10-Day Sahara & Atlantic Tour from Dakhla: the White Dune

A full day south of town. The White Dune sits where the sand runs straight into the lagoon. Imlili is stranger: a scatter of deep pools in open desert holding fish isolated there for thousands of years.

• Morning departure south along the lagoon
• The White Dune, where the sand meets the water
• Time to swim, or to walk the dune ridge
• The pools at Imlili and their isolated tilapia
• Picnic lunch in the desert
• The natural hot springs at Asmaa
• Return to Dakhla in the late afternoon

Overnight in Dakhla.

Inland on the Aousserd road, which runs east into open hamada. It is the best chance of wildlife on the trip: dorcas gazelle, desert foxes, and the migratory birds that use this stretch of coast.

• Early departure east on the Aousserd road
• Open hamada and acacia country
• Watch for dorcas gazelle and desert birdlife
• Stop at a nomad encampment where one is in place
• Picnic lunch under the acacias
• Return west toward the coast
• Evening at leisure in Dakhla

Overnight in Dakhla.

East off the peninsula into the interior, where the hamada gives way to a belt of dunes. We set up camp in the late afternoon, and there is nothing else within sight of it.

• Morning departure east from Dakhla
• The hamada and the acacia belt
• Lunch in the shade of the acacias
• Arrival at the dunes in the late afternoon
• Time to walk the ridge before sunset
• Dinner around the fire
• Night under canvas, with no light for a hundred kilometres

Overnight at a desert bivouac.

A slow return west from the dunes on the old interior track, across hamada that carries almost no traffic. This is the emptiest day of the trip and the one where the scale of the Sahara registers.

• Sunrise over the dunes, breakfast at camp
• West on the interior track toward Bir Anzarane
• Open hamada, with acacia in the shallow wadis
• Watch for gazelle and desert larks
• Picnic lunch in the shade
• The long descent back toward the coast
• Arrival in Dakhla in the late afternoon

Overnight in Dakhla.

A gentler day on the water. The lagoon is flat and steady almost every afternoon, which is why the kitesurfers come, and the ocean side of the peninsula is empty enough to have a beach to yourself.

• Morning on the lagoon: kitesurfing, paddleboard or a boat trip
• The oyster farms and a tasting on the water
• Lunch on the lagoon shore
• Porto Rico beach and the cliffs south of town
• Time at leisure on the sand
• Sunset from the peninsula road

Overnight in Dakhla.

A coastal run north on the empty Atlantic road, where the desert meets the sea in a line of low cliffs. Around four and a half hours with stops at the fishing camps.

• Morning departure north on the coast road
• The cliffs and the small fishing camps along the Atlantic
• Stops where the road runs close to the edge
• Lunch at a roadside fish grill
• Arrival at Boujdour in the afternoon
• The lighthouse above the harbour
• The working port at the end of the day

Overnight in Boujdour.

North again to the largest town in the Sahara, built where the Saguia el Hamra riverbed reaches the coast. Around three hours, with the afternoon in town.

• Morning departure north from Boujdour
• The coast road and the phosphate conveyor running out to sea
• Arrival in Laayoune around midday
• Lunch in town
• The Saguia el Hamra riverbed and the dunes on its far bank
• The Spanish colonial quarter and the old cathedral
• The evening market

Overnight in Laayoune.

The return run down the Atlantic, around six hours, retracing the coast with the light behind you. A driving day, and an unusually beautiful one.

• Early departure south from Laayoune
• The coast road and its long empty stretches
• Boujdour for coffee and fuel
• Lunch at a fishing camp on the cliffs
• The desert running straight into the Atlantic
• The turn onto the Dakhla peninsula
• Evening arrival in Dakhla

Overnight in Dakhla.

A slow final morning in town before the drop-off.

• Morning at the fish market and the town souk
• The lagoon shore one last time
• Lunch on the seafront
• Time at leisure before departure

Afternoon drop-off in Dakhla, or transfer to the airport.