The 4 days desert tour from Fes is a private round trip that leaves Fes, crosses the Middle Atlas to the Erg Chebbi dunes, gives you a full day in the Sahara, then loops west through the Todgha gorge and the Dades valley before returning north to Fes. You travel in your own air-conditioned vehicle with a driver and sleep one night in the desert and one in a kasbah hotel. Because it starts and finishes in the same city, your onward plans from Fes stay untouched.
Here is something nobody else mentions, and you drive through it twice. On the Ziz road between Midelt and Erfoud the tarmac vanishes into a tunnel cut straight through red rock at Foum Zabel. Forty legionnaires of the French Foreign Legion pierced it by hand between July 1927 and 1928, in roughly six months, and the inscription over the north portal still reads: “La montagne leur barrait la route… La Légion l’exécuta” — the mountain barred their road, and the Legion carried out the order anyway.
Key facts
| Duration | 4 days / 3 nights, round trip |
| Start and finish | Fes, both ends |
| Total driving | About 1,320 km over four days |
| Longest day | The return, 536 km and about 8 h 40 |
| Day with no transfer | Day 2, spent entirely around Merzouga |
| Nights in the Sahara | 1, at Erg Chebbi |
| Group type | Private only; nobody else joins your vehicle |
| Price | On request; written quote within 24 hours |
Quick answers
Does this loop really return to Fes?
Yes, it is a full loop indeed. You go south to the dunes, spend a whole day there, swing west to the gorges, and then come back north. Consequently you can keep your riad booking in Fes and leave your big suitcase behind.
Which day has the most driving?
The last one, at 536 km and about 8 h 40. That surprises people, so it is worth explaining why, and the answer is pure geography: there is no road north across the High Atlas from the Dades valley. Therefore day four retraces east to Errachidia before it can turn north for Fes.
How much driving is there in total?
Overall, roughly 1,320 kilometres. Google routes the outbound chain, days one and three together, at 726 km and 11 h 51, which matches our leg-by-leg figures closely. Day two adds only a short 4×4 circuit around the dunes.
Where do you sleep?
Specifically, one night in a desert camp at Erg Chebbi, one night in a hotel or kasbah in the Dades valley, and one more on the way. We confirm the exact places in writing once you send your dates.
Is four days better than three?
For a round trip from Fes, obviously yes. Three days means driving to the dunes and straight back, whereas four lets you add the Todgha gorge and the Dades valley without losing your full desert day.
What makes the 4 days desert tour from Fes different
Most desert trips out of Fes run there and back along the same road. In contrast, this one goes down one way and returns another, so the Todgha gorge and the Dades valley come free with the geography rather than as an extra day.
The Legionnaire’s Tunnel at Foum Zabel
Between Midelt and Erfoud the road enters the Ziz gorges, and at Foum Zabel it passes through a tunnel 62 metres long, 8 metres wide and originally 3 metres high, later raised in the 1950s and 1960s. Forty men of the 3rd Foreign Infantry Regiment cut it by hand in about six months, using no machinery. One legionnaire died during the work, and the tunnel carries his name. Almost every Fes desert tour drives through without stopping; we pull over so you can read the plaque.
Ifrane and the coldest record in Africa
Two hours out of Fes you stop in Ifrane, which sits at 1,665 metres and looks more alpine than Moroccan. On 11 February 1935 a thermometer here read −23.9 °C, and that remains the lowest temperature ever measured anywhere in Africa. Six hours later you are standing on a Sahara dune, which is a contrast few countries can offer in one day.
The cedar forest and its endangered monkeys
Shortly beyond Ifrane the road enters the Atlas cedar forest around Azrou, home to Barbary macaques. This is the only macaque species living outside Asia and the only monkey in Africa north of the Sahara. Moreover, the IUCN lists it as Endangered, with roughly 12,000 to 21,000 left across Morocco and Algeria, so please do not feed them.
