Merzouga

This is a small village in the south-east of Morocco, in the Draa-Tafilalet region. He got fame not for himself, but for his neighbors - the sand dunes of Erg-Shebbi, one of the highest in the entire Sahara.

Merzug is 35 km southeast of Rissani and 55 km from Erfud - it is from these towns that usually start. The Algerian border is about 50 km from here, so there is no road for tourists further east.

The classic of the genre is to ride a camel to the dunes, spend the night in a tent camp in the sand and meet the dawn over Erg Shebbi. Actually, most people come here for this sunrise.

Almost always, but not this time: in 2024, after rare rains, a real lake briefly appeared in the usually dry area. Sahara sometimes allows itself such surprises.

Once it was a deserted oasis, which became a transshipment point for caravans on the way to Timbuktu. During the French colonial rule, a fortification was even built here by the forces of the Foreign Legion.