutos a pie.
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Iti3
Day 3: Boulaajoul → Midelt → Ziz Valley → Erfoud → Sahara desert
Today you continue toward the Erg Chebbi dunes, leaving the mountains for the desert. There are many stops for photos, fresh air, panoramic viewpoints and a vast oasis of palm trees along the Ziz Valley.
Reaching Merzouga, you’ll check into your hotel or riad for dinner and the night on the edge of the dunes.
This is one of the longer driving days, and the road is part of the point: it runs past Midelt, the apple town set between the Middle and High Atlas and the Ziz valley, a green ribbon of date palms cut through bare rock.
Non ci sono orari da rispettare se non i vostri, quindi le soste buone hanno il tempo che meritano.
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Iti4
Day 4: Sahara explore day → sunset camel trek
Today is all about the desert. You’ll visit the village of Khamlia for its Gnawa music, then discover old mines, Berber nomads and hidden palm oases.
Back in Merzouga for lunch and a rest, you’ll set out in the evening on a camel trek into the dunes. Night is spent in a well-equipped desert camp with drums and music — a perfect chance to photograph both sunset and sunrise and take in the endless Saharan horizon. Overnight in nomad-style Berber tents.
A full day out in the Sahara: the nomad families who still live in the black tents around the erg, the old Mascara galleries where kohl was mined, the village of Khamlia and its Gnawa musicians, whose sung history came north with the caravans from Mali.
Sunset is watched from a high dune, and the sand shifts through gold, orange and finally a deep red as the light goes.
A 4x4 run over the flat hammada beyond the dunes reaches ground no ordinary car gets to, including the dry lake bed that floods in a wet spring.
The Mascara galleries are old hand-dug workings where kohl was mined, and the tunnels run further into the rock than you would expect.
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Iti5
Day 5: Merzouga → Rissani → Todra Gorge → Dades gorges
Rise early for sunrise over the dunes, then ride your camel back for a shower, breakfast and a relaxed start. From here you’ll take the road toward the gorges, stopping in Rissani to see the historic site of Sijilmassa and its fortified kasbahs.
Continuing through the Ziz valley and gorges, you’ll take a short walk in the Todra Gorge to enjoy the rivers and towering cliffs before reaching the Dades Valley for dinner and an overnight in a riad or traditional hotel.
The afternoon belongs to the desert. Camels are met at the edge of the dunes and the ride out to camp is timed so the sun goes down while you are among the sand.
Dinner is served at the camp, the drums come out after it, and the stars over Erg Chebbi are the reason most people remember this night above the rest.
The camp is far enough from any town that the Milky Way is visible to the naked eye on a clear night.
The tents have proper beds and rugs rather than sleeping mats, and the larger camps have private bathrooms.
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Iti6
Day 6: Dades Valley → Ouarzazate → Ait Ben Haddou → High Atlas → Marrakech
After breakfast you’ll head toward Ouarzazate through the Valley of Roses, reaching Taourirt Kasbah and the Atlas film studios.
From here you’ll visit the Fint Oasis, then take the Tizi n’Tichka road — with a lunch stop — to reach Marrakech in the late afternoon, where your 6-day desert tour from Fes to Marrakech comes to an end.
Oggi la distanza si sente, ma ne vale la pena: la strada attraversa the Dades gorge, where the road folds back on itself between walls of red rock and Ouarzazate, the desert film town behind the Atlas Studios and the Taourirt kasbah.
There is no schedule to hold to but your own, so the good stops get the time they deserve.
