AFRICA, MOROCCO, TRAVEL

One of my absolute biggest dreams was to stay in a camp in the middle of the Sahara and sleep under the bright stars of the desert. I still can’t believe this dream finally came true during my road trip through the incredible country of Morocco. I was able to spend two nights at Tiziri Camp – a luxury eco desert camp and the first of its kind. Located in Erg Chebbi and close to the Sahara, there’s only the six tents of the camp, you and endless dunes.

Before I start writing about my magical time in the desert, I want to give you some more information about Tiziri Camp itself.

The Story of Morocco’s First Luxury Eco Desert Camp

Tiziri Camp is not like many other camps in Morocco. Even though their main focus is to enable people an unforgettable stay, they aim to be as environmentally friendly as possible. One of their most important goals is to support sustainable and responsible tourism.

The owner of the camp told us that he was born in the dunes to a nomadic family. Because of his special connection to that place, he decided to follow his dream and built Morocco’s first luxury eco desert camp. The name “Tiziri” means moonlight in his language and thus the silver moon of the logo.

The people at Tiziri Camp do a lot to protect the environment as much as possible. They work very hard to reduce the negative impact tourism has on the environment by focusing on sustainability in the Sahara desert. I’m happy to share with you some of their eco achievements and even tell you about their future plans to raise environmental awareness!

Eco Achievements of Tiziri Camp

The first thing we got told is that they use 100% reusable energy technology. That means all the electricity and water heating comes from solar panels. Even the fridge and freezers in the camp kitchen are solar-powered!
The owner told us when all the tents are occupied, it can sometimes happen that there’s no electricity anymore in the night. But I guess that’s a very minimal price to pay in order to be environmental friendly right?

Second, all the tents at Tiziri Camp are made of natural fabrics and non-synthetic materials. The use of plastic is very little in the camp, simply the water bottles are made of plastic. However, even for this, they have a very good solution that I’m going to tell you later on!

Another one of their great achievements is the use of a water filtration system. Thanks to a simple system built with natural materials it’s possible to filter the water a couple of times and reuse it. Moreover, all the water used at Tiziri Camp is sourced from their own well – except for the drinking water of course.

Last but not least – and what I find to be the most amazing project of the camp – they support children of Desert Nomads. Once a child of the desert himself, the owner of Tiziri Camp now provides school items and clothes for them. So if you go to the camp and have stuff you don’t need anymore, don’t hesitate to bring them with you! All the children will be more than grateful to receive them.

Of course, they do a lot more to protect the environment but it’s simply too much to write here. If you’re interested, you can find more information about their achievements HERE.

Future Plans & Ideas of The Camp

Do you remember the problem with the plastic bottles? In Morocco, it’s difficult to find drinking water that isn’t filled up in plastic bottles, unfortunately. Nevertheless, the people at Tiziri Camp found a great solution and invented a new idea on how to use the bottles in an effective way. From now on, they try to form them into eco-bricks and create furniture for the camp with them. Specifically, they want to build bench seats simply by using plastic bottles.
In my opinion, that’s an awesome idea on how to reuse plastic bottles and I’m super excited to see how their little project develops in the future!

Another project they’re currently working on is to involve the guests staying at the camp. Therefore they created suggestion cards from recycled paper to encourage customers to share their eco ideas and make the camp even better!

Knowing that the people at the camp care so much about mother nature fills me with so much joy! I’m more than happy to see how far they’ve come with their vision and how hard they’re working to become even better. Moreover, it makes me very happy that I have the opportunity to support them by giving you more information and spreading the message!

As I already mentioned above, I had the most magical time at the camp. I met Bob Marley & Ferrari (you’ll find out who I mean), slept under the stars and felt pure freedom running around in the dunes. But let’s start from the beginning. Here are all my adventures in the Sahara desert & how I spent my time at Tiziri Camp!

My Time at Tiziri Camp

Our journey to the camp was an adventure on itself already.
After a long 7-hour drive from Fes, we finally made it to the small desert town Merzouga. There we had some real issues to find the place we were supposed to be picked up from. Our offline map on the phone didn’t work properly and we had to take some detours to our final destination. Luckily our rental car was good enough for all the sandy and unpaved roads!

Eventually, we made it, exhausted and very tired but grateful to have found the right address. It was a hotel from where the tour to Tiziri Camp normally starts as you can’t go there on your own.
We waited a few minutes until the owner of the camp arrived. Actually we thought we’re going to the camp by 4×4, however, there was a surprise waiting for us. Our way to the camp started with a camel ride!

Meet Bob Marley and Ferrari

Initially, my friend and I didn’t want to ride camels in Morocco. We both don’t like to support businesses where animals are used to make a profit. That’s of course also one of the main reasons why I decided to live a vegan lifestyle.
However, the camels used at Tiziri Camp are not for tourism aspects. They belong to a nomad family living close to the camp and are completely free to graze and roam whenever they’re not bringing people to the camp.

We even experienced how much the animals mean to their owner who led us to the camp. He treated them with so much love and respect, gave them kisses and spoke to them as with siblings or friends. There was no stick, no yelling and they weren’t tied somewhere.

Before we got on top of their back, we were told to only take water and sun protection with us to avoid unnecessary weight on the camels. Moreover, we didn’t go the entire way to the desert by camels. After an hour we changed to a 4×4 as it started getting dark already.
During our ride, we chatted with Hamed, the owner of the camels, and learned a lot about living in the desert. It was such an unforgettable experience and I really miss Bob Marley and Ferrari already!

