6-Day Tour from Marrakech: Kasbahs, Gorges & Sahara
6 days · 5 nightsMarrakech → Merzouga → MarrakechEasyPrivate
The complete south of Morocco at a gentle pace: Telouet, Ait Ben Haddou, Skoura, the Dades and Todra gorges, Rissani, two nights in our camp and the Draa valley.
Six days are the ideal length to discover the south of Morocco without feeling rushed. Every driving day is short enough to leave time for walks in the kasbahs, the palm groves and the gorges, and in Merzouga you have an afternoon around the dunes and a full free day.
It is a perfect tour for families and for travellers who want to photograph the landscapes in the best light, with nights in a kasbah, in a guesthouse in the Dades gorge, two nights in our camp and a night in the oasis of the Draa.
Highlights
Telouet and Ait Ben Haddou
Skoura and the Valley of Roses
Nomads and Gnawa music in Merzouga
Two nights in our desert camp
Draa valley and its palm groves
Day by day
Day 1
Marrakech – High Atlas – Ait Ben Haddou
Departure from Marrakech in the morning towards the High Atlas. Without any hurry, we stop in the Berber villages along the road, at an argan oil cooperative run by women and at the viewpoints of the Tizi n'Tichka pass, the highest road pass in Morocco. In the early afternoon we descend to the valley of the Ounila river and, instead of the main road, we can take the old caravan route through the kasbah of Telouet, the palace of the Glaoui family who ruled the south of Morocco a century ago, with its painted ceilings and carved wood. We arrive at Ait Ben Haddou in time for a calm visit of the ksar in the golden afternoon light, when the earth walls glow red and the tourists of the day have left. Dinner and night in a kasbah hotel facing the village.
Day 2
Ait Ben Haddou – Ouarzazate – Skoura – Valley of Roses – Dades gorge
A gentle day of kasbahs and palm groves. We pass through Ouarzazate, where you can visit the kasbah of Taourirt or the film studios, and continue to Skoura, an oasis where dozens of earth kasbahs stand among the palms; the kasbah of Amridil, the most beautiful, is still lived in by the same family and can be visited inside. We follow the 'road of the thousand kasbahs' to Kalaat M'Gouna, the town of the Valley of Roses, famous for its rose water and its festival in May. In the afternoon we enter the Dades gorge, with its red cliffs and the famous zigzag road climbing the mountain. Your driver can leave you for a walk among the fields and the 'monkey fingers' rocks before dinner at a guesthouse by the river.
Day 3
Dades – Todra gorge – Rissani – Merzouga, camel ride and night in our camp
In the morning we drive to Tinghir and walk into the Todra gorge, where the canyon narrows to just a few metres between walls of rock 300 metres high. We continue across the desert plateaus to Rissani, the ancient capital of the Tafilalet, for a walk in its market and a look at the ruins of Sijilmassa, then reach Merzouga at the beginning of the afternoon. After a rest at our base, you discover the surroundings of the dunes: a visit to a nomad family in the black desert, who offer tea in their tent, and to the village of Khamlia to listen to Gnawa music. If you prefer, you can replace this with a quad, buggy or sandboard session. Before sunset you ride a camel into Erg Chebbi to our camp, where dinner, music by the fire and a night under the stars are waiting.
Day 4
A second day in the Sahara: free day in the dunes and second night in our camp
Today there is no car waiting for you: the whole day belongs to the desert. After the sunrise and a slow breakfast in the camp, you can climb the highest dune nearby, the Big Dune, for a view over the whole sea of sand and, on clear days, the Algerian border. Many guests choose a sandboarding session on the soft slopes, a visit to a nomad family who live with their goats and camels in the hamada, or a quad or buggy ride with our guides. Others simply rest in the shade of the lounge tent with a book and endless mint tea, listening to the silence. In the late afternoon a short camel ride takes you to a crest for another sunset, and the evening brings a new dinner cooked in the camp, drums around the fire and, if the moon allows it, a short stargazing session with your guide. Second night in your private tent with bathroom.
Wake up for the sunrise over the dunes, a moment of complete silence, then breakfast and the camel ride back to Merzouga. Today we take the southern road, less travelled and very beautiful. We pass Rissani and drive west to Alnif, where the rocks are full of trilobite fossils, and along the volcanic mountains of the Jebel Saghro to Nkob, a village with dozens of kasbahs on a hill, many of them restored as small guesthouses. In the afternoon we reach the Draa valley, the longest river in Morocco, lined for a hundred kilometres by palm trees and ancient earth villages. At Agdz we visit the kasbah of Tamnougalt, where the local chiefs once lived, and walk through the palm grove among irrigation channels and gardens. Dinner and night in a kasbah guesthouse.
Day 6
Agdz – Ouarzazate – Tizi n'Tichka – Marrakech
After a walk at dawn in the palm grove of the Draa, when the farmers go to water their gardens, we cross the Tizi n'Tinifift pass, with its wide views over the black mountains, and arrive in Ouarzazate. If you did not see it on the way out, we stop at Ait Ben Haddou, the fortified village of earth classified by UNESCO, and climb to its granary for the view. Then the road climbs into the High Atlas through the valley of the Ounila, with its terraces and villages of red earth, to the Tizi n'Tichka pass at 2,260 metres. On the north side the mountains turn green, with forests of pines and junipers, walnut trees and Berber villages. We descend to the plain of Marrakech and arrive in the late afternoon at your riad or hotel, in time to enjoy the evening on the Jemaa el Fna square.
Included
Private air-conditioned vehicle
Local driver-guide
Pick-up and drop-off at your riad, hotel or airport
Nights in riads, kasbahs and guesthouses
Dinners and breakfasts
Camel ride with cameleer
Night in our desert camp in Erg Chebbi
Visit to a nomad family
Not included
Lunches
Local guides in the cities (on request)
Entrance fees to monuments
Tips
Good to know
Pick-up between 7:00 and 8:00 at your riad, hotel, airport or port. Bring a small bag for the desert night: big luggage stays in the vehicle. Hotels can be upgraded on request.
No payment is needed to book: you pay on arrival in cash (dirhams or euros). Free changes if the weather is not good.
Questions
Are the tours private?
Yes. Only your group travels in the vehicle, with your own driver, and the program can be adapted.
Where do the tours start?
Wherever you are: your riad or hotel in Marrakech, Fez, Tangier, Casablanca, Agadir, Ouarzazate, Errachidia or Essaouira, or the airport or port when you land.
Which camp do we sleep in?
In our own camp in Erg Chebbi, with private tents, bathrooms with hot shower, dinner and breakfast, and Berber music by the fire.
Can I change the itinerary?
Yes, every tour is private and flexible: add nights in the desert, a quad or buggy ride, a different finishing city or better hotels. Just tell us when you write.
