Sahara Self-Launched Expedition: Marrakesh to the Erg Chigaga Dunes

Fly into Marrakech Menara (RAK) and take bus line 19 or a petit taxi (~£5) into the medina. Check into a budget riad near Jemaa el-Fna. Spend the afternoon getting lost in the souks, drinking mint tea on a rooftop, and watching the square come alive at dusk. Book your onward bus ticket today (CTM or Supratours to Ouarzazate) and confirm a desert camp/4x4 operator in Mhamid for Day 6.

🚌Airport bus line 19 (~£3) or petit taxi (~£5)

🛏Budget riad in the medina, dorm or private double (~£15-22 pp)

• →Jemaa el-Fna square at sunset
• →Souk browsing
• →Rooftop mint tea

Do the guided palace circuit yourself. Buy a combined ticket at Bahia Palace (~£6) and walk 10 minutes to the ruined Palace El Badi (~£6). El Koutoubia Mosque is free to view from the gardens (non-Muslims cannot enter). Pre-book a Majorelle Garden + YSL Museum ticket online (~£15) for a timed slot — it sells out. In the afternoon explore the tanneries and souks; a local guide is optional (~£15 for a half day if you want one).

🚌Walkable medina; occasional petit taxi (~£2)

🛏Budget riad in the medina (~£15-22 pp)

• →Bahia Palace
• →El Badi Palace
• →Koutoubia Mosque gardens
• →Majorelle Garden & YSL Museum
• →Souks & tanneries

Ride the CTM or Supratours bus from Marrakesh to Ouarzazate (~£8-10, 4-5 hrs), crossing the Tizi n'Tichka pass through Berber villages — sit on the right for the best views. If you'd rather break the journey, get off at Ait Benhaddou first (some services stop at the junction, then a short grand taxi). In Ouarzazate check into a budget hotel and visit Kasbah Taourirt (~£2). Sunset over the Atlas from the kasbah walls.

🚌CTM/Supratours bus Marrakesh–Ouarzazate ~£8-10

🛏Budget hotel/guesthouse in Ouarzazate (~£15-20 pp)

• →Tizi n'Tichka pass views
• →Kasbah Taourirt
• →Atlas sunset viewpoints

Take a grand taxi or local bus from Ouarzazate to Skoura (~£3) to walk the Kasbah Amridil palm oasis (~£3 entry). Continue to Kalaat M'Gouna, centre of the Valley of Roses — visit a rose cooperative in May/June when the harvest is on. Push on to Boumalne Dades and stay in a guesthouse in the Dades Valley; a local taxi up to the Dades Gorge hairpin viewpoints costs ~£15 return shared. Dinner at the guesthouse.

🚌Grand taxi Ouarzazate–Skoura–Kalaat M'Gouna–Boumalne ~£10-12 total

🛏Guesthouse in Boumalne Dades / Dades Valley (~£15-20 pp)

• →Kasbah Amridil
• →Valley of Roses & rose cooperative
• →Dades Gorge viewpoints

Local bus or shared taxi from Boumalne to Tinghir (~£3), then a grand taxi 15 km up to the Todra Gorges (~£5 shared) for the walk between the canyon walls — free, and best before 10am. Return to Tinghir and take the afternoon bus south via Agdz down the Draa Valley, Morocco's longest palm oasis (~£6, 3-4 hrs). Overnight in Zagora; a basic guesthouse with dinner is easy to find.

🚌Local buses and shared grand taxis ~£12-15 total

🛏Budget guesthouse in Zagora (~£12-18 pp)

• →Todra Gorges walk
• →Draa Valley palm oasis drive
• →Zagora medina stroll

Grand taxi from Zagora to Mhamid el Ghizlan (~£8, 2 hrs, or ~£25 for the whole car). From Mhamid, arrange a shared 4x4 transfer plus desert camp with one of the local agencies — typically ~£90-120 pp for the return 4x4, guide, meals and a night in a Berber tent camp, cheaper if you can fill all seats. The off-road crossing to Erg Chigaga takes 2-3 hrs via the Oum Laalag oasis. Sunset climb up a dune, tagine dinner round the fire, and a sky with no light pollution.

🚌Grand taxi Zagora–Mhamid ~£8 pp; shared 4x4 Mhamid–Erg Chigaga included in camp package

🛏Berber desert camp, Erg Chigaga (tent, shared bathroom) — included in 4x4 package

• →Oum Laalag oasis stop
• →4x4 dune crossing
• →Sunset dune climb
• →Berber camp dinner and music

Optional camel ride at sunrise (~£15-20) or just climb a dune on foot. The 4x4 returns via Foum Zguid across the dry bed of Lake Iriki and old desert tracks (~half day). From Foum Zguid take a grand taxi or bus north towards Taznakht and get dropped at the Ait Benhaddou junction (~£10), then a short taxi to the village. Check into a guesthouse facing the ksar and walk up to the earthen fortress at golden hour (free; small local guide fee ~£3).

🚌Shared 4x4 back to Foum Zguid (included), then grand taxi/bus ~£10

🛏Guesthouse in Ait Benhaddou (~£15-20 pp)

• →Dune sunrise
• →Optional camel ride
• →Lake Iriki crossing
• →Ait Benhaddou ksar at sunset

Morning visit to the Atlas Film Studios and Ouarzazate Cinema Museum (~£8 combined) — easy to reach by grand taxi from Ait Benhaddou/Ouarzazate (~£5 shared). Then take the afternoon CTM/Supratours bus back to Marrakesh (~£10, 4-5 hrs), arriving early evening. Stay a final night near the medina, or head straight to the airport for a late flight.

🚌Shared grand taxi to Ouarzazate ~£5; CTM bus Ouarzazate–Marrakesh ~£10

🛏Final night: budget riad Marrakesh (~£15-22 pp) or airport departure

• →Atlas Film Studios
• →Ouarzazate Cinema Museum