Agadir Tours & Desert Trips from Agadir

Things to do in Agadir

Agadir was rebuilt after the 1960 earthquake, so it feels more modern than Marrakech or Fes. Its real draws are the bay, the mild climate and an easy mix of beach time and day trips.

• The beach and the corniche – a wide crescent of sand with a long seafront promenade, cafés and the marina at its northern end.
• Agadir Oufella – the ruins of the old hilltop kasbah, reached by cable car or road, with sweeping views over the city and the port.
• Souk El Had – a huge walled market selling spices, argan oil, olives, leather and ceramics; it is busiest at weekends.
• Taghazout and the surf coast – a relaxed fishing and surf village around 20 km north, with lessons for beginners and famous point breaks.
• Paradise Valley – palm-fringed rock pools in the Atlas foothills, about an hour’s drive inland.
• Souss-Massa National Park – dunes, estuary and birdlife south of the city, including the rare northern bald ibis.
• Taroudant – a walled market town about 85 km east, often called “little Marrakech”, and the first stop on most desert routes.

Most of these make an easy half-day or full-day outing. If you would rather not drive yourself, you can book a car with driver in Morocco for local excursions, or ask us to add them to a longer trip.

Agadir to Sahara: the desert route

The road from Agadir to the Sahara is one of the most varied drives in Morocco. Heading east, you pass Taroudant and climb into the Anti-Atlas, through saffron country around Taliouine and the carpet-weaving town of Taznakht, before reaching the UNESCO-listed kasbah of Ait Ben Haddou and the film studios of Ouarzazate.

From there, the route follows either the Road of a Thousand Kasbahs through Skoura, the Valley of Roses and the Todra Gorge, or the palm groves of the Draa Valley and the black volcanic desert around Alnif. Both end at the Erg Chebbi dunes near Merzouga, which rise to around 150 m.

Distances and driving times

• Agadir – Ouarzazate: about 370 km, 5–6 hours with stops.
• Agadir – Merzouga: roughly 650–700 km, 10–11 hours of driving in total, so it is always split over two days.
• Agadir – Marrakech: about 250 km, around 3 hours on the motorway.

Because of these distances, an Agadir desert tour needs at least four days to be comfortable, with a night in Ouarzazate on the way and a night in a desert camp among the dunes.