Name: Ali & Sara's Desert Palace
Address: Erg Chebbi Dunes, 52202 Merzouga, Morocco, Merzouga, Merzouga, Merzouga, 52202, Morocco
Rating: 10

24-hour reception

Smoke-free property

All Spaces Non-Smoking (public and private)

Outdoor furniture

General

Room service

Shower/Bathtub

Linens

Toiletries

Rooms

Laundry

Concierge services

Luggage storage

Services and amenities

Diet menu (on request)

Restaurant

Packed Lunches

Bottled water

Meals

Free Wi-Fi

Internet

Spanish

English

Italian

French

Portuguese

Arabic

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Tour assistance

Tourist services

Picnic area

Sun Deck

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Parking

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Pool and beach

Playroom

Kids

Pets Not Allowed

Pets

Location

At the hotel

Ali & Sara's Desert Palace

Merzouga

My wife and I spent two nights at Ali and Sara's Desert Palace in October, 2023. Everything about our visit was as good as we could have hoped for (or better). Prior to our arrival Sara had provided extensive information on what to expect, and had made it easy to get "registered" by having us send all of that info in advance - a great time-saver! We had an immense cottage with two of the biggest beds I think I have ever encountered. My wife was able to use the one that we didn't sleep in as a personal yoga studio each morning. The beds were comfortable if a bit on the firm side. There was no air-conditioning, and although we had a very roomy private bath and shower, it was in its own little building close by and NOT in the cottage itself. There is electric lighting throughout the camp. The washroom has a standard flush toilet and excellent hot and cold water for showering. During the day, the cottage heated up, but as soon as the cool of the evening arrived the heat dissipated and the cottage cooled rapidly. And who would want to be inside during the day anyway, with the Erg Chebbi dunes to explore and shady, strategically placed outdoor "sitting rooms" to  enjoy? On our day of arrival we drove to a pre-arranged rendezvous location in Merzouga where we left our rental car and were met in a 4x4 for the 15-minute drive to the accommodations. Upon arrival we were offered mint tea and water, both of which were welcome, and the camp manager showed us around. Before dinner we went on the first of two camel rides to watch the sunset - fear not - the camels are stoic and the camel guide is skilled - you will be fine! We arranged, in advance, a 4X4 excursion for the following morning and Ali (who is a part owner and who was also our driver) made every effort to respond to our requests, taking us to poke around for fossils, and to look for desert birds at the Merzouga palmierie and elsewhere. Our meals were all top-notch, even by the high standards that we had come to expect during our Moroccan adventures. After dark, a camp fire was lit and the staff (a very-multi-talented crew, I must say) broke out a variety of drums, which they played with skill and enthusiasm. Later in the night, with temperatures in the mid-teens and the sky absolutely spilling over with stars, it seemed completely okay to just lie on your back and look up, and to let everything else just fade away.

Ali and Sara's Desert Palace is a great place to experience Erg Chebbi

Perfect experience. In the previous months, Sara helped us organize everything to the smallest detail, from commuting to various activities, listening to every request we made. When we arrived at the camp, Ali welcomed us with a nice tea, then we went on a tour with dromedaries through the dunes at sunset. Great dinner, from tartar to melanzane, to fresh and delicious fruit. Fresh bottled water, even the possibility of buying beer or wine for dinner. After dinner we continued with music and a warm fire. In the morning we had the buggy dunes, a rich breakfast and had a long chat with Ali who told us how he put on this stupendous camp. The rooms are huge and electrically lit, with all the lights and lights, and the bathroom is full of beautiful personal amenities. Thank you for living in this amazing experience.

Experience in the Unforgettable Desert

It was a spectacular experience. Everything organized in minute detail from a walk in the desert with dromedaries, to dinner, to a buggy in the dunes. Very kind and super-disposable staff, who went beyond our expectations. Delicious food and bottled fresh water. Spacious and very clean rooms and bathroom. In the evening they entertained us with local music and songs around a beautiful fire. It far exceeded our expectations. We'll be back. Thank you again.

