Sahara Desert Easy Travel Hack

Maroc (French for Morocco)

This multi-city Morocco trip had my efficiency stomped.

To date, it was the hardest itinerary I’ve had to plan.

I would be traveling from the city vibes of Casablanca to the deserts of Errachidia and sand dunes of Merzouga (Sahara Desert/ Erg Chebi).

Next would be Marrakech, The Atlas Mountains, Fes, Rabat, Tangier, and the mountains of The Blue City (Chefchaouen).

As I was experiencing the constant trial and error, I knew I had to write a separate blog to make this process easier for others wanting to visit.

If you’re short on time like I was, avoid the popular (minimum) three day trips out of Marrakech. Two out of the three days are spent traveling.

There were also a lot of bad reviews about camp conditions and being ripped off.

I only had nine days in total to work with. So all the more reason why that option would not have worked!

Whether its at the beginning of your trip (like mine) or at the end, start in Morocco’s largest city.

Casablanca’s size and location make it an easy hub for travel all over Morocco.

Errachidia (Era-shidia, I was pronouncing it pre-trip in my head with a “K” sound) is less than an hour flight from Casablanca and a two hour scenic car trip to Merzouga (Sahara Desert).

Voila! Three days turned into three hours!

This leg of the trip was the most complicated and that’s one of the reasons I wanted to do it first.

Royal Air Maroc is the only airline that flies to Errachidia out of Casablanca. They only fly out on certain days with usually one flight.

Most seemed to be late nights (11 pm).

Plan to make overnight arrangements in Errachidia since I learned camps may not allow check-in until after 3pm.

Fas (Turkish for Morocco)

My flight into Casablanca (Mohamed V Airport) arrived early morning so I booked a hotel instead of suffering at the airport for eight hours.

Though the reviews were hit or miss, I decided on the Relax Airport Hotel via Booking.com. The free airport shuttle was a plus.

Beware that everyone may not speak English at the airport, but be sure to give security the name of the hotel and tell them that you don’t have a voucher; just a reservation. There’s a specific area where hotel shuttles pick-up.

Once we (a friend traveled with me) arrived at Relax Hotel, we joined a line with all of the other passengers but found out they had free night vouchers.

We had to cross the adjoining lobby to Atlas Sky Airport Hotel since we had used Booking.

As favor would have it, it was much nicer and a better bang for the 72 bucks nightly. I wasn’t complaining! since it was listed as four stars online.

Unfortunately, the restaurants closed by the time we had freshened up. We used the extra time to get to the airport early.

Depending on your gate, the airport can be a maze and the signs are no help. My advice would be to eat before you arrive at your gate since food options may be limited there.

Camping…But Make it Luxurious (Sahara Desert)

As for the desert camp in Merzouga, I chose Itran Royal Camp for beauty and luxury (especially in the form of air conditioning).

It was three hundred euros per night with breakfast and lunch included.

If I was going to the Sahara Desert, I figured it was perfect for my first foray into glamping.

This trip was originally an August turned December so now heating was more important than AC.

In addition to the camp being booked months in advance, I also booked the transfer in writing from Errachidia.

Viator and Errachidia’s airport (Moulay Ali Cheriff) offered transportation but since I was unsure of logistics,  I figured booking directly with the camp was easier.

Some camps only use camels as transport. I didn’t want my first camel ride to be hours long like I’ve read about.

If you’re self booking, please check this info because it will determine how much luggage you can bring. This “camel transfer” sometimes has an additional roundtrip fee attached.

Other camps may offer vehicle transfers (4X4’s are the only vehicles that can go off road in the dunes) and may charge extra for that also. I saw fees from 20 to 50 euros per person each way.

It all depends on where the camp is located.

Merzouga or one of the surrounding towns is used as a transfer point. But don’t be like me, read along to avoid the pitfalls.

As far as excursion rates, Itran Royal Camp camel rides were $20 for two hours and ATVs were $80 per hour. These were much higher than normal, but I was willing to pay for convenience.

The Customer (outside of America) is not Always Right

About a month before travel, Itran Royal Camp started giving shifty responses to my confirmation inquiries via Booking.com.

After agreeing to pick me up from Errachidia ($210 pp roundtrip, still higher than average),  now they could only confirm a day before my arrival.

They were not about to have me stuck so I said I would use my own transport in the form of Viator.com or Errachidia’s airport transfers.