What the Price Includes
Everything covered in the price
Price Includes
- ✓ Door-to-door pickup and drop-off at your hotel or riad
- ✓ Private, air-conditioned modern vehicle — exclusively yours for the whole trip
- ✓ Experienced, English-speaking driver-guide who knows the routes, roads and local culture
- ✓ All fuel, tolls and vehicle running costs
- ✓ Camel trek into the dunes — one camel per person, led by a local guide
- ✓ Sunset camel trek across the golden Erg Chebbi dunes
- ✓ Overnight in a Sahara desert camp — private tent in your preferred category (standard or luxury with ensuite)
- ✓ 4-night in a private room at a hotel/riad (At your preferred room type)
- ✓ (Breakfast & Dinner) x 2
- ✓ 4x4 transfer to and from the desert camp, available as an alternative to the camels
Price Excludes
- ✗ Drinks and bottled water (budget a few euros per day)
- ✗ Lunches — roughly €8–12 each at local restaurants along the route
- ✗ Monument and museum entry fees (e.g. Ait Ben Haddou, Atlas Studios) — optional and paid on the day
- ✗ Tips for your driver-guide and camp staff — at your discretion
If this itinerary does not quite match what you had in mind, tell us your ideas and we will rebuild it around them.
Tour Map
Fes → Marrakech
Why Book This Tour
What makes it worth the time
This 6-day desert tour from Fes to Marrakech is designed for travellers who want to see it all — imperial Fes, the Atlas mountains, the Ziz Valley, the Sahara dunes, the gorges and the great kasbahs — without rushing any of it.
From the cedar woods of the Middle Atlas to the golden Erg Chebbi dunes with their glamping camps and camel treks, the gorges, the kasbahs and mysterious Marrakech all combine into a single unforgettable journey, entirely private and paced around you.
Know Before You Go
Practical travel notes
- Pricing is per person and drops as your group grows — the more of you travel together, the lower the price each. Tell us your group size for an exact quote.
- Driving times are estimates for the road only — they don’t count photo stops, sightseeing or meals. Because the tour is private, you set the pace and we stop whenever you like.
- Comfortable 4x4 vehicles seat up to four adults; for five or more we provide a spacious air-conditioned minivan — always private to your group.
- We suggest an 8:00 am start on Day 1 to make the most of the light and the drive, but pickup time is flexible — tell us what suits you.
- Sandboards are free to use at your desert camp — try the dunes at sunrise or sunset. Quad bikes and buggy rides can be arranged on request.
Frequently Asked Questions
Questions about this tour
Are these tours private?
Yes — every tour is 100% private by default. It’s just your group, your driver-guide and your own vehicle, so you experience Morocco entirely at your own pace. Stop whenever you like for photos, a mint tea or a closer look at a village or viewpoint.
Prefer to share costs? We also run small-group departures on popular routes — just contact us and we’ll match you to the right option.
Can the itinerary be customised or changed?
Absolutely. This is your trip — we can adjust the pace, swap or upgrade accommodation, add nights, and build in extra stops or activities. For the smoothest planning, let us know any changes at least two weeks before departure, though we’ll always do our best with last-minute requests too.
Does the price change with group size?
The per-person price goes down as your group grows, because the private vehicle and driver-guide are shared across more travellers. Send us your exact numbers and dates and we’ll send back a clear, all-in quote per person.
Are last-minute bookings cheaper?
Usually not — if anything the opposite. We hand-pick the best riads and desert camps, and the good ones fill up fast, especially in high season (spring and autumn). Booking early secures the best accommodation and a smoother trip.
That said, we do take last-minute bookings when availability allows — message us with your dates and we’ll tell you honestly what’s possible.
Is Morocco safe for tourists?
Yes. Morocco is one of the most welcoming and stable countries in the region, and tourism is central to its economy, so visitor safety is taken seriously — including dedicated tourist police and government-accredited guides.
On a private tour you’re looked after door to door by a driver-guide who knows the routes and the local etiquette. Serious crime is rare and comparable to many European destinations; normal travel common sense is all that’s needed. Morocco is a great choice for couples, families and solo travellers alike.
Booking, deposit and payment
Once we’ve agreed an itinerary that works for you, a small deposit secures your dates with Let’s Visit Morocco (every tour on the site can be tailored to your needs). You simply pay the remaining balance at the start of your tour in Morocco — no large upfront payment required.
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