Dakar 2027: the rally returns to Portugal and Morocco

1. The announced dates, day by day

ASO’s announcement, published on 30 October 2026, sets the 2027 edition from 9 to 23 January. The FIA, the sport’s governing body, repeats it but notes that the dates remain subject to approval by its World Motor Sport Council. We did not find that approval in the sources at the time of writing. So this is an announcement, not a fixed timetable.

The rally starts well before the first timed kilometre. The service park opens on 5 January, administrative and technical checks run from 6 to 8 January, then the prologue is planned for 9 January in the Loulé-Faro area of Portugal. No time has been published for the prologue. The first special stage follows on 10 January, before an overnight crossing to Nador, on Morocco’s Mediterranean coast, scheduled for 11 January.

Another date is circulating: Autosport and Minute Mirror cite 7 January as the start day. The other sources and the announcement say 9 January, which is the date to use. Also beware of pages that still describe Saudi Arabia. The official app’s description still says « 1 to 15 January », and guides to the old calendar are no longer valid.

Source: FIA, reproduction of the ASO release of 30 October 2026, and Timeout Racing for the service park and the checks, checked 5 November 2026.

2. The Moroccan route, from Nador to Marrakech

Eleven stages in Morocco, from the Mediterranean to the Atlantic

Eleven stages in Morocco 4,341 km timed Six bivouacs Finish on 23 January

In Morocco, the rally runs eleven stages, with one rest day in Agadir and six bivouacs over the whole route. The announcement, as reported by Hespress, names Bouarfa as the first Moroccan bivouac. The route then heads south to Zagora in the Drâa valley and reaches Agadir on the Atlantic coast. Further south it passes Smara and the area around Dakhla, before finishing in Marrakech on 23 January. Hespress (in French), checked 5 November 2026.

The stages to know

• Bouarfa, first Moroccan bivouac according to the announcement.
• Zagora, in the Drâa valley, where the indicative table places several stages.
• Agadir, rest day. The exact day differs between sources: 16 or 17 January.
• Smara and the area around Dakhla, in Western Sahara, with a marathon bivouac without mechanical assistance planned near Dakhla.
• Marrakech, final arrival on 23 January.

Pixidia tip: no zone open to the public has been published so far. The excursion below has no link with the rally route: it takes you into the desert from Marrakech, without depending on the race organisation.

3-Day Desert Tour from Marrakech to Merzouga★ 5.05 · 51 reviewsPartner link €120 per person (based on 2 adults), available across the whole 9 to 23 January 2027 window on the Viator calendar as of 5 November 2026; price checked on six dates (9, 11, 14, 16, 19 and 23 January)€120 per person(based on 2 adults), available across the whole 9 to 23 January 2027 window on the Viator calendar as of 5 November 2026 ; price checked on six dates (9, 11, 14, 16, 19 and 23 January)

See dates

The status of Western Sahara is disputed between Morocco and the Polisario Front, and the UN lists it as a non-self-governing territory. The rally passes through Smara and the area around Dakhla. Moroccan media speak of a return to the « Moroccan Sahara », while an opinion piece published by Afrik challenges the route in light of the UN framework. The subject is contested: this article reports both views without taking a side. No statement from the Polisario Front about the rally had been found at the time of writing.

Merzouga, mentioned by an October pre-announcement and by an expedition agency, does not appear in the announcement. Don’t count it as an official stage. Stages 2 and 3 are not detailed in the sources we read, nor are the stages after stage 9, apart from the marathon bivouac near Dakhla. Stages 8 and 9 appear in only one source: these lines are indicative.

Source: Le Repaire des Motards (in French) for the lengths and stages 4 to 9 (stages 7, 8 and 9: single source), and Hespress (in French), reproducing the ASO announcement, for the towns, checked 5 November 2026.

3. How to follow the Dakar 2027 from the UK

Following the rally remotely is the simplest option, since no public access to the route has been announced. Three channels are useful, in order of reliability.

• The official « Dakar Rally » app, published by ASO, with live commentary, rankings and tracking of your favourite riders. Its public rating is 3.9 out of 5 from 488 ratings, checked on the App Store on 5 November 2026. Its description still gives 2027 as « 1 to 15 January »: it is out of date.
• The official site dakar.com, which we could not consult at the time of writing, is where the organiser usually publishes the route and the results. Nothing indicates yet that a spectator programme will be published.
• The specialist press: Autosport in English for stage summaries; Le Repaire des Motards and Enduromag in French; Hespress and Telquel for Morocco; Lusa, Postal or DN for Portugal.

