A Night in the Sahara Desert in Morocco: What It's Really Like

Our journey into the Sahara began in the small town of Merzouga. Before setting off, we were each given a desert scarf. At first, we thought it was mostly part of the experience, but our guide explained that it had a practical purpose too. If the wind picked up, we could wrap it around our faces to protect ourselves from blowing sand.

We climbed onto camels and followed our guide into the dunes. The pace was slow, but it was great as we got to enjoy the desert. As we got further from Merzouga, there wasn't much around us except sand, with dunes stretching in every direction.

The wind never picked up enough that we needed the scarves for protection, but we were happy to have them just in case. The guide explained that on this specific day, the winds were relatively calmer than usual.

Before reaching our camp, we stopped on one of the dunes to relax for a while and watch the sunset. We also had the chance to try sandboarding, which was a cool experience, as well. Getting down the dune was the easy part. Walking back up through the sand was a little more work!

As the sun got lower, the colours of the dunes started to change and the shadows became more noticeable across the sand. It was one of our favourite parts of the day and gave us a chance to just sit for a while and take in where we were.

Photos do a good job of showing what the Sahara looks like, but they don't really capture the size of the dunes or what it feels like to be surrounded by them.

After sunset, we kept going to our camp for the night. Our accommodation was essentially a large tent with a bed and a bathroom. We had upgraded to a "luxury" tent mainly because it included a shower, which we were pretty happy to have after spending the afternoon in the sand.

Dinner was served at the camp and included a variety of Moroccan dishes. We especially liked the tagine, which we had eaten several times during our trip through Morocco. A tagine is essentially a stew, usually made of meat and vegetables, cooked in a traditional pot (the tagine).

Overall, the camp was comfortable. It was definitely a bonus to have a private tent with a bathroom. The biggest challenge had nothing to do with the accommodation itself. It was the heat.

We visited in August, and it was seriously hot. We knew Morocco would be hot at that time of year, but we assumed the temperature in the desert would drop quite a bit once the sun went down.

It didn't, at least not enough to make our tent comfortable.

The heat made it difficult to fall asleep, and we spent quite a while lying awake before eventually getting some rest. It was easily the hottest night we've experienced while travelling. During our time in Morocco, temperatures reached daytime highs of 48°C, and overnight temperatures in the Sahara were still above 30°C.

We wouldn't let that discourage anyone from spending a night in the Sahara, but if we were planning the same trip again, we'd choose a cooler time of year. The experience was still memorable, but we probably would have enjoyed the overnight part a lot more without the August heat. It's still really a fun experience to look back on!

The next morning, we had breakfast at the camp and headed out to watch the sunrise. We had already watched the sunset the evening before, but if we had to choose between the two, we'd probably give the edge to sunrise.

There was something about seeing the first light come across the dunes in the morning. Everything was quiet, the temperature was more comfortable, and the colours and shadows across the sand slowly changed as the sun came up.

It ended up being the best moment from the entire experience. After sunrise, it was time to make our way back across the dunes toward Merzouga and leave the Sahara.

Spending a night in the Sahara was one of the highlights of our travels through Morocco. More than anything, we were surprised by the scale of the dunes. Seeing them in the distance for the first time, when we genuinely thought we were looking at hills or mountains, is something we still remember.

The camel ride, sandboarding and sunset were all really great, but the sunrise the next morning was our favourite part. There was something about being out on the dunes early in the morning, when everything was quiet and the light was just starting to come across the desert.

The August heat was easily the biggest downside, and if we did it again, we'd choose a cooler time of year. But we'd definitely spend a night in the desert again. It's an experience that gave us a completely different perspective of the Sahara than the one we had before we arrived.

Morocco is still one of our favourite countries we've visited, partly because there's so much more to the country than the Sahara. However, we feel visiting the desert is a must on any Morocco itinerary. If you're thinking about a trip to Morocco and aren't sure how to put it all together, we'd be happy to help you plan it!