Overview & Highlights:
- See Moroccan Switzerland, the beautiful city of Ifrane.
- Visit the wild monkeys in the cedar forest.
- Explore Midlet and Zaida; two beautiful Berber towns in the middle atlas.
- Take in the scenic views as you cross the Atlas Mountains.
- Enjoy a luxurious drive along Ziz valley, the largest valley in morocco.
- Experience camel trekking in the Sahara desert.
- Watch spectacular sunset in the Erg–chebbi
- Spend an unforgettable night in an authentic Berber camp.
- Explore the Sahara desert with an SUV excursion.
- Visit Rissani and explore its local market.
- See the stunning Todra and Dades gorges.
- Visit Ouarzazate city, the gate of the Sahara desert and the Hollywood of Africa.
- Discover Aït Ben Haddou Ksar; UNESCO world heritage site.
- Cross the high Atlas Mountains and Tizi-N-Tichka pass (2260m of Altitude).
Itinerary:
Day 1: Fes – Ifrane – Midlet – Atlas Mountains – Ziz valley – Merzouga desert.
Our wonderful tour starts from Fes and drive toward the Sahara desert. Making our journey enjoying the scenic views of the fertile Saiss plain with olive groves as far as the eye can admire, we will pass by Imouzzar, a small beautiful town in the middle atlas which is home of an annually festival of apples.
As we come to pass it we will make a coffee stop in Ifrane, a small ski resort town that is also known as the Swiss village due to its alpine-style architecture. Here you will see yourself transferred to Europe at short notice, in fact here live Austrians, French and wealthy Moroccans, and it’s the most expensive soil in Morocco apart from the big cities.
From there we will drive through the largest cedar forest in Morocco, where you will always find the wild monkeys but they are used to humans and they are happy to be fed, and surprisingly well mannered. The drive continues to Zaida where you will make stop for lunch, enjoying fresh barbecue in one of the many streetside restaurants. After a quiet stay you will take in the scenery as you cross the Atlas Mountains and enjoying the lush green date and almond trees filling the gorge in Errachidia.
Then drive through the luxurious way along Ziz valley, the largest valley in morocco, enjoying panoramic views of the contiguous palm oasis. To Erfoud city, known by its palm trees plantations and fossils expositions. In the evening we will eventually arrive to the Erg chebbi desert, one of the best Morocco’s highlights, and then check into your hotel on the edge of Erg-chebbi golden dunes before enjoying a traditional dinner.
Overnight in Merzouga.
Day 2: Sahara Desert – Nomadic families – Gnawa village – camel trekking.
In the morning embark on an SUV for an adventure through the Sahara. Our excursion starts with a visit to Hassi labied village and its lush oasis, with palm trees, almonds and olives, which is being watered by an incredible irrigation system for ages and learn about this well-organized system.
Then we will speed through the golden Erg-chebbi dunes, enjoying the panoramic views and taking beautiful pictures. In the middle of Sahara we will make stop for tea with a nomadic family in a tent, their winter home, and see the nomads herd sheep and goats. After quiet stay with nomads, we will drive and hunt for fossils of aquatic critters in the desert.
Because the Sahara was once an ocean 7 million years ago, and there are countless fossils remaining. Next we will visit the Khamlia village, lived by a dark skin people coming from the South African countries from the time their ancestors were brought to the area as slaves. Stop in Dar Gnawa and listen to their entrancing music. The rhythmic, hypnotic music has long been part of their ceremonies, and has influenced an entire genre that is performed all across Morocco and has even inspired several music festivals.
And then you will enjoy lunch with a local family at their home. In the late afternoon meet your camels for trek into your desert camp, on the way you will enjoy an amazing sunset in the desert before getting to the camp where you will take some time to relax before enjoying a delicious dinner and live Berber music around camp fire under an incredible sky with billions of chining stars.
Overnight in the Sahara desert.
Day 3: Merzouga – Rissani – Tinjdad – Todra gorges – Boumalne Dades.
In the morning it is recommended to wake up early to watch the sunrise over the dunes before taking time to enjoy a traditional Moroccan breakfast in the camp. And then ride back your camels to the village or maybe embark on an SUV if one camel is enough.
We will make our journey to Boumalne Dades, making stop to see the old town of Rissani where you can visit the mausoleum of Moulay Ali-Cherif, the final resting place of the current king’s great grandfather and the founder of the current dynasty. The intricate decor on the entrance gate is reminiscent of the Bab Mansour in Meknes, while the interior courtyard has many flowers and date trees.
There you can also explore the local market, which is much more local-oriented than that of Marrakech. You will find blacksmiths and woodworkers, mountains of olives and spices, and everything from house wares to electronics. Leaving Rissani and head to Tinjdad passing by the village of Jorf, where you will be amazed by the style of the women covered in deep black, which is an Arabic tribe that is settled here.
And then to Tinghir, where an impressive road takes you high above the palm oasis along the mountain into the stunning Todra gorges, the narrowest gorges in morocco, carved from the red rocks of the landscape by a river. There you will have the opportunity to walk in the famous canyon to experience the rocky world. Then drive out the gorges enjoying the panoramic views along the Todra valley toward Boumalne Dades where you will spend the night with a traditional Moroccan dinner.
Overnight in Boumalne Dades.
Day 4: Dades valley – Ouarzazate – Aït Ben Haddou – Marrakech.
After breakfast in your Hotel/Riad, we drive along the lush Dades valley, making a stop in Kalaat M’Gouna, small beautiful town lies on the rose valley, which is famous for its rose cooperatives, where thousands of pounds of rose petals are harvested each year to be distilled into rose water and rose oil for use in cosmetics.
And then through the road of thousands Kasbahs to Ouarzazate, the gate of the Sahara desert and also called Hollywood of Africa, where you will have chance see the famous Kasbah of Taourirt in Ouarzazate city center. And visit the Atlas studio, the largest film studio in Morocco, where many films such as Game of thrones, Ben Hur and Cleopatra have been filmed.
The drive continues to Aït Ben Haddou Ksar, the UNESCO world heritage site since 1987, this little old town located in the former route of the caravan trade between the Sahara desert and Marrakech, the Ksar is now often used as a filming location for movies such as The Jewel of the Nile, The Mummy, Gladiator and Kingdom of Heaven. Here you will be able to have walk and stroll in the Ksar and its Kasbahs where you will see the amazing traditional Berber architecture of the houses.
After quiet stay we will resume our way to Marrakech crossing the high Atlas Mountains where you will enjoy the beautiful views of the Berber villages along the way, to the highest point (Tichka pass) that the road can reach with an altitude of 2260m, offering you stunning landscapes as far as the eye can admire. We will eventually arrive to Marrakech in the evening and drop of in your accommodation where our services end.