New Year's Eve in the Sahara from Fes: Merzouga Route, Timing & What to Expect
Starting your Morocco trip in Fes and want to spend New Year's Eve in the Sahara? The Fes-to-Merzouga route, realistic timing, and what the desert celebration actually looks like.
New Year's Eve in the Sahara from Fes: Merzouga Route, Timing & What to Expect
Most New Year's Eve desert content assumes you're starting in Marrakech, but a lot of travelers land in Fes first — it's a common entry point if you're flying into Fes-Saïss or building an itinerary that starts in the north. If that's you, the good news is straightforward: Fes is actually the shorter route into the Sahara, and spending December 31st in Merzouga works cleanly as the second leg of a Fes-first trip.
The route is shorter than you'd think
Fes to Merzouga is about 465km, roughly 7-8 hours on the road, compared to 560km and 9-10 hours from Marrakech. The drive runs through the Middle Atlas — Ifrane and Azrou's cedar forests, where you'll sometimes see Barbary macaques right by the roadside — then down through Midelt and the Ziz Valley's palm groves before the landscape opens into the flat approach to Erg Chebbi. It's a genuinely different drive from the Marrakech route's High Atlas passes and Ait Ben Haddou detour, not a lesser version of it.
What a Fes-departure timeline looks like
A 2-day version gets you to camp for the 31st with one full driving day each way — workable, but it means the desert night is really the only thing you're doing, with limited time for the Ziz Valley stops along the way. A 3-day version breaks the drive with an overnight around Midelt or Erfoud, arriving in Merzouga with enough daylight left on the 31st to actually rest before the evening's camel ride and dinner, then a full day back rather than rushing the return. If your onward plans involve Marrakech afterward, a one-way Fes–Merzouga–Marrakech routing is worth considering over a round trip, since it avoids covering the same road twice.
What the night in camp looks like
The celebration itself doesn't change based on which city you started from — it's the same Sahara experience covered in other guides here: a camel trek out to the dunes near sunset, a Berber-style dinner in camp, live drumming and music around the fire, and a midnight countdown under skies dark enough to show the Milky Way clearly. What changes is only the journey getting there and back, and a Fes departure means you skip the Marrakech leg entirely if your trip doesn't need it — useful if you're short on days and would rather spend them in the desert and the Middle Atlas than adding a third city.
Booking timing
December is peak season for the desert generally, and New Year's Eve specifically pushes camp capacity further — the well-run camps take limited numbers on the 31st by design, since a crowded camp defeats the point of an intimate countdown. Booking a Fes-departure desert trip at least a month or two out gives you a real choice of dates and camp quality rather than whatever's left.
What we offer
We run a dedicated 3-day, 2-night Fes to Merzouga New Year's Eve tour built specifically around this route — Mechoui feast, fire show, midnight champagne toast, from €420. If you'd rather do a non-festive desert trip on the same route, our regular 2-day and 3-day Fes-Merzouga tours are also available. Get in touch directly to confirm camp availability and lock in a New Year's departure date, since desert camps book out early for the 31st.
Email: [email protected] WhatsApp: +212675203319 / +212668534981
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MerzougaWay Team
We are a passionate team of local guides dedicated to sharing the beauty and culture of our home, Morocco. Our journey began with a simple desire to offer authentic, memorable experiences that go beyond the typical tourist trails.
