Now that you know where you want to travel on your Morocco Sahara Desert tour journey and the number of days you have planned for your visit, it’s time to start thinking about the types and levels of Morocco Sahara Desert camps. Which level of camp to reserve: cheap, expensive, or in-between? Because when I refer to Morocco Sahara Desert Camps, I am also referring to the whole organized trip to the Morocco Sahara Desert.
Things to consider when reserving an organized trip to the Morocco Sahara Desert and choosing between different levels of Morocco Sahara Desert Camps
Whether you want to reserve Morocco Sahara Desert camps which may be low-cost, luxury or somewhere in between, make sure to ask your Morocco desert tour company about the following:
1. What is all included in the price quote for the organized trip to the Morocco Sahara Desert? What sort of things aren’t included in the price quote?
For example, you may ask a Moroccan travel agent or private transportation company about a tour in the Sahara and receive a very low or very high quote. It is important to compare every line item for an organized trip to the Morocco Sahara Desert so you know exactly what you are paying for, as well as the items you may have to pay out of pocket, in addition to the price for the various levels for Morocco Sahara Desert Camps.
2. What meals you will have to pay yourself during your organized Morocco Sahara Desert trip, and the average price of each?
As I mentioned above, it is important to know what all is included by your Morocco desert tour provider. If meals aren’t included, you will need to know how much additional money to bring with you.
If meals are included in your organized Morocco Desert trip, are beverages also included? What if you don’t like to eat at the places that they stop in for the purpose of eating, or what if you have any food allergies or dietary preferences, are there any other alternatives?
3. If there are really organized trips to the Morocco Sahara Desert camps operating at the time you are wanting to travel to Morocco? And more importantly, what are the average temperatures during this season?
This will definitely be an important answer to help you decide between the levels of Morocco Sahara Desert camps! For example, the Morocco Sahara Desert is very hot in the summer, with day-time temperatures consistently over 100° F / 38° C, and night-time temperatures may only drop to 75° F / 24° C but often stay at or above 80° F / 27° C, so if comfort is a criteria when comparing levels of Morocco Sahara Desert camps, keep this in mind.
Also, the extreme hot summer desert temperatures is one reason some camps will close during the summer, so you may have some trouble reserving an organized trip to the Morocco Sahara Desert.
Another reason to ask about the expected temperatures during your trip to the Moroccan Sahara desert, is because winters in the Sahara can be cold! I am talking about low temperatures down to 32° F / 0° C and high temperatures of maybe 65° F / 18° C. Maybe the high temperatures don’t sound so bad, but not all the levels of Morocco Sahara Desert camps offer heat, so again, you will want to consider your comfort during your organized trip to the Morocco Sahara Desert.
4. What are all of the stops or attractions as part of your organized trip to the Morocco Sahara Desert?
You already know about how far Sahara Desert is from Fes, and you know as well about the distance from Marrakech to the Sahara Desert. Sure, your main intent is to arrive at your choice of Morocco Sahara Desert Camps, but because the drive is long from either of these places, you will want to know what you can see on your way to the desert.
If you are booking an organized trip to the Morocco Sahara Desert, make sure to ask if it is a private desert tour, or if you be will be traveling with a group of people. If it is the latter, then you will probably want to know how many people total may be part of the Morocco desert trip, and if there is a required minimum for the journey to actually happen. For example, maybe the Morocco desert tour company requires a minimum of 10 travelers or they will cancel the trip.
What are the sleeping arrangements or accommodations in the Morocco Sahara Desert camps? This is an important question for your comfort but also to know what you may need to pack for your organized Morocco Sahara Desert trip.
5. Will you have any health problems during your trip to Morocco?
If you suffer from any body pains, you will want to ask how the Morocco desert trip provider can accommodate you, or how the different levels of Morocco Sahara Desert camps may be able to help you. For example, if you would like to ride a camel in Morocco, will they have a seatback for the camel for more relief? Can they provide a stepstool to mount your camel? Or can your choice of Morocco Sahara desert camps give you a ride by 4×4 to your campsite?
