Merzouga & the Sahara
Morocco
The dunes of Erg Chebbi, 150 metres high, at the end of the road from Marrakech
Photos by Carlos Leret, Sergey Pesterev, Wolfgang Hasselmann and Saj Shafique on Unsplash
Best time to visit all of Morocco
October to April — the summer here runs past forty-five degrees and the camps close for it
Climate month by month
The next sixteen daysOpen-Meteo
Average high and low · °C
Rainfall · mm per month
Best months to visit This month · wettest 12mm in Oct
Where it is
31.10°N, 4.01°W Open in Google Maps
Things to do
Weeks of it- Sleep a night in the dunes rather than doing it as a day trip
- Climb a dune for sunrise, which takes longer than it looks
- Go to Khamlia for the music in the afternoon
- Break the drive at Todra gorge rather than doing it in one
- Take a scarf — it is for sand, not for the photograph
Merzouga & the Sahara travel tipsthe general rules
Currency budget Morocco
ExpensiveA closed currency — you cannot buy dirhams before you arrive and you should spend them before you leave. Cash for the medina, cards in the riads and the bigger restaurants.
ATMs & cards
Use Attijariwafa, BMCE or Banque Populaire. Every machine charges around 25 dirhams and most cap at 2,000 a withdrawal, so take the maximum each time.
Avoid these
- the whole area — the nearest reliable machines are in Rissani or Erfoud
Use these instead
- Attijariwafa
- BMCE
- Banque Populaire
The desert camps are cash and so are the drivers, the music and the tea. Draw in Erfoud on the way in, not in Merzouga.
Wherever you are: if the machine offers to charge you in your home currency, decline. That is dynamic currency conversion and the rate is set by the ATM's operator, not your bank.
Safety all of Morocco
SafeSafe, and the desert is the hazard rather than people. Heat kills here in summer and the camps close for it; carry far more water than seems reasonable, do not walk out into the dunes alone, and check that a camp has a real vehicle rather than only camels. Sandstorms in spring close the road.
Where to walk, and where to pay attention (8 areas)
Comfortable, including after dark
Worth more attention
- the summer heat — past forty-five degrees, and the camps close for it — this kills people who underestimate it
- walking into the dunes alone — there are no landmarks and footprints fill in
- camps without a real vehicle — ask; a camel is not an evacuation plan
- sandstorms in spring — they close the road and ground everything
Our own assessment, not a sourced index.
Entry & visa Morocco visa rules
No visa neededup to 90 days
Other passports
e-Visa required~€50
Morocco operates an e-visa for a growing list of nationalities.
Entry rules change often and depend on your passport, not where you live — the official page above is the authority, and the airline checks before you board.
Health & emergencies all of Morocco
Good but costlyRequired to enter
- Yellow fever certificate, but only if you are arriving from a country where yellow fever is present
Jabs worth having, and what happens if you need a doctor
Worth having
- Hepatitis A
- Typhoid
- Tetanus up to date
- Rabies for longer stays — stray dogs and cats are everywhere
Getting treated
Private clinics in Marrakesh and Casablanca are reasonable and inexpensive, and expect cash or an insurance guarantee up front. Public hospitals are basic. Pharmacies are excellent, widespread and can dispense a lot without a prescription.
Do not drink the tap water. Stomach upsets are the most common complaint by a distance.
Orientation, not medical advice — entry rules change and what you need depends on your own history. Check with a travel clinic four to six weeks before you go.
Food tip
GoodCamp food is tagine, bread baked in sand, and mint tea in quantity. Madfouna — a stuffed flatbread called Berber pizza — is the local dish and is worth stopping for.
Getting around
Car needed- CareemWorks here
- YangoWorks here
- HeetchWorks here
- UberNot here
- BoltNot here
Careem Casablanca and Rabat · Heetch Casablanca
- Against a taxi
- The petits taxis are metered by law and frequently are not in practice. Insist on the meter or agree the fare first.