Highlights of the 4 days desert tour from Fes
Going south on day one
- Ifrane at 1,665 m, where Africa’s record low of −23.9 °C was measured in 1935
- Azrou cedar forest and its Barbary macaques, listed as Endangered
- Midelt, the apple town between the Middle and the High Atlas
- Ziz gorges and the Legionnaire’s Tunnel at Foum Zabel, cut by hand in 1927
- Palm ribbon of the Ziz valley and the kasbahs along its edge
- Sunset camel trek into the Erg Chebbi dunes, 28 km long and up to 150 m high
A whole day in the Sahara
- Sunrise from a dune, with no drive waiting for you afterwards
- 4×4 circuit to Dayet Srji, the seasonal lake that fills after heavy rain
- Abandoned mining village of Mfis and the black-stone fossil fields
- Tea with a nomad family who still move with their herds
- Gnawa music at Khamlia, played on the guembri and metal qraqeb
- Sandboarding, a second camel ride, or an afternoon of doing nothing
Gorges and valleys on day three
- Rissani, beside the ruins of Sijilmassa, founded in 757 AD on the gold route
- Rissani souk, held on Sunday, Tuesday and Thursday
- Todgha gorge, where the canyon floor narrows to roughly ten metres
- Limestone walls rising some 160 metres above that narrow point
- Dades valley, known as the Valley of a Thousand Kasbahs
- Hairpin road and the rock formations called monkey fingers
The 4 days desert tour from Fes, day by day
Day 1: Fes – Ifrane – Azrou – Midelt – Ziz valley – Erfoud – Merzouga
The 4 days desert tour from Fes begins early, because this is the long southbound day. Soon the road climbs into the Middle Atlas and the first stop appears: Ifrane, all pitched roofs and clean air, where we take coffee. Then comes the cedar forest at Azrou, where the macaques gather by the roadside. After Midelt we break for lunch.
In the afternoon the landscape changes entirely. The road drops into the Ziz gorges, passes through the Legionnaire’s Tunnel and follows an unbroken palm grove south through Errachidia and Erfoud. By late afternoon the golden wall of Erg Chebbi appears. Finally a camel trek carries you over the crests to camp while the sand turns orange, then pink. Dinner is served under the tent and the drums last as long as you want.
- Driving: 472 km, about 7 h 45
- Overnight: desert camp at Erg Chebbi
- Meals: dinner
Day 2: A full day in the Merzouga desert
Above all, get up for sunrise, since the light changes minute by minute and the silence is total. After breakfast a 4×4 takes you beyond the main dune cordon to Dayet Srji, then to the abandoned mining village of Mfis and the fossil beds that made this corner of Morocco famous with geologists. You take tea with a nomad family, and afterwards you continue to Khamlia, a village founded by descendants of sub-Saharan communities, where Gnawa musicians play their hypnotic rhythms.
Afterwards the afternoon belongs to you: sandboarding, a second camel ride, or a book in the shade. This is the day the whole trip is built around, because nothing on it is a transfer.
- Driving: local 4×4 circuit, about 60 km
- Overnight: desert camp or hotel beside the dunes
- Meals: breakfast and dinner
Day 3: Merzouga – Rissani – Todgha gorge – Dades valley
On day three of the 4 days desert tour from Fes you leave the sand and head west. The first stop is Rissani, the market town that grew beside Sijilmassa, the medieval city founded in 757 AD at the northern end of the trans-Saharan gold route. If it is a Sunday, Tuesday or Thursday, the souk is on, and it remains one of the last genuine date and livestock markets in the south.
Then the road reaches the Todgha gorge. At the narrowest point the canyon floor shrinks to about ten metres while the limestone walls rise some 160 metres on either side, and further along the cliffs reach three to four hundred. Climbers come here from all over the world. Afterwards you continue to the Dades valley, where the hairpin road and the rock formations known as monkey fingers make one of the most photographed landscapes in Morocco. Since today is short, you arrive with the light still good.
- Driving: 253 km, about 3 h 55
- Overnight: hotel or kasbah in the Dades valley
- Meals: breakfast and dinner
Day 4: Dades – Tinghir – Errachidia – Midelt – Azrou – Fes
The last day of the 4 days desert tour from Fes is the longest, and the reason is geographic rather than commercial. No road crosses the High Atlas northward from the Dades valley, so you retrace east along the edge of the desert to Errachidia before turning north. You climb the Ziz once more, pass back through the Legionnaire’s Tunnel, cross Midelt and re-enter the cedar forest in the late afternoon. Ultimately you reach Fes in the evening, and your driver drops you at your riad or at the airport.
- Driving: 536 km, about 8 h 40
- Overnight: not included; drop-off in Fes
- Meals: breakfast
Route, distances and driving times of the 4 days desert tour from Fes
Every figure below for the 4 days desert tour from Fes was checked leg by leg against Google Maps rather than copied from a brochure. Distances shift a little with your exact riad and with road works, so treat them as close estimates.
| Leg | Distance | Time |
| First day: Fes to Merzouga via Ifrane, Azrou, Midelt and Erfoud | 472 km | 7 h 45 |
| Second day: 4×4 circuit around the Merzouga dunes | about 60 km | 3 h |
| Third day: Merzouga to the Dades valley via Rissani and Todgha | 253 km | 3 h 55 |
| Return: Dades to Fes via Errachidia, Midelt and Azrou | 536 km | 8 h 40 |
| Total | about 1,320 km | about 23 h 20 |
Google routes the outbound chain, days one and three combined, at 726 km and 11 h 51, which matches those legs almost exactly. Similarly the return figure comes from a direct Maps query on the Dades to Fes road through Errachidia.
