Where to begin! We had an amazing time on the desert tour, our driver Youssef was amazing, kind and patient and went the extra mile for us on a tricky drive where we seemed to encounter every problem from a rock fall in the road, thunderstorms causing flash flooding, a flat tyre and then a sand storm upon arriving to Merzouga. Youssef handled it all brilliantly and safely got us to the Desert, he stopped in places of beauty for us to look at the mountains and gorges, and was informative and pointed out things of interest along the way such as traditional Berber houses and Nomad camps. The drive to the desert is full of amazing views.
The first day we drove to Aït Benhaddou and walked up to the top of the ksar for amazing views, then stopped in Tinghir at the Bougafer hotel for the night, the hotel was ok, it has a pool and beer but the rooms are basic and beds very hard!
The next day we continued on, going to the gorges near Tinghir and picking up our guide Ahmed who showed us the gorge, he was a funny guy who joked with us, he showed us the gardens where the local people grow things, and then to a berber carpet maker family's house to see the traditional carpets. He told us some great philosophy, he is a very senstive man!
Thankfully the rainy and windy weather cleared for us when we arrived in Merzouga and the sun greeted us as we got on our camels to venture into the dunes, the scenary was breathtaking and the sunset was incredible! We stopped in the dunes to try some sand boarding and watch the sunset before heading on to the camp for food and music and dancing. The Berber people at the camp were so friendly and made time to speak to us, and play music on their drums. The stars were absolutely incredible, and we saw shooting stars! It was nice to have our own tent, with a bed. The camp has electricity and you can buy water etc. If you want alcohol though be sure to bring your own! We brought some red wine to drink under the stars. The toilets and showers are in a communal block, they have hot water. The next day we got up mega early (5am) to have breakfast and get on the camels to watch the sunrise, unfortunately it was cloudy so we could not see the sunrise. We made it to Merzouga to meet up with Youssef and promptly set off to Fes, the drive to Fes was beautiful through some incredible scenery. We didn't stop anywhere except for lunch and to see some Monkeys and got back to Fes at about 5pm.
WOULD DEFINITELY RECOMMEND THIS TOUR. GOOD VALUE FOR MONEY.
