Sahara and High-Atlas - 6 days 5 nights

1st day : Marrakesh – Ouarzazate 

Departing at 8 am. and driving across the High Atlas mountains. Then to the Kasbah of Telouet. We eat lunch here. Then we ride along the stunning road to the Kasbah of Ait Ben Haddou, famous Kasbah in Morocco and a UNESCO World Heritage site. night in Ouarzazat .

2nd day : Ouarzazate – M’hamid 

We have breakfast then visit the Kasbah to the Dra’a Valley to Zagora where we will eat lunch. Later in the afternoon, we head to M’hamid, this is the end of the paved road and where the desert begins. Then we take a one to two hour camel ride and we go to the bottom of the highest dune where the view of the sunset is glorious. We spend the night in a nomadic tent very close to the dunes of Erg Lihoudi. 

3rd day : M’hamid – Chagaga 

We have breakfast and then return to M’hamid to visit an old village across the now often dry river, Dra’a. Later in the afternoon, there is the departure for the Erg Chagaga dunes (300m) with 60km of off-road. This route passes various characteristics of the desert ; ‘erg’, ‘reg’, ‘hammada’, oases. These dunes are far away from civilization, in the desert proper …… where the peace and the vast amount of the sand are an overwhelming site. You could have a second camel ride here, if you would like. Dinner and a good night’s sleep are in a bivouac of nomad tents. 

4th day : Chagaga – Taroudant 

We eat breakfast and then drive 90 km across the Sahara over the stony desert, “reg” and “hammada” and across the dried-up Lake Iriqui. In the middle of this lake, we can look for fossils. Right at the edge of the desert at Foum Zguid, we head north to Taznakht, famous for its Berber gelims and carpets, and this is where we have lunch. After crossing the Tizi-n-Ikhsane and Tizi-n-Tighatine passes, we arrive in Taliouine, the heart of the saffron growing region. The road takes us on to Taroudant and we stop and spend the night in a riad. 

5th day : Taroudant - Imlil 

Visting the town of Taroudant. then back up the High Atlas Mountains across the famous Tizi-n-Test pass, we stop at the Tinmal mosque, which can be visited by non-Moslems. We have lunch then continue through the mountains to the village of Imlil. We spend the night here in the quiet and overwhelming views

6th day : Imlil – Marrakesh 

After we have breakfast, we can walk and look up at Toubkal Mountain, the highest peak in North Africa. we reach Asni, a small Berber village, famous for permanent and weekly soukhs. Then it’s time for tea with a local Berber family who will be willing to show us the traditional hammam and bread ovens. Finally, the last Valley on the trip is of the Lalla Takerkoust reservoir, it supplies Marrakesh and the area with water from the High Atlas snow melting. You can take photos of the incredible scenery over the lake. After that we head back to Marrakesh.