Sunrise Camel Ride & Breakfast in the Agafay Desert
At a glance
| Where | Agafay stone desert, 30 km south-west of Marrakech, a 40-minute drive. Not the Sahara: grey clay hills, no sand dunes. |
|---|---|
| When | Pickup 90 minutes before sunrise, from 04:55 in June to 07:00 in January. Back in Marrakech around 10:00. |
| What | A 45-minute guided camel ride as the sun rises, then a full Moroccan breakfast at the camp. |
| Price | From 78 € per person for six people, 105 € each for two. Breakfast 35 € and camel ride 30 € per person, transport 80 € per vehicle. |
| Private | Your own vehicle and your own camel handler. Never a shared minibus. |
| Booking | WhatsApp +212 661 454 738. Local agency in Marrakech since 2006, no middlemen. |
Group of six, return transport included. Breakfast 35 € and camel ride 30 € per person, transport 80 € per vehicle. Two people: 105 € each.
We collect you from your riad ninety minutes before sunrise and drive forty minutes out to the Agafay stone desert, so that you are already on a camel when the first light comes over the plateau. You ride while the sky changes, then sit down to a Moroccan breakfast with the Atlas mountains in front of you. You are back in Marrakech around 10:00, with the whole day still ahead of you.
This is a private trip. Your vehicle is yours alone, the driver waits for you, and the camel handler takes only your group out. Most sunrise tours sold in Marrakech put ten or fifteen people on a minibus and run to a fixed schedule; ours leaves when your group is ready and comes back when you say so.
What you’ll do
The pickup is in the dark, which is part of the point. The road out of Marrakech is empty at that hour and the drive takes about forty minutes, the last few kilometres on a dirt track across the plateau.
At the camp you are met with hot mint tea, which matters more than it sounds in January when the desert sits near 5 °C before dawn. If you want one, a nomad cheich is wrapped for you, less for the photograph than because the wind is cold on the ridges at that hour.
The camels leave the camp about forty minutes before sunrise. The handler walks alongside and leads you out along the stony ridges, at the slow pace camels keep, so you are sitting still and looking east when the sun clears the horizon. The light on the grey clay hills lasts twenty minutes or so, and it is the reason to get up this early. The ride lasts roughly forty-five minutes in total.
Breakfast is served at the camp once you are back: msemen and baghrir pancakes, bread with olive oil and amlou, honey, jam, olives, eggs, fresh orange juice, coffee and mint tea. You eat outside when the weather allows, under the tent otherwise. Nobody hurries you, and there is time afterwards to walk the ridge behind the camp before the drive home.
What time do we leave? It depends on the month
Marrakech sits far to the west of its time zone, so the sun rises here much later than most visitors expect: solar noon is at 13:32, and a January sunrise is closer to half past eight than to seven. We set the pickup at ninety minutes before sunrise, which gives forty minutes of driving and time for tea before the camels leave.
| Month | Sunrise in Marrakech | Pickup at your riad |
|---|---|---|
| January | 08:32 | 07:00 |
| February | 08:14 | 06:45 |
| March | 07:43 | 06:15 |
| April | 07:04 | 05:30 |
| May | 06:36 | 05:05 |
| June | 06:26 | 04:55 |
| July | 06:37 | 05:05 |
| August | 06:57 | 05:25 |
| September | 07:16 | 05:45 |
| October | 07:35 | 06:05 |
| November | 08:00 | 06:30 |
| December | 08:24 | 06:55 |
Return to your riad is around 10:00 all year, a little earlier in summer when the sun comes up sooner.
Prices
We price the three parts separately, so you can see exactly what you are paying for: breakfast 35 € per person, camel ride 30 € per person, and transport 80 € per vehicle for the return trip, up to six people. That makes 65 € per person plus one transport charge for the whole group.
| Group | Total | Per person |
|---|---|---|
| 2 people | 210 € | 105 € |
| 3 people | 275 € | 92 € |
| 4 people | 340 € | 85 € |
| 5 people | 405 € | 81 € |
| 6 people | 470 € | 78 € |
Children under six ride with a parent and pay for breakfast only. There is no booking fee and no commission, because you are dealing with the agency that runs the trip.
Trip highlights
- On the camel before first light, not after it
- Private vehicle and private camel handler for your group only
- Full Moroccan breakfast at the camp, not a packed snack
- Back in Marrakech by about 10:00, so the day is not spent
- The emptiest hour in Agafay, before any other group arrives
What’s included
- Return transport from your Marrakech riad or hotel in a private air-conditioned vehicle
- Guided camel ride of about forty-five minutes at sunrise
- Welcome mint tea on arrival
- Full Moroccan breakfast at the camp
- Nomad cheich to wear during the ride
- Camel handler and driver
What’s not included
- Drinks other than the tea, coffee and juice served at breakfast
- Quad biking or buggy, which can be added to the morning from 35 € per person
- Tips for the driver and the camel handler
- Travel insurance
Frequently asked questions
How early do we have to get up?
Between 04:55 in June and 07:00 in January, since we collect you ninety minutes before sunrise. Summer is the early one, winter is comfortable.
How long is the camel ride?
About forty-five minutes, timed so that you are out on the ridges as the sun comes up. It can be shortened for small children or anyone uncomfortable on a camel.
Is it cold?
Before dawn, yes, even in summer. From November to March the desert can sit near 5 °C at pickup and warms quickly once the sun is up. Bring a jacket you can take off.
Are there sand dunes?
No. Agafay is a stone desert of grey clay hills, forty minutes from Marrakech. The sand dunes of the Sahara are at Merzouga and Erg Chigaga, more than 500 km south and a three-day trip.
Can we do this with children?
Yes. Small children ride with a parent on the same camel, and the handler walks beside them the whole way. The early start is the only real obstacle.
What if the weather is bad?
Rain is rare in Agafay but it happens. If the forecast is against us we tell you the evening before and move the trip to another morning, or cancel it at no cost.
Book this experience
From 78 € per person for a group of six, transport included. Tell us your dates and how many you are, and we send back a firm price and the exact pickup time for that morning.
Prefer the end of the day? See our Agafay sunset tour. For the full picture of what Agafay costs, read the Agafay activities and prices guide, and for camel rides at other hours the Agafay camel ride guide.