Photo gallery of the 4 days desert tour from Fes
These photographs of the 4 days desert tour from Fes follow the order of the itinerary, from the lanes of the Fes medina to the gorges of the south and back. Of course you can click any image to open it at full size.
What is included and what is not included
Included
- Private air-conditioned vehicle with an experienced driver, fuel and tolls
- Spanish-speaking, English-speaking or French-speaking driver on request
- Pick-up and drop-off at your riad, hotel or the airport in Fes
- 3 nights of accommodation: desert camp plus hotels or kasbahs on the road
- Sunset camel trek into the Erg Chebbi dunes
- 4×4 excursion around Merzouga with the nomad visit and Gnawa music at Khamlia
- Dinner on the nights marked in the itinerary and breakfast every morning
- Bottled water in the vehicle throughout
Not included
- Flights and travel insurance
- Lunches, drinks and personal spending
- Entrance fees to monuments and museums
- Optional activities such as sandboarding, quad bikes or a second camel ride
- Tips for the driver and the camp staff
- Accommodation in Fes before or after the tour
Map of the 4 days desert tour from Fes
The map draws the outbound half: south from Fes to Merzouga on day one, then west to Tinghir and the Dades gorges on day three, which Google measures at 726 km and 11 h 51. Day four is not drawn separately, because it simply runs back east along the same desert road to Errachidia and then climbs north to Fes.
Accommodation on the 4 days desert tour from Fes
On the 4 days desert tour from Fes you sleep once in the Sahara and twice on the road. We do not publish property names here, because availability changes weekly and advertising a camp we cannot confirm would be dishonest. Instead, once you send your dates we reply with the actual places held for you, with photographs.
| Level | Erg Chebbi camp | Dades valley |
| Standard | Berber tent, shared bathrooms, solar power | Simple hotel beside the river |
| Comfort | Tent with beds and a private bathroom | Kasbah hotel with a valley view |
| Luxury | Suite tent, real bed, hot shower, usually Wi-Fi | Upper-range kasbah hotel |
Price
The price of the 4 days desert tour from Fes depends on three things: firstly how many of you are travelling, then which comfort level you choose, and finally the season. We do not print a number here, since a figure for four people in November would mislead two people at Easter. So tell us your dates, the group size and the level you want, and a written quote comes back within twenty-four hours.
How to book the 4 days desert tour from Fes
To begin with, send us your arrival date in Fes and the number of travellers. Then email favoritesmoroccotours@gmail.com, message WhatsApp +212 786 278943, or use our contact page. Nothing is charged until the itinerary and the camp are confirmed in writing.
Four days, three days, or one way? An honest comparison
| Point of comparison | This 4-day loop | 3-day loop | 3 days one way |
| Ends in | Fes | Fes | Marrakech |
| Todgha and Dades | Included | Not on the route | Included |
| Full desert day | Yes | Yes | No |
| Longest driving day | 8 h 40 | 7 h 45 | 7 h 45 |
In short, take this loop if you must come back to Fes and still want the gorges. Otherwise the 3 days tour from Fes to Merzouga is simpler, while the 3 days tour from Fes to Marrakech avoids the long return altogether by finishing in another city.
Know before you go on the 4 days desert tour from Fes
What to pack
Bring comfortable shoes, sunglasses, a hat and sun cream. Add a warm jacket for the desert night and the mountain passes, even in summer, because the temperature drops sharply after dark. A scarf is also useful against blown sand. Sockets are European, two round pins at 220 volts, and a power bank matters because standard camps run on solar panels. Finally, our guide on what to wear in Morocco has a fuller list.
Money, water and luggage
The currency is the dirham, and you change money in Fes before leaving, since there is no bank at the dunes. Cards work in the cities, though cash matters everywhere south of Midelt. Do not drink tap water; instead, bottled water is included in the vehicle. One large suitcase plus one cabin bag per person fit comfortably, and because the trip returns to Fes you can leave the big case at your riad.
Best time of year
Generally, March to May and September to November give the best weather: mild days and comfortable desert nights. July and August are hot at midday in the south, so we start earlier. Meanwhile, from December to February the Sahara night is cold and snow can slow the Middle Atlas passes for a few hours. There is more in our page on the best time to visit Morocco.
