Merzouga or Zagora: which desert should you pick from Marrakech?
Two days or three, low dunes or a real erg: the honest comparison, from people who drive both roads every week.
This question comes up in almost every message we get. Here is the answer we give on the phone.
Zagora means two days and modest dunes
Zagora is around 360 kilometres from Marrakech. You drive there in one long day, sleep at the camp and come back the next day. The dunes are low: beautiful stretches of sand, but not the ocean of dunes people picture.
Merzouga means three days and Erg Chebbi
Merzouga is 200 kilometres further. That costs an extra night, but it is the only true erg reachable from Marrakech: dunes up to 150 metres, an horizon made entirely of sand.
Our advice
If you have three days, there is no debate. With only two, Zagora is still a fine experience as long as you know what you are going to see. What we advise against is doing Merzouga in two days: twelve hours of driving a day, and one hour on site.