Stargazing in Morocco

​As a competitor in the Rallye Aicha des Gazelles Morocco and sleeping in a tent, I got to see one of the clearest skies ever, along with over 300 women and 400 journalists/mechanics/organisers, every night and every morning for 8 days. You’d think I’d get bored with it but I don’t. This is why, this time as an organiser, I was keen that participants in the Rally Marrakech Sahara spend 2 nights in a (comfortable) tent under this magnificent sky.
​
Most of us live in areas with high population density and light pollution which obstruct the natural starry sky.

The Arabs have been observing the stars above the desert for thousands of years. Many stars were named by Arabs who navigated in the “sea of sand” with the help of the stars. Almost every night in the desert the sky is so clear that you believe you were in space.

The first night is at Riad Zaid: we will sleep in Berber tents in Erg Ouzina and well be able to admire the sunset over the dunes. The second night is on a sandy peak looking out into a valley. It’s wild and magnificent.

---