Reviews
Currently, Favorites Morocco Tours holds a 5.0 out of 5 rating on TripAdvisor from 14 traveller reviews. Those reviews cover the agency as a whole rather than this particular route, so we do not present them as a score for the 4 days desert tour from Fes. Of course you can read all of them, unedited, on our TripAdvisor page. In short, we do not publish invented testimonials on this website.
Frequently asked questions about the 4 days desert tour from Fes
Why is the last day longer than the first?
Simply because of the mountains, not the schedule. No road crosses the High Atlas northward from the Dades valley, so the only way back to Fes is east to Errachidia and then north through Midelt. That makes 536 km against 472 on the way down.
Can we skip the Dades valley to shorten the return?
You can, and occasionally travellers do. Turning back from Todgha instead of continuing to Dades saves roughly 130 km on day four. However, you then miss the hairpin road and the monkey-finger rocks, which is what most people came for.
What is the Legionnaire’s Tunnel?
Specifically, it is a 62-metre tunnel through red rock at Foum Zabel, on the Ziz road between Midelt and Erfoud. Forty legionnaires of the 3rd Foreign Infantry Regiment cut it by hand between July 1927 and 1928, in about six months, and one of them died during the work. You pass through it on day one and again on day four.
Will I see the Barbary macaques?
Usually, yes. They gather near the roadside in the cedar forest between Ifrane and Azrou, so the driver stops there in both directions. Please do not feed them, because the species is listed as Endangered and human food harms them.
How cold does the desert get at night?
Colder than people expect. Especially in December and January the Sahara night can approach freezing, and even in spring it drops sharply after dark. Camps provide heavy blankets, but bring a warm layer of your own.
Which meals are part of the price?
Breakfast every morning and dinner on the nights marked in the itinerary. Lunches are not included, because stopping where you feel like stopping makes a better trip than a fixed restaurant list. Besides, lunch on the road costs very little in Morocco.
Is the camel trek compulsory?
No. Instead a 4×4 can take you to the camp, at no extra charge. Some travellers ride out at sunset and then come back by car in the morning.
Can the tour end in Marrakech rather than Fes?
Yes, though that becomes a different itinerary and a different price, since the vehicle has to return. In any case, our 3-day and 4-day one-way routes to Marrakech already cover that direction.
How much luggage fits?
Generally one large suitcase plus one cabin bag per person. We use minivans or minibuses depending on group size, and for six travellers or more we assign a larger vehicle so luggage never takes a passenger seat.
Is there Wi-Fi at the camp?
Standard camps run on solar panels with limited charging hours and therefore usually have no Wi-Fi. Luxury camps generally offer both, along with hot water and a private bathroom. Bring a power bank whichever you choose.
Do you stop at shops on commission?
No. Instead we stop at the fossil workshops near Erfoud only if you ask, and there is no obligation to buy anything anywhere on the route.
How far in advance should I book?
Two to three weeks is comfortable most of the year, and longer for Easter, August and the Christmas period, when the good camps fill first. Even so, last-minute departures are often still possible.
Do I need a visa for Morocco?
Citizens of Spain, Mexico, Colombia, Argentina, Chile, Peru and most Latin American countries do not need one for tourist stays of up to ninety days. Besides, a passport valid for six months is enough. Rules change, so confirm your own nationality before you fly.
Who we are
Favorites Morocco Tours is a local agency with drivers from the south of Morocco, several of whom grew up in the villages this road passes. Furthermore, we run the 4 days desert tour from Fes as a private trip only, we do not sell seats in a shared minibus, and we do not build commission stops into the itinerary. Finally, there is more about the team on our about us page.
Other routes that start in Fes
- 3 days tour from Fes to Merzouga and back
- 3 days tour from Fes to Marrakech
- 4 days desert tour from Fes to Marrakech
- 5 days Fes to Merzouga and Marrakech
- 6 days Fes to Marrakech through mountains and imperial cities
- All tours from Fes
More Morocco routes
- Departures from Marrakech
- 4 days from Errachidia to Marrakech
- 3 days in the desert from Errachidia
- Morocco tours
Book your 4 days desert tour from Fes
Ready to go? Then send your dates, the number of travellers and the comfort level you want, and a complete quote comes back within twenty-four hours. Otherwise, email favoritesmoroccotours@gmail.com, message WhatsApp +212 786 278943, or use the contact page. Of course we will be glad to build this 4 days desert tour from Fes with you from start to finish.
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