The Best Trips for Desert Adventures

The red rock, dusty expanses of Jordan’s Wadi Rum have long been one of Hollywood’s favourite sandboxes, with all sorts from Lawrence of Arabia (1962) to Star Wars TV shows and Dune (2021) making the most of this otherworldly adventure playground. Having already dined on street food and local wine in Amman, as well as visiting the iconic ancient city of Petra, you’ll get to explore this cinematic desert for yourself on our eight-day Jordanian odyssey. We’ll zoom across across Wadi Rum in 4x4s, leaving a trail of dust behind as our Local Insider shows you the unseen secrets and hidden beauty spots of this mystical desert. Having spent a day scrambling up sand dunes and discovering incredible rocky viewpoints, we’ll retire to a magical luxury desert camp for an unforgettable night of desert stargazing. We’ll eventually reach the oasis of the Red Sea for a snorkelling experience, followed by a relaxing float in the Dead Sea.

Morocco’s natural diversity is remarkable, with dreamy coastlines, giant mountains and a fascinating range of towns, cities and cultures. All roads lead to the desert, however, and that nomadic spirit and those ancient Berber traditions are still infused across the land. Our 11-day trip is a comprehensive tour of Morocco, taking in all of the above. You’ll explore Casablanca, Fes and Marrakech, as well as the quirky blue town of Chefchaouen. We’ll explore Dades and Todra Gorges high in the Atlas Mountains, and visit the extraordinary desert kasbah of Aït Benhaddou. The proper dust-bowl adventures take place in the world’s most famous sandy expanse, the Sahara. We’ll go to Merzouga near the Algerian border to stay at a luxury desert riad, with sublime sunset views over the towering Erg Chebbi dunes. We’ll also visit a remote Gnawa village by 4×4, before ploughing on through bouncy sand dunes to a luxury desert camp. We’ll sip on mint tea, sing songs around the campfire and dine Berber style under the stars, before enjoying a wine tasting session – perfect prep for a mind-blowing telescope stargazing session with an expert astronomer. Finally, before leaving the Sahara behind, you’ll get to go on a once-in-a-lifetime sunrise camel ride. Now that is something you will never forget.

Perhaps the nation most synonymous with deserts, Egypt has always been one of the most common entries on bucket lists across the world. There’s good reason for that, too. Visiting the Sphinx and the Great Pyramids might not be the most original travel ideas, but these otherworldly man-made desert structures are something to behold in person. Today, the contrast between the ancient pyramids and nearby modern cities is a fascinating glimpse at how different civilisations have attempted to tame the desert with grand works of architecture. On this nine-day epic we’ll guide you all the way down from Cairo and the most famous sights of Giza to the islands of Aswan, spending four nights floating through the desert on a luxury Nile cruise. Expect plenty of temples, souks and authentic Nubian delicacies along the way.