No UK broadcaster has been confirmed

No broadcaster has been announced for 2027. Motorsinside reports that France Télévisions dropped the rally from 2026, and L’Équipe aired the 2026 edition from 3 to 17 January. Older guides that cite Eurosport or France Télévisions for 2027 are out of date. Watch for announcements from ASO and from broadcasters before 9 January. For UK viewers, Autosport covers the rally in English, but we found no UK broadcaster listed for 2027.

4. Attending the rally: what has not been published

Marrakech, final arrival on 23 January

Arrival on 23 January 2027 Marrakech Menara Airport Cool nights in January

Marrakech hosts the final arrival of the rally. No public programme for the city has been published at the time of writing. Flight comparison sites list nonstop flights from London to Marrakech, mainly with easyJet, but they say nothing about traffic around the finish line.

• No accommodation rate dated January 2027 was found in the sources consulted.
• January nights are cool, with minimums between 3°C and 5°C depending on the source.

Pixidia tip: only book accommodation for 23 January once the organiser has officially announced the arrival programme. The dates may still change until FIA approval is secured.

No tickets, paid or free access, spectator zone or public village has been announced for 2027 at the time of writing. The Algarve Stadium, which serves as the operations centre in Portugal, has a capacity of about 30,000, but its public access has not been announced. Don’t buy any ticket or « access to the Dakar » offer before an official ASO announcement.

Expedition offers already exist. A Moroccan agency offers a five-day trip from 12 to 16 January 2027, departing from and returning to Marrakech, with a possible stop near Merzouga. It says the rally’s passage is not guaranteed and that access to viewing areas depends on the official route and the zones open to the public. No price is published. It is a commercial offer: it does not prove that public access to the rally exists.

The French foreign ministry’s safety advice (in French) flags the Marrakech-Agadir motorway as very dangerous, especially on the descent towards Agadir, and advises against driving at night or leaving the tarmac. It also notes a terrorist threat and seismic risk in Agadir and Marrakech. The GOV.UK safety page covers night driving and earthquake risk for British travellers, and is the page to check before you book.

The weather on the route in January

The figures below are averages calculated from the ERA5 reanalysis of Open-Meteo, from 2015 to 2025, for the rally window (9 to 23 January). They are neither forecasts nor station measurements: they give an order of magnitude. The published normals for Marrakech (1991 to 2021) give an average of about 9.7°C in January, with minimums around 2.7°C: nights are cool inland, especially at a bivouac.

Source: Open-Meteo, ERA5 reanalysis archive (internal calculation, 2015 to 2025), checked 5 November 2026. Marrakech normals: climate-data.org (in French).

What other guides don’t tell you

Five points are missing from several guides we checked. Each one links to a dated source: specialist press or an official government page.

• The service park opens on 5 January, and checks run from 6 to 8 January. Date aggregators rarely give these intermediate days. Timeout Racing (checked 5 November 2026).
• No tickets, spectator zones or timed programme have been published. The organiser has not yet communicated, according to the Portuguese daily DN, which relays Lusa. The ticket guides you may find concern other editions, in Saudi Arabia or South America. TV-Direct (in French) (checked 5 November 2026).
• Morocco asks for a passport valid at least three months after you arrive, according to the FCDO. Some guides still quote the older rule that the passport must be valid for the whole stay, or a rule that applies to other nationalities. Check the FCDO advice before you book. GOV.UK, Morocco entry requirements (checked 5 November 2026).
• Beyond the coastal paved road in Western Sahara, prior authorisation is required. It must be obtained from the Royal Gendarmerie or the Royal Armed Forces. Articles describing Smara and Dakhla often leave out this constraint. French foreign ministry, Morocco safety advice (in French) (checked 5 November 2026). The FCDO page does not mention it.
• The dates pre-announced in October are no longer valid. A pre-announcement of 20 October 2026 gave 9 to 22 January and placed Merzouga at the heart of the route. The 30 October announcement keeps 23 January as the finish and does not mention Merzouga. Bladi (in French) (checked 5 November 2026).