A real oasis in the desert

It was the highlight of our trip to Morocco! The camp, the food, Sara's availability, and extreme client-orientedness exceeded all expectations! The camp is immaculate, fully comfortable, and charming. The dinner drum show was enjoyable too! We went on the sunrise ride and sunset camel tours, both of which were absolutely amazing. We want to extend our heartfelt thanks to dear Sara from our entire family (Alex, Sergey, and Arina)! The only downside was the unbearable heat; we could hardly sleep at night and found ourselves dreaming about air conditioning or at least a fan.


Just  amazing!

We had the most incredible driving tour in Morocco in May-June 2023 with Ali & Sara's Desert Palace. We had planned to hire a car and travel independently, however we are so pleased we hired a driver through Sara. Their driver, Mubarek, was such a wonderful, knowledgeable, fun person and he showed us places we wouldn’t have known about, and enriched our experience with his extensive knowledge in very good spoken English. Morocco has such vast distances on single roads but we were able to relax and enjoy the countryside and our very ambitious itinerary. Sara gave us expert advice and recommendations and tailored the trip to our interests - which were specifically around Moroccan history and culture. We visited all the main historical and cultural sites from Marrakech to Merzouga, and then on to Fes where Sara organised a brilliant guide, Mohammed, who showed us all the sites we wanted to see and more. We then travelled on to Casablanca via Volubilis and Rabat. We were travelling with our 10 year old daughter, and the whole programme was perfectly suited for our family exploration. The 4 wheel drive Toyota Landcruiser was excellent and very comfortable, with good visibility, and Mubarek’s safe driving. The chosen hotels along the way were excellent and interesting experiences. We stayed in Ali & Sara's Desert Palace near Erg Chebbi which is a Berber themed oasis in the desert with all creature comforts and mod cons. We camel trekked at sunset and sunrise in the Sahara Desert and that was stunning. Food and staff were very nice and obliging. It was a 10/10 experience and competitive price to big travel agencies. Sara was so helpful on preparations of our itinerary. They are excellent. I highly recommend them to anyone who plans a trip to tour Morocco independently. We’ve been lucky to do lots of travelling around the world, and this was exactly how we hoped our experience would be.  10 out of 10.

Incredible driving tour with Ali & Sara's Desert Palace

An unforgettable experience in this very clean and welcoming camp, with extremely prepared and kind staff. Excellent reception, spacious curtains with comfortable and extra-large beds, very good private bathrooms considering being in the middle of the desert. Very good dinner, as well as breakfast. After dinner, he played with singing organized by the staff. All super relaxing. Too bad we only stayed one night. Advised!

Unique experience

This is my second stay at Ali and Sara’s place. This is truly a wonderful place. The place is well taken care of, offers comfort in a difficult environment and the staff is super helpful and  friendly. Only good memories from this place. Strongly recommended. 

A wonderful stay!

So here it is, huge! to find myself in the dunes with comfort, charm and kindness I would never have imagined. welcomed by our warm hosts, Mohamed and Assan, they will take little care of you.

It's fabulous.

Staff was incredibly welcoming and did a fantastic job hosting us. We really appreciated having all the activities organized, from the pickup and transfer to the tent site, to the camel rides (Very healthy looking camels), to the drumming and Saharowi music lessons. All organized by staff who stays on site and is incredibly helpful at going above and beyond. The tents were clean and beautifully appointed, and in contrast to the many new social media-famous spots you see on social media, are decorated with Moroccan textiles and give a lovely sense of place. The bedding was warm and comfortable and we had no problem staying warm in mid-December, and if you're traveling as a couple, this is possibly one of the rare opportunities you'll have for a king bed while traveling. The team was great at answering our questions in advance over email and we paid via PayPal before arriving in Morocco and did not have any issues. The food was passable but the real highlight was the dramatic backdrop of Erg Chebbi at sunrise and sunset.

A great stay in an incredible desert setting with fantastically helpful staff

Easily a highlight of our visit to Morocco. Sara provided us with excellent advice and assistance and helped us arrange a for a driver three days to pick us up in Marrakesh, visit the desert and deliver us safely to Fes. Our Driver Ahmad was excellent! He was a safe driver and able to make the trip really fun and interesting. He knew excellent places to stop and was happy to tailor the drive to our interests. 

The camp itself is accurate to advertised. The staff are lovely. My biggest advise would be to stay longer and spend more time to just absorb this wonderful place, the dunes and the people.

Ali & Sara's Desert Palace

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