2 days desert tour from Marrakech

Set off from Marrakech at 08:00, beating the bustle as you climb the legendary Tizi n’Tichka Pass. A sunrise stop at the panoramic café of Taddart offers mint-tea views of snow-dusted peaks before you drop into an argan-oil women’s cooperative, where artisans demonstrate hand-cracking and cold-pressing techniques passed down for generations.

Back on the winding N9, you skirt ochre ridges toward the UNESCO-listed Aït Ben Haddou. Spend 90 minutes exploring its labyrinth of adobe granaries and film-set alleys, then tuck into a rooftop lunch—slow-braised lamb mechoui or a veggie couscous—overlooking the ksar and date palms flanking the Ounila River.

Continuing south, pass the movie hub of Ouarzazate (quick photo at the giant clapper-board sign) and push through stark plateaus to Agdz, where the lush Draa Valley begins. Here you’ll stretch your legs beneath towering date palms and snap shots of crumbling mud-brick kasbahs before following the Draa’s ribbon of green all the way to Zagora.

Just outside town, trade wheels for a 30-minute camel ride across the stony hammada, dotted with tamarisk trees and low sand drifts. Arrive at camp as the sky ignites pink over the basalt flats, sip welcome tea, and settle into your private Berber tent. After a tagine dinner, join your hosts for Saharan drumming by the fire and stargaze beneath an unobstructed Milky Way.

Wake before dawn to watch pale gold light wash over the rocky expanse. Following a camp-style breakfast of msemen crêpes and local honey, ride camels back to the trailhead, where your vehicle awaits.

Retrace the Draa Valley north, pausing at roadside viewpoints to capture its endless palm groves and ancient irrigation channels. In Agdz, a short walk through a weekly date market (when in season) reveals sixty-plus varieties prized across Morocco.

By late morning you reach Ouarzazate. Opt to tour Atlas Film Studios—sets from Gladiator and Game of Thrones still stand—or wander the maze of Kasbah Taourirt with a local guide. Lunch is at a family-run spot serving Berber pizza madfouna alongside chilled lemon juice.

The afternoon drive climbs back over Tizi n’Tichka, with photo stops at the red-strata cliffs of Taddart and a roadside argan stand in Aït Ourir. Expect to roll into Marrakech around 18:00, dropped directly at your hotel or the lively Jemaa el-Fna, wrapping up two days that compress Morocco’s cinematic scenery, nomadic culture, and High-Atlas drama into one seamless adventure.