Morocco Fossil Tours

3 days. Marrakech to Erfoud over the High Atlas with a stop at Ait Benhaddou, a day at the fossil beds of Erfoud, then Merzouga for the camel ride and camp night, and the drive back to Marrakech. The itinerary names trilobites, ammonites and orthoceras at the Erfoud beds and lists fossil hunting activities, the camel ride, hotels and a desert camp, transport and an English-speaking guide/driver among the inclusions.

5 days. A first day in Marrakech, then Erfoud for a full day in the fossil workshops and markets and at the fossil beds, a camel trek to a camp in the Erg Chebbi dunes, and a return to Marrakech through the Todra Gorge. The inclusions are the same as on the 3-day tour.

10 days. A geological circuit rather than a desert trip: a private air-conditioned Land Cruiser, an English-speaking guide/driver, nine nights in en-suite hotels with dinners and breakfasts, and picnic lunches at the sites. The route runs Marrakech, the Sidi Rahal mine, Ouarzazate, the Draa valley and the Alnif sites on days two to four, the Mharch oasis, Merzouga as a base for days five to seven (including Taouz and the Kem Kem beds), then the Todra and Dades gorges, Ouarzazate and a half-day tour of Marrakech before the airport. Drinks, flights, entrance fees and tips are not included, and the price is set by the number of passengers.

On the 3-day and 5-day trips the fossil time is in and around Erfoud: the fossil beds, where the itineraries say trilobites, ammonites and orthoceras are easy to find, local experts who explain why the area matters geologically, and on the 5-day tour the workshops where artisans cut and polish fossil pieces. On the 10-day tour almost every day is a site or two, as the itinerary describes them: Ordovician and Silurian sites in the Draa valley with trilobites and black orthoceras, the Cambrian and Devonian trilobite sites around Alnif, Isoumour and Atchana, red ammonites at Mharch, goniatites at Jbel Mdawar and Azourz, and the Kem Kem beds near Taouz for fish, crocodile and spinosaurus bones and teeth. The mineral stops are the Sidi Rahal mine for quartz, chalcedony, amethyst and agate, the old Filon 12 mine for vanadinite, quartz and goethite, an active barite mine and the gypsum sand roses near Merzouga. The 10-day itinerary describes collecting at these sites and picnics on them.

If you would rather buy than dig, our page on Erfoud fossils for sale explains what the town’s workshops produce.