Is Morocco good for desert lovers?

The desert is my home ground, and for true desert lovers Morocco is hard to beat — it gives you the cinematic Sahara of the imagination without the logistical difficulty of more remote countries. The two great dune seas are Erg Chebbi, near Merzouga, with its photogenic 150-metre golden dunes and easy access; and Erg Chigaga, beyond M'hamid at the literal end of the road, which is larger, wilder and far less visited. I match the choice to how much driving and remoteness a traveller wants.

A night in the dunes is the experience people travel across the world for. You ride a camel caravan over the crests at sunset, reach camp as the light turns the sand from gold to rose, eat tagine cooked over coals, and then look up at a Milky Way so bright it casts shadows — there is almost no light pollution out there. I can arrange anything from a simple Berber bivouac to a serviced luxury camp with proper beds, ensuite tents and a private dinner under the constellations.

But the Sahara is far more than dunes, and that is what keeps desert lovers coming back. There is the black stony hammada and the dry Iriki lake bed you cross by 4WD; the oasis valleys of the Draa and Ziz, ribbons of date palms threading red canyons; the nomad families who still move with their herds; and old caravan towns like Rissani, once a gateway to Timbuktu. Sandboarding, dune walks at dawn, and simply sitting in the silence are all part of it.

Practical truth from someone who lives it: timing and pace matter most. October to April gives warm days and cold, clear nights ideal for stars — high summer is genuinely dangerous heat. And do not try to "do" the desert as a rushed overnight from Marrakech; the dunes are a long drive, and the magic is in slowing down. Give the Sahara two nights if you can, and let me build the approach through the kasbahs and gorges so the journey is as good as the destination.