Déstination détails

Day1-Arrive Marrakesh

A driver will be waiting for you at Marrakesch airport to take you to your riad in Marrakesh. An early flight arrival you will give you time to put your toe in the exotic water that is this wonderfully flamboyant city. Before the guided tour of the Medina tomorrow, this afternoon you might like to enter into the  spirit of Marrakesh by taking a ride in a caleche, the horse-drawn carriages that are the most romantic way to see the city from beyond its pink walls. You’ll have dinner this evening in the comfort of your riad.

Day 2-Marrakesh Guided Visit

Don’t worry
if you get lost in the Medina should you choose to wander on your own, just point yourself in the direction of Jemaa el-Fnaa (or La Place as it’s better known among local Marrakschis) and you will soon find your way home. That won’t be a problem once you’ve experienced a private guided tour (which includes lunch) as your guide unravels the clustered streets and shows you the more interesting places to visit. He’ll intrigue you with stories of life within the nineteen kilometers of wall that encircle the Marrakech Medina. The tour lasts from 9:30am until 5:30pm, and before you set off you will be able to discuss with your guide (see our Marrakech travel information) the sights you would most like to see.

Day 3 -Telouet | Ait Ben Haddou | Ouarzazate | Skoura

Your route
today takes you over the 2260 meters-high Tizi n’Tichka pass, a sashaying
engineering feat completed in 1936. You zig-zag through a desolate terrain of
hairpin bends, but the ravishing views make it all worthwhile. Have your camera
at the ready and your driver will find somewhere safe to stop

For those
who want to explore further off the beaten path, Telouet makes an impressive
stop via the back way towards Ait Ben Haddou. It is said that the ruins of a
slave village can still be seen, although little remains, and Telouet itself is
rapidly disintegrating. Ait Ben Haddou is next on the agenda. It’s a walled
town of traditional mud and straw buildings and you get an eerie sense of
history as you walk the shadowed streets between crumbling walls, although as
it is now a recognized UNESCO site of special interest much work has been done
to restore some elements of it to its former grandeur.

The road
then descents to Ouarzazate the tribal home of the Glaoui family who demanded
tolls from anyone passing through the mountains on their way to and from
Marrakech. Salt was important to the Glaoui fortunes, and a large Jewish
community once lived nearby who oversaw the production of this precious
commodity. Next, you head to Skoura in the Valley of the Kasbahs, where you
have the afternoon to relax in this peaceful oasis before dinner is served.

Day 4 – Dra Valley | Zagora | M’hamid | Erg Chigaga

This
morning you leave Skoura and head two hours south to the remote village of
M’hamid where the paved road ends. Lunch is taken with a local family, after
which, nicely rested, you begin the next part of your journey off-road,
traveling into Morocco’s wildest Sahara region – Erg Chigaga.

Day 5 – Erg Chigaga Sahara Desert

4x4 Sahara Exploration, 

The
dramatic 300 meter-high dunes of Erg Chigaga undulate into infinity like a vast
ocean of sand, and today is dedicated to fully absorbing the desert experience.
Little disturbs the silence other than the sound of your feet as you trek among
the dunes (not quite as easy as your guide will make it look). You can meet
nomadic families of the Ait Atta Berber tribe that live here and learn about
life in this wildest desert of Morocco.

Day 6 – Lac Iriki | Foum Zguid | Taroudant

Prepare
yourself for a long drive today that is both diverse and arduous. For three
hours you travel off-road through the ‘badlands’ of Erg Chigaga, passing the
fifty mile-long dry lake bed of Lac Iriki, made famous by the Paris-Dakar
rally. At Foum Zguid you stop for lunch before welcoming a good road that takes
you through the Anti-Atlas, a UNESCO Argan-tree Bioreserve, and finally to
Taroudant, known as the ‘Grandmother of Marrakesh’ because it looks like a
smaller Marrakesh with its surrounding ramparts, and was used briefly as the
country’s capital by the Saadians in the sixteenth century, before they moved
onwards to the Red City.

Day 7 –Tiznit | Aglou | Mirleft

Today, we
set the compass for southwest and head to Morocco’s untouched beach haven of
Mirleft in Morocco. Discover what the French have known for a long time in this
continually sunny paradise. The large beaches, long sunny days, and fun surf
spots make this a hidden paradise. For those travelers who would not rather go
to Mirleft, going to Essaouira (see our Essaouira travel guide) is always an
option.

Day 8 –Sidi Ifni | Mirleft

You have
the day free in Mirleft. One of the funnest activities here is a surf lesson on
Morocco’s ‘Wild Beach’. Activities are best arranged beforehand, and include a
surf camp and/or fishing. If you feel like exploring, you will find there is an
oasis and a ruined fort nearby, and Sidi Ifni has some glorious Spanish
Art-deco architecture. If you happen to be there on a Saturday morning there is
a camel market at Guelmim as well.

Day 9 –Agadir | Marrakesh

A languid
drive along the coast watching the crashing of the Atlantic surf. You pass
Agadir, the largest seaside resort in Morocco which has been completely rebuilt
since it was devastated by an earthquake in 1960. It’s here where you can stop
off at an eco lodge to enjoy a mountain bike ride and lunch, which is a great
option for families. You’ll then continue back to Marrakesh to enjoy one last
night before your departure.

Day 10 –Depart from Marrakesh 

You depart from Morocco today and we hope you had a fascinating journey with our team!