A small private camp on the dark stone plateau of Es-Semara, where the sun has burnt the rock black and the rocks still carry drawings made when the Sahara was green.
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Private stays on request. Best season: October to April.
Blackstone Desert Camps is a private desert camp near Smara (Es-Semara) in Morocco’s Laâyoune-Sakia El Hamra region. Guests sleep in handmade nomad tents on the hamada, the black stone plateau that surrounds the town, and explore with local guides: prehistoric rock art, the Saguia el Hamra valley, the historic zawiya of Smara and very dark night skies far from city light.
Most Saharan trips in Morocco end at sand dunes. Smara sits on a hamada: a high, open plateau of stone. Over thousands of years sun and wind have coated its rocks in desert varnish, a thin skin of iron and manganese that turns them almost black. Flat-topped mesas, dry riverbeds and lone acacias break the horizon, and after rare rains the wadis turn green for a few weeks.
That dark varnish is also why the province is one of Morocco’s great rock art regions. When early hunters and herders pecked or scraped a figure into the stone, they exposed the pale rock beneath, and the lines are still readable today. Across the Saguia el Hamra basin you find giraffes, elephants, antelopes, ostriches and long-horned cattle, animals of a wetter Sahara, alongside later Libyco-Berber (Tifinagh) signs. Archaeological finds in the province run from Lower Palaeolithic stone tools to the Neolithic.
The town itself was founded in the late 19th century by Sheikh Ma al-Aynayn as a centre of learning and a stop for caravans. The walls of his zawiya and kasbah still stand, and Sahrawi nomad culture, from the woven khaima tent to the three glasses of tea, is part of daily life here.
Beyond classic desert stays, the camp is set up for travellers with a specific purpose.
Crew accommodation, a place for vehicles and local route knowledge for rally and overland teams.
Long stays, a work tent and local logistics for archaeology, geology and astronomy teams.
Full-day expeditions to prehistoric engravings, with a strict code to protect them.
Milky Way nights far from city light, with a telescope at camp.
Every stay includes dinner and breakfast cooked at camp, Sahrawi tea, and a transfer from Smara. Prices are per person per night.
from €95 per person, per night
A traditional tent of woven camel and goat hair, raised on the plateau the way Sahrawi families still do. Rugs, thick blankets, lanterns, and the silence of the hamada outside the door.
from €165 per person, per night
A larger tent with a proper bed, a private bathroom with hot shower and a small terrace facing the mesas. Made for couples and anyone who wants the desert without giving up comfort.
from €420 per person, per night
The whole camp for your group only, set up at a site chosen with you: the edge of a mesa, a green wadi after rain, or close to a rock art area. Your own cook, driver-guide and fire.
All tours are private, run by licensed local guides, and can be added to any stay.
Full day, 4x4 and walking
A day with a licensed guide among engraved rocks of the Smara region: giraffes, cattle, ostriches, spirals and Tifinagh signs. Exact site locations are shared on the day only, to protect them.
Half day, 4x4
Drive the black plateau to the valleys that cut through it, with stops on the mesas for the view and tea under an acacia.
Half day
The zawiya and kasbah of Sheikh Ma al-Aynayn, the old quarter and the market, with a guide from the town.
Half day
Where families agree to host us: camels, fresh milk, bread baked in the sand and the long ritual of tea.
Evening
Naked-eye Milky Way and planets through a telescope, far from any city light, with blankets and hot drinks.
Full day or overnight
Follow the region’s great dry river and its palm and tamarisk pockets, with an optional bivouac in the valley.
Starting points to adapt. Dates, pace and comfort level are set with you.
2 nights
from €390 per person
4 nights
from €890 per person
6 nights
from €1490 per person
Smara is the inland, stony heart of the region. Laâyoune, the regional capital, is about three hours west, with the Atlantic beach of Foum El Oued nearby. Further north, Tarfaya keeps the memory of the Aéropostale pilots and Antoine de Saint-Exupéry, and the Khnifiss lagoon (Naïla) is one of the richest birding spots on the Atlantic Sahara coast.
We combine the camp with trusted guesthouses and hotels in Laâyoune and Tarfaya, so one booking covers the desert, the coast and every transfer in between.
These engravings survived thousands of years. They should survive us too.
Smara has a few hotels and guesthouses in town. To stay in the desert itself, Blackstone Desert Camps offers nomad tents, private suites and fully private camps on the black stone plateau around Smara, with transfers from Smara and Laâyoune airports.
Yes, there is a small choice of hotels and guesthouses in Smara town, mainly for business travellers. Visitors who come for the landscape, the rock art and the night sky usually prefer a desert camp on the hamada, a short drive from town.
Yes. The Smara province is one of Morocco’s main rock art regions, with engravings and paintings across the Saguia el Hamra basin. Visits should always be made with a licensed local guide. We organise full-day rock art expeditions and only share site locations on the day, to protect them.
October to April. Days are warm and nights are cool to cold. From May to September midday temperatures are very high, so summer programmes start early and rest in the shade after lunch.
Fly to Smara Airport (SMW) with direct flights from Casablanca, or to Laâyoune (EUN), about three hours away by road. Long-distance buses also serve Smara. We arrange private transfers from both airports.
Smara is a provincial town with regular flights, buses and daily life. As for any trip, check your government’s current travel advice before you book. Our guides are from the region, know the terrain and only take guests to areas that are open to visitors.
A hamada is a stone desert: a high, flat plateau covered with rock instead of sand. Around Smara the stones are coated in dark desert varnish, which gives the landscape its black colour.
Yes. The basalt suites sleep a child, and the private camp can be adapted for families, with shorter drives, a camel walk and an early dinner. Tell us the children’s ages when you book.
A licensed local guide, a 4x4 with driver, water, tea and a picnic or lunch. Park or site fees, if any, are included in the quote you receive.
Send your dates by WhatsApp or email. We reply within 24 hours with a written quote. A deposit confirms the booking, and the balance is paid on arrival. There are no platform fees when you book direct.
Tell us when you want to come and what kind of stay you have in mind. You will get a written quote within 24 hours.