Cheap or low-cost Morocco Sahara Desert tours: What you need to know
Just search on Google about low-cost Sahara Desert trips in Morocco, and you will be overwhelmed with horrible evaluations from disappointed visitors. While a lot of tourists have been foretold that they will enjoy their trip in a calm luxury tent in the midst of wonderful sand dunes, they become frustrated when they see the reality, which is a great flood of tents with insufficient, unsatisfactory equipment.
I am not claiming that there are no proper low-cost or cheap Sahara Desert trips out there, of course there are; it’s only that the quality of such trips hasn’t been the most important criterion when choosing among the levels of Morocco Sahara Desert camps, despite the fact that it was sadly my own experience, too.
Things you can find on a cheap Morocco desert trip / cheap Morocco Sahara Desert camps:
- Group Transport
- Not great location for your campsite
- No-fuss basic accommodations
- Cots for beds, or maybe slim mattresses to sleep on the sand
- Camel ride
- Basic meals
- Many people on your trip and in the Morocco Sahara Desert Camps
- You will not find any flushing toilets, so may not have any other option but to rough it on the sand or probably in a very elementary toilet, where you must pour buckets of water to “flush”.
- Do not expect to find any shower or bathing facilities.
- Language obstacles
Few people don’t find these things a problem. You may desire to live a more “go with the flow” or low-key lifestyle – that’s amazing.
On the other hand, if you are searching for the lower levels of Morocco Sahara camps, you certainly shouldn’t expect to find something extra. It’s often a long trip without few stops for attractions or breaks, and in the company of many people.
Deluxe or Luxury camps in the Sahara Desert:
This type of campsite is so luxurious to the extent that you won’t even feel yourself in a camp. This is actually called “glamping” which is a cross between “glamorous” and “camping”; Glamping in Morocco is a very popular option.
After I made the mistake to choose a very cheap Morocco desert tour, I decided I needed to try the opposite. Would you believe that the deluxe camp which I experienced was so wonderful and that the bed I slept on was much more relaxing and restful than my own bed at home?!
Things you can find on an expensive 5 star Morocco desert trip / deluxe Morocco desert camp:
- Opportunities to stop often along the way, for breaks, visits and taking photos
- Sunset Camel ride to your desert camp
- Intimate Desert Campsite among the sand dunes
- Private tents
- Individual bathrooms and toilets, with running water – usually en-suite
- Tents equipped with AC / heat
- King-size, relaxing and restful beds
- Electricity in the tents for light and to charge your electronics
- Special sitting rooms
- Tasty Moroccan cuisine with several courses
- Entertainment, such as singing, dancing and drumming
- Activities such as campfires, sand-boarding,
Mid-Range Morocco Sahara Desert Camps: How does this differ from cheap or luxury camps
This type of campsite will have a few of the comforts of a deluxe Morocco desert camp but with less decor and not as many services, a step above a cheap Morocco desert camp. The mid-range organized Morocco Sahara trip may give an option between private transportation to the desert vs. group transport. To decide if a desert campsite is mid-range or not, you should make a comparison between the services afforded to you, whether they seem cheap or luxurious, or if its services fall somewhere in between these two options of levels of Moroccan Sahara Desert camps.
Other advice about choosing among the levels of Morocco Sahara Desert Camps and Trips:
My most significant piece of advice for you is to research options ahead of your travel dates, and to actually book your Morocco Sahara Desert camp ahead of time.
Despite the fact that it is possible to book with a desert tour company once you are in Morocco, reserving beforehand gives you more time to do research, ensure a reservation with a trustworthy Morocco desert tour company and to comprehend precisely what’s waiting for you on your trip.
Doing this search will help visitors to Morocco know everything related to their levels of Morocco Sahara Desert camps and tours so that avoiding any possible frustration.
(Content provided by Dema, edited by Morocco Local Insider)
Read also: Morocco Sahara Desert Tours: Everything Important You Need to Know
Morocco Local Insider recommends Mint Tea Tours, as a leader in private transportation in Morocco. They propose many types of private tours with English-speaking drivers, including the best Morocco Sahara Desert tours! They will work with you to customize your own desert tour in Morocco, including your requested level of desert camps and number of days which you want to visit the desert.
