Erg Chigaga is the largest and most remote field of Saharan dunes accessible from southern Morocco, reached by a long off-road drive beyond the end of the paved road at M'Hamid. Its isolation keeps it far quieter than Morocco's more visited dune fields.
Visit October through April for tolerable daytime warmth and cool, star-filled nights ideal for desert camping; summer heat in the dunes is dangerous and best avoided entirely.
Camp meals of tagine and bread cooked on site, with tea prepared over open fires.
Tented desert camps among the dunes, ranging from basic to comfortable, reached by four-wheel-drive from M'Hamid or Zagora.
Choose a camp with morning views east over the dunes, so you can step out at first light as the ridgelines and shadows sharpen across the sand.
Read more in Marrakech & the Sahara: red walls, kasbahs & the deep desert.