Uber left Morocco in 2018. In the tourist cities the apps barely operate and the petit taxi is the system.
Time zone and your working day
Africa/Casablanca — 4 hours ahead of you
4 hours of overlap with a 09:00–17:00 day where you are — 09:00–13:00 your time, 13:00–17:00 theirs.
No overlap with a 09:00–17:00 day where you are. Working from here means one of you keeps odd hours — their day starts at 05:00 on your clock.
office hours both at once night
Their 09:00–17:00 is 05:00–13:00 on yours.
The difference from the UK, Europe, the US and ten more
Worked out against America/New York, which is where this request looks like it came from.
Internet speedall of Morocco
Why these are Morocco's numbers and not Merzouga & the Sahara's
Home broadband — Fair. Video calls and streaming for one or two people — fine for a holiday, thin for a household working. Broadband here runs at 44% of the global median of 130 Mbps.
Mobile data — Fair. Maps, calls and streaming; tethering a laptop works for an hour, not a day. Mobile runs at 64% of the global median of 109 Mbps.
Ookla publishes no separate figure for Merzouga & the Sahara, so these are medians for all of Morocco. Cities usually beat the national number and remote islands and national parks fall well below it — treat this as the country's shape, not as a measurement of the street you will be staying on.
A median is the middle of every connection tested there, old copper and new fibre together — so in a country part-way through laying fibre it sits well below what a fibre line actually delivers, and a rental on one can run several times this number. Half of the connections are slower; a fibre flat is rarely one of them. It says what a place can do, not what your rental does, so every listing on Holistay carries its own measured speed and the date it was tested.
Getting online: Airalo or Holafly — a data eSIM for Morocco, installed before you fly and working the moment you land.
Source: Ookla Speedtest Global Index · measured June 2026
Must-see
Nearby day trips
Say a few words
Arabic
- Helloمرحبا — MarhabaMAR-ha-ba
- Pleaseمن فضلك — Min fadlakmin FAD-lak
- Thank youشكرا — ShukranSHOOK-ran
- Yes / Noنعم / لا — Na’am / LaNA-am / la
4 more phrases
- Excuse meعفوا — AfwanAF-wan
- How much is it?بكم — Bikam?bi-KAM
- The bill, pleaseالحساب — Al-hisabal-hi-SAB
- Welcomeأهلا وسهلا — Ahlan wa sahlanAH-lan wa SAH-lan
Inshallah, meaning God willing, follows nearly any statement about the future and is conversational rather than religious.
Religion
Sunni Muslim
Islam is the state religion and the king holds religious authority. Non-Muslims may not enter most mosques — the Hassan II in Casablanca is the main exception. Ramadan changes opening hours everywhere.
Do's and don'ts
Do
- Haggle in the souks — the first price is an opening, and good humour is part of it
- Dress modestly, particularly women and particularly away from tourist areas
- Use the right hand for eating and giving
- Accept mint tea; it is the standard gesture of welcome
Don't
- Do not follow unofficial guides who offer to show you the way in the medina; the help ends in a demand
- Do not photograph people, market stalls or performers without asking — payment will be expected
- Do not enter mosques unless you are Muslim; almost all are closed to visitors
- Do not show public affection, and avoid discussing the monarchy critically
Where to stay in Merzouga & the Sahara
No Holistay rentals in Merzouga & the Sahara yet — the platform is just opening up. Every listing here will have a video tour and the option to negotiate the nightly price directly with the host.
In the meantime, here is Merzouga & the Sahara on the sites that do have the inventory — each search is already filled in:
- Booking.com hotels, guesthouses and apartments — the widest coverage almost everywhere
- Airbnb whole homes and apartments, and the better option for a week or more
How to get there
Fly into Errachidia ERH
2hfrom the airport· 101 km as the crow flies
2h by road, arranged by the camp.
Also worth pricing: Marrakech RAK — 9h over the Atlas, usually broken overnight on the way.
Google Flights · Rome2Rio for the trains, buses and ferries as well as the flights
