Merzouga in July

July is the brutal peak of summer at Erg Chebbi, with daytime highs around 42°C and often higher — among the hottest conditions in Morocco. The honest answer for most travellers is that this is too hot for a comfortable desert visit: the midday sun is dangerous, the sand radiates fierce heat, and the nights stay hot at around 25°C, so there is little relief even after dark. Any time in the dunes must be confined to the narrow, cooler windows at dawn and late dusk.

If you do come in July, the strategy is everything. Plan only short camel treks or 4x4 trips at sunrise or after the late-afternoon heat begins to fade, carry serious water and electrolytes, and spend the long midday entirely in shade and rest. The dunes are still magnificent under the blazing, cloudless skies, and the hot nights keep the stars brilliant, but the heat dominates every decision and physical exertion in the sun is genuinely risky.

July is firmly a mixed-to-difficult month, suited only to heat-hardy travellers who understand and respect Saharan extremes. The upside is solitude — Merzouga is at its emptiest now. But for the vast majority, the desert is far better experienced from October through April, when the same golden dunes, camel caravans and starlit nights come without the danger and discomfort of peak-summer heat. If flexible, choose a cooler month.