There’s a public bus (Supratours) but that route seemed complicated with limited schedules. I also don’t like the thought of haggling luggage onto a bus especially in a foreign country.

In one email response, the camp rep rudely suggested I use a tour company.

I came across (Auberge du Sud) while searching for New Year’s events in Errachidia. They didn’t have a huge social media presence and I was wary of taking the risk.

Their camp pictures also seemed generic and there wasn’t a website/reviews. They did have a desert hotel (of the same name) and that had rave reviews.

I specifically wanted the luxury camp reviews.

Being the planner that I am, I still reached out to them for a quote. They were significantly lower than booking everything on my own.

I was still determined on Itran Royal being the camp of choice. Their booking seemed a more secure gamble.

A blog had recommended them for luxury and they had a decent social media presence with lots of reviews.

The final nail in the coffin was when the rep emailed me that they wouldn’t “disturb other guests ” by taking me to the airport at 4am.

Unroyal Treatment

At that point I knew they didn’t want my money/business. So I ended up going with Auberge du Sud.

Mustapha Noughou (+212 670-761106 Whatsapp ) handled the whole trip from Errachidia to Merzouga.

He can customize tours all over Morocco. Just be sure to confirm your itinerary and let him know what’s important to you.

I sent a deposit via Paypal and Mustapha confirmed the overnight hotel, transfers, excursions and camp reservation.

I shared my experience to show that everything can be booked independently but it may be more costly and stressful.

Originally I booked hotel transport from Errachidia’s airport through Viator (it was less than what the hotel had offered).

Mustapha (our guide/driver) said the “4 star” hotel in Errachidia (Kenzi Rissani) was anything but. So maybe this was an “all things worked out for the best” scenario.

The name of the hotel Mustapha booked in Errachidia was Auberge Tinit.

We arrived in the wee hours of the morning, and the first impression was a little daunting.

Don’t know if it was jetlag, but I felt like I had walked into a construction zone of an unfinished riad.

The rooms were set up motel style and there were no other guests in sight.

Right before our arrival, Mustapha had taken us to eat their version of American fast food (Best Way Chicken and Pizza). He would stay with his nephew overnight and pick us up in the morning.

We were starving and the food was ok. Keep in mind, their way of cooking “American food” and their sauces (ketchup/BBQ etc.) will taste differently.

Since I was short on time, I was hoping to drive straight to Merzouga that first night to  witness both sunrise and sunset.

The following morning was so cold that I don’t think I would’ve woken up anyway. Even though the sun rose after eight am, the feeling had passed.

The morning light also changed my mind about the hotel. It was a beautiful riad pictured below.

Overnight in Errachidia

Unlike the lobby area, the rooms were minimalistic but looked newly remodeled.

The walls were painted a bright yellow and it definitely gave rustic desert vibes. The bathroom was very modern.

There was a heated wall unit. I will go into the weather and temperatures in another blog.

Breakfast was a spread of fruits, nuts, breads, and cakes.

Of course we had a hot pot of freshly brewed tea.

I felt like I was in one of those old testament feast paintings. It was surreal but I have an understanding on how this part of the world hosted.

I would learn this was the customary Moroccan way.

They did everything big.

It wasn’t in a frivolous materialistic way, simply generous hospitality!

We had already started feeling the love!

Sahara Desert (Merzouga)

Merzouga and it’s surrounding areas are made up of Berber people. They are aboriginal to the area and were subject to colonization by the likes of Romans and Arabs.

Many have converted to the Muslim religion and speak Arabic/French. Some tribes still speak the native Berber.

Berber people live as a village. They support and depend on one another to survive. Please keep this in mind when visiting their businesses and when tipping.

The argan oil cooperatives started to help widows gain financial independence so you’ll find them everywhere.

On the other hand, if you’re not firm in how you’d like your trip to go,  you’ll be visiting every business in town.

There’s only so much argan oil and carpets you can buy. Stick to your itinerary and don’t let anything deter you.

We visited a carpet store and argan oil cooperative. Since we had an argan oil class booked in Marrakech, we limited our purchases.

My ultimate goal in the Sahara desert was to do a two hour minimum photo shoot.

I ended up rushing through it. So again, this is your trip…make the most of your time!

All in all, I’m grateful for meeting Mustapha.

He’s one of the only people I can vouch for that never tried to rip us off financially.

