Can you go dune sandboarding or sand-sledding in Morocco?

Sandboarding is the desert's most underrated bit of fun, and yes, you can absolutely do it. At Erg Chebbi near Merzouga the tall, soft dunes are perfect for it — you wax the base of a board, trudge up a dune (which is honestly the workout), and then slide, sit, or surf your way back down the slope. It's slower and more forgiving than snowboarding because the sand grabs you, so beginners and kids get the hang of it quickly and the worst that happens is a soft, giggly tumble into the sand.

Most camps and auberges in the Merzouga belt either include boards or rent them cheaply, so you rarely need to plan ahead — just ask when you arrive. The same goes deeper south at the Erg Chigaga dunes out of M'Hamid, which are wilder and less visited, so you'll have whole dune faces to yourself. Some operators offer proper bindings and a quick lesson; many just hand you a board and point at a dune, which is half the charm.

Timing is everything, for two reasons. First, the sand gets genuinely scorching at midday in warm months — you want to board in the cool of early morning or the golden hour before sunset, which also happens to be when the light is best for photos. Second, late afternoon sessions roll straight into sunset on the dunes, so you can sandboard, then climb up and watch the sky go pink, then walk back to camp for dinner. That sequence is one of the best evenings the desert offers.

Honest expectations: this isn't an extreme sport. The dunes don't give you the speed of a snow slope, and trekking back up the soft sand for each run is tiring, so most people do a handful of fun runs rather than a full day. But as a playful, hands-in-the-sand break between camel rides and stargazing, it's brilliant — and watching the whole family laughing their way down a Sahara dune is exactly the kind of memory people come for.