DAY 1: Fes → Ifrane → Azrou → Midelt → Ziz Gorges & Oases → Erfoud → Merzouga

After picking you up from your hotel in Fes we will embark on a picturesque journey towards Ifrane, through hills covered in forests of cork oak and giant cedar in which a few Barbary apes still make their home. Crossing strikingly beautiful passes over both the Middle and High Atlas ranges we will catch our first glimpse of the South’s incredible architecture. After passing through a barren plain of scrub and desert on the other side of the mountains, we will stop for lunch in the town of Midelt, from which we will have a fantastic view of the dramatic peaks of the High Atlas rising behind the town. Crossing Tizi-n-Talremt (Pass of the She-Camel), we will descend into a desert plain along the Ziz valley. We will then head south to Erfoud and Rissani, into a huge oasis containing over six million palm trees and edged by many ksours (fortified villages). Our route will continue through an immense palm oasis and a vast area of stony plain that marks the transition to the desert before reaching the tranquil desert town of Merzouga, where we have selected a charming kasbah hotel on the outskirts of the Erg Chebbi golden sand dunes. There you will be able to relax beside the swimming pool, and in the evening enjoy a live traditional music show.

DAY 2: Merzouga Culture and Traditions → Tea with Nomads → Camel Trekking in the Erg Chebbi

A relaxing morning and after breakfast, we will take a 4WD vehicle off-road tour around the dunes. On the tour we will visit the oasis of Merzouga, the nomadic depository, and Khamlia Village, where we will be able to hear gnawa music from the local people who are descendants of ex-slaves that found their way to Morocco from Senegal via the Salt Route. We will continue on to meet desert nomads in their tents and discover their way of life. We will also visit the nearby Lake of Merzouga, with its diverse population of birds. Afterwards we will leave for Rissani. Once called Sijilmassa, this was the meeting place for the salt caravans coming from Timbuktu, Mali. Here you'll be able to walk through the souk, where you will be able to find spices, vegetables, and clothes. After having a pizza lunch in Rissani we will drive back to our kasbah, where we will relax and be greeted with a glass of mint tea. In the afternoon you will have a chance to leave all unnecessary luggage behind in safe rooms at a hotel before mounting your camel (or 4WD if you can't do the camels) and riding into the Moroccan Sahara. We will have time to wander around the dunes before watching the sunset. In the evening we will dine on Moroccan cuisine and enjoy traditional live music around the campfire. You will spend the night in warm Berber tents in the silence of the desert, and you can relax outside and marvel at the Milky Way spreading across the pitch-black night sky, and maybe even see some shooting stars. (HB)

DAY 3: Merzouga → Rissani → Todra Canyon → Dades Valley

If you would like to wake up early so that you can watch the spectacle of sunrise, when the color of the sand contrasts beautifully with the play of shadows on the dunes - after which you might want to try your hand at sand-boarding down them. After a refreshing shower and breakfast, we will ride the camels or fun 4X4 off-road drive through the dunes back to the kasbah in Merzouga town before heading out of town to the Todra Gorge, known as "Morocco's Grand Canyon". We will have lunch here and take the opportunity to explore along the river and through the gardens or up the road on the other side of the gorge to take in the view. In the afternoon we will continue our scenic drive into the Dades Valley, also known as the “Valley of 1000 Kasbahs” for the countless abandoned kasbahs one can see dotting the countryside among the palm trees. Later that afternoon we will arrive in the Dades Gorge, where we will watch the sunset's orange glow against the rocks before having dinner and spending the night in our hotel.

DAY 4: Dades Valley → Boutarar → Roses Valley → Skoura Oasis → Ouarzazate

After having breakfast at our hotel in the Dades Gorge we will have time to relax on the terrace and enjoy the views across the fertile Dades Valley. You may also decide to take a 1-2 hour trek through the villages of the area, passing fields cultivated by the local Berber women with the peaks of the Atlas Mountains as a backdrop. We will continue our journey towards Ouarzazate, first going off-road along the Boutarar piste to visit local Berber nomads in their caves and join them for a glass of tea. From here we will continue through the Kelaa M'gouna, the "Valley of the Roses", which is famous for its Rose Festival in May and its locally-made cosmetics, made from the valley's abundant roses, that are highly valued throughout Morocco. Further on our way we will pass the Skoura Oasis, where numerous ancient kasbahs, some now sadly in ruin, stand among the palm trees, before arriving in the bustling southern city of Ouarzazate, known as "Morocco's Hollywood" due to the many Hollywood blockbusters its film studios have produced. We will have dinner and spend the night in Ouarzazate.

DAY 5: Ouarzazate → Ait Benhaddou → Atlas Mountains → Marrakech

After breakfast we will head to the nearby Kasbah Ait Benhaddou, the most famous kasbah in Morocco, a UNESCO World Heritage site, and the backdrop for many of Ouarzazate's films including notably "Lawrence of Arabia". After enjoying the kasbah we will continue north across the High Atlas Mountains to Telouet, a village set right in the middle of the mountains which was the former seat of the last Pasha of Marrakech, El Glaoui, who used the location to control the mountain pass. We will go through this very same pass on a road which was completed by the French Foreign Legion in 1936 and winds up over the Tizi n'Tichka Pass, offering stunning views over the mountains before descending past Berber villages to the plains surrounding Marrakech. Even today, the name Marrakech conjures up scenery straight out of Arabian Nights - alleyways, souks, and market stalls. This remarkable city, with the graceful architecture of the renowned 11th-century Koutoubia Minaret dominating the skyline, never fails to satisfy the curiosity of its visitors. We will arrive in Marrakech by the afternoon.