He was prompt, professional and spoke pretty good English. He even invited us into his home which I don’t take lightly.

When I return to Morocco,  I won’t think twice about requesting his services again. You will definitely be in good hands too!

Before we made the carpet and argan oil visit, we did stop at dunes on the way & the Auberge du Sud hotel to take pictures. Those I felt, came out best mostly due to the time of day and natural lighting!

One of the reasons my photo shoot was so important was that my visit fell on New Years Day.

January 1st is also the day that Haiti gained it’s independence.

I chose the Haitian flag dress as one of my outfits from the very beginning when I thought this would be a summer trip. So to be there on Haitian Independence Day was everything!

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Luxury Desert Camp

The camp is beautiful in it’s own right. I would give it 3 stars since I was expecting the “4” of Itran Royal.

There were two packages to choose from. I requested “royal” which was a higher standard/price than “luxury”. I think I received the latter.

Our tent included a private bathroom with heating (you will still need to bundle up).

There was also a spacious living area with a futon couch and vanity.

We found out how well lit the space was when we had to turn off all the nights at bedtime!

The tent also had a key lock.

It was clean and the beds (queen and twin) were comfortable. It felt like being in a hotel.

I’ve always been fascinated with Moroccan design.

The camp had more than enough Instagrammable pillows, lanterns and carpets arranged in different areas.

The customer service made up for any lacking aesthetics.

Everyone was so nice and they wanted to make sure we had a great stay (Mustapha included).

The luxury desert camp is literally in the middle of the Sahara Desert so the dunes are only a few feet away.

After my photo shoot, we rode a camel to view the sunset and steered ATVs through Erg Chebi.

I’m so proud of myself for being open to try these adventurous feats that I would normally avoid.

Giddy Up

My fear of heights and never being on an animal were the top reasons I was a little nervous. But other than their constant bucking, the camel ride was smooth and uneventful.

My best advice is to hold on tight.

I got comfortable enough to hold on with one hand while I recorded and took pictures. The pictures were blurry though due to the movement.

I used a timer on the videos to minimize blur.

The hardest part of being on a camel is getting on and off.

The camel has to lay on the ground for you to mount. They don’t have any gracefulness when rising up. Coming down (was the same) and felt like going down curves on a roller coaster ride.

I loved that they weren’t smelly like horses (even though some were having bowel movements) and they appeared to be well kept.

Our “shepherd” was very helpful in taking pictures. We were on for about twenty minutes or so each way.

Afterwards, he offered trinkets for sale. We were going to tip him anyway so we chose to buy the items instead.

There was a different guide with the ATVs (quad bikes). He gave us a quick and easy tutorial and we were on our way.

I was so scared and focused on not falling off. We went high into the sand tunes but it was at a beginner’s pace and course.

Unlike the camel ride, there was no way I was going to let go of the handles for any reason!

Despite my fear, it was exhilarating. Not sure if I would do it again though!

I wore goggles but they weren’t needed. The helmet barely fit my “big ole head” and it squeezed my already tight scalp from my fresh braids.

A Warm Welcome

We returned to camp at dusk where a reception of assorted sweets, nuts, and tea awaited us. There was excitement in the air as a large group checked into the camp.

The fire pit was lit and the candles/lanterns all around made the camp feel intimately festive!

It seemed even more beautiful under the clear Saharan sky.

That night, there was a varied buffet of goat (which they call beef) , chicken,  various salads, Moroccan soup  and rice. I’ll go into food details in another blog but it was well prepared.

During dinner and afterwards, our entertainment consisted of Berber singing, dancing and drumming.

It was a guest’s birthday and they even had cake and we all sang happy birthday.

I really felt at home and not among strangers. If I could change anything, I would have stayed more than one night.

Moroccan hospitality is second to none.

Our host woke up early (4 am) just to have breakfast (which again looked like a feast) ready for us.

I’m not the “sleeping outside in a desert tent” type of girl so I knew glamping would be the way to go. I don’t regret it one bit.

Its definitely a must when visiting the Sahara desert.

I will always treasure my first encounter with the warmth and beauty of Moroccan people in the breathtaking Erg Chebi.

Hopefully I was successful in condensing this complicated trip but please let me know if you have any questions.

I will be uploading more reels and pictures to Facebook and Instagram soon.

~Poof…Bee Gone

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