Many travellers discover in Zagora that the dunes sold locally are modest. It is not a deception, Erg Lihoudi is pretty and close, but it is not the Sahara of the photographs. The great erg at Chegaga runs forty kilometres, with no hotel and no road, and must be earned by 4x4.
From Zagora two routes lead there. The first goes through M'hamid to the south: 1.5 hours by road and 3.5 to 4 hours of track. The second runs west on the N12 to Foum Zguid: 2 hours by road, then 2.5 hours of track across the Iriqui dry lake, more varied and more spectacular. We operate the second.
The Zagora – Foum Zguid road on the N12
- 0 km
Leave Zagora westwards on the N12, along the southern flank of Jbel Bani.
- 60 km
Tazzarine and its palm groves, already fully Saharan country.
- 130 km
Foum Zguid. The track to Lake Iriqui starts at the edge of the village.
Practical details
- Pick-up at your Zagora accommodation
- Paved N12, little traffic, passable year-round
- Ideal format: 2 days / 1 night returning to Zagora or dropping in Ouarzazate
- Works as a stage in a Zagora → Foum Zguid → Marrakech loop
Frequently asked questions
Is Zagora’s Erg Lihoudi worth it?
For a first night on sand with little time, yes: it is close and easy. But the dunes are low, the camps numerous, and the horizon quickly reached. With two more days, Chegaga is another scale entirely.
Can I enter via Foum Zguid and exit via M'hamid?
Yes, and it is the finest formula if you then travel up the Draa valley: in via Lake Iriqui, night at Chegaga, out through M'hamid and on to Zagora. We arrange that crossing with the return transfer.
Other departure cities: see all options · Understand the region: Foum Zguid, Erg Chegaga, Lake Iriqui.