Knowing that those camels are very well taken care off makes me more than happy. They are treated exactly as all animals should be. Treated as friends, not as things.

A Warm Welcome & a 4-course Vegan Dinner

We arrived at the camp, hungry and super exhausted yet still amazed by the magical experience on the back of the camels. Welcomed with some snacks and Moroccan mint tea, we got our energy back really quick. While we were laying on some cushions outside staring at the stars, they prepared dinner for us. Luckily the weather was nice so we were able to eat outside under the night sky of the Sahara. A table and two chairs were arranged for us and then they started serving the food.

I can tell you, it was absolutely amazing!!! Not only the dishes were really delicious but the entire moment itself was truly wonderful. The entire time we couldn’t hear anything else than the gentle sound of the Sahara wind.

We got a full vegan four-course menu including Moroccan soup, different kinds of salad, grilled vegetables + sides and a fruit plate as dessert. Actually, they have only normal + vegetarian menus to choose. But since I told them that we’re vegan, they created a completely vegan menu for us! Moreover, they informed us that both, chef and camp owner, participated in cooking courses and they’re now able to offer a completely vegan menu as a permanent option.

Later on, we got some company from wild desert cats. Those adorable little friends looked very different than the cats I know in Europe. They adapted to the rough life in the Sahara by having bigger eyes and ears. Moreover, they were way smaller and moved faster.

Sleeping Under The Stars of The Desert

After we finished our food we curled up on the cushions again. A few minutes later the staff joined us and started singing while playing drums and the guitar.
Honestly, I had goosebumps the entire time. At that very moment, everything felt completely fine. The overwhelming feeling of complete happiness was insane and I felt tears of joy running down my cheeks. It was one of those breathtaking moments in life that I’ll never forget!

Tired from that long and exciting day we decided to head to bed. I mean it was after midnight anyway.
Instead of sleeping in our tent tho, the staff brought the bed outside as we were the only guests at the camp.
I couldn’t even believe how lucky I was! Sleeping under the stars in the middle of the desert sounded simply too good to be true. Yet it became a reality for me. Even though we both didn’t really get a lot of sleep that night, it was an unforgettable experience everyone should make at least once in their life!

I need to admit that I was a little bit scared of getting eaten by scorpions or similar tho.

Breakfast & Tents at Tiziri Camp

The next morning we got up and went to the restaurant tent where they served us breakfast. On the table were a variety of drinks such as mint tea, coffee, freshly pressed orange juice, and bottled water. All the food was typical Moroccan I would say (in vegan style haha). Moroccan bread, different types of jam, olives, fruits, vegetables and we even got some cake.

As soon as we finished breakfast, I took the opportunity to explore the camp a bit more because it was already dark when we arrived.
The first thing I discovered was that every tent was named after an Amazigh God:

• Afri – Goddess of fertility
• Aari – God of good fortune
• Ammon – God of life
• Atlas – God of spring
• Anzar – God of rain
• Warru – God of joy

We stayed in the tent named after Aari, the god of good fortune – I really hope that’s a great sign!

Inside there was a huge double bed, a romantic sitting area with snacks and a beautiful bathroom with a better shower than I have it at home!

As you can see, everything is created with so much love and passion for details. It doesn’t even feel like being inside a tent!

A Pool in The Desert & an Adventurous Quad Tour

At Tiziri Camp there’s a lot of activities to choose from. For example, you can visit a local Nomadic family and have tea with them.
Since the temperatures were around 45 degrees celsius, we decided to go for a more relaxing & “refreshing” option. The owner told us about a very nice hotel with a pool not far from the camp. We packed our swimsuits and he brought us there with the 4×4.

After some very much needed hours of chilling at the pool, it was time to return to the camp.
However, taking the 4×4 was way too boring for us. Instead, we did a Quad tour through the desert! The people from Tiziri Camp organized everything for us and we got picked up from the hotel just in time for sunset.

Honestly, guys, I can’t remember the last time I had so much fun in my life! I simply couldn’t stop smiling while driving up and down the dunes of the Sahara. The moment we drove up to the biggest dune nearby with more than 50 km/h was truly incredible. On top of it, we stopped for a few minutes and soaked in the panoramic view of the eternal desert. I ran around like a child, filled with joy and close to tears (again lol).

We spent about an hour driving around until we reached the camp – still completely filled with adrenaline.
Our dinner table awaited us and we ate another mouthwatering 4-course vegan menu.
Even though we were relaxing at the pool most of the time that day, we were really exhausted and tired. Thus we chilled a bit on the cushions and went to bed relatively soon then.

Saying Goodbye to Tiziri Camp

The next day the weather was perfect again and therefore we decided to enjoy our last breakfast outside.

Afterward, it was time to pack our stuff and say goodbye to that absolutely fantastic place in the Moroccan desert.

And I can tell you … I was so NOT ready to leave!

First, I met two of the most gentle and friendly camels ever.
Second, I cried tears of joy while starring at the stars and listening to incredibly beautiful music.
Third, I slept under the sky of the desert and woke up to the quiet sound of the Sahara.
Last but not least, I couldn’t stop smiling while driving up a giant dune with more than 50 km/h.

Thanks to all the incredibly hard-working and lovely people at Tiziri Camp I had uncountable memorial experiences! And all that while supporting sustainable and responsible tourism. Is there anything better you could ask for?

Lina and her friend Sophia stayed with us in August and despite the heat during the hottest month of the year, they were beautiful guests and were enjoying their adventure together so much. What we didn’t know till later was that they had never met before their trip together but chose to travel and share this experience after following each other on-line.