Camel trek in the Moroccan desert

Morning departure from Marrakech to Ouarzazate, crossing the High Atlas mountains and the pass of Tizi-n-Tichka (2260m). At panoramic viewpoints, there will opportunities to stop and take photos. Later there is a stop to visit the kasbah of Telouet, which once served as a palatial residence and as the headquarters of the powerful Glaoui tribe. A side road crossing the Ounila valley leads to the kasbah of Ait Ben Haddou where lunch will be served. In the afternoon, a visit to the kasbah is scheduled, before continuing to Ouarzazate for the night in a riad.

We depart in the morning from Ouarzazate to M’hamid and Erg Lihoudi dunes passing by the Anti-Atlas and Agdez, where the Dra’a valley starts. From here, we driver off-road along the Dra’a valley’s ancient caravan route to Zagora for lunch. In the afternoon we drive to M’hamid, the gate to the desert, to enjoy the sunset in the dunes of Erg Lihoudi. Here we have dinner and spend the night in comfortable desert camp.

We trek by dromedary for 4 days to discover the most beautiful desert of Morocco and its vast dunes with varying features of the desert; ‘erg’, ‘reg’, ‘hammada’, oases. We reach the dunes of Erg Chegaga in the afternoon of the sixth day, where you can climb Erg Laabidlia to watch the sunset from the top (300 m). We have dinner and spend the night in a comfortable desert camp among the dunes.

– Walking time is approximately 6 hours a day (3 hours in the morning, and the same again in the afternoon), although it is also possible to ride the camels. Other camels are there to carry the equipment. Meals and tents are prepared by our guides and camel drivers –

After breakfast, the road takes us from Erg Chegaga to Ouarzazate through another 100 km in the Sahara desert with varying scenery; lake Iriqui, mountains and fossils. Lunch will be in Foum Zguid, the first village after the desert. From here, the drive back to Ouarzazate is along paved roads via Taznakht, famous for its Berber carpets and rugs, and we arrive to Ouarzazate in the course of the afternoon, dinner and night in a riad.

Morning departure from Ouarzazate to the Dades gorges passing by the oasis of Skoura where we stop to visit the kasbah of Amridil. Once back on the main road, the route passes through the valley of the roses with a stop in Kela’a M’gouna for a coffee break. Afterwards, a track leads us through the valley of the roses, also known as the road of a thousand kasbahs, to reach the Dades gorges for lunch, followed by a walk alongside the Dades gorges. In the afternoon, we drive through the Dades valley and arrive back in Ouarzazate at the end of the day, dinner and night in a riad.

After breakfast, there will be a visit to the oasis of Fint (nestling among the mountains, which once served as the crossroads of caravans, provides a hidden delight) and the kasbah of Tifoultoute, originally the residence of the Pasha of Marrakech and a symbol of the feudal period of the lords of Atlas. Afterwards, we drive from Ouarzazate to Marrakech along the High-Atlas mountains where we stop for lunch. The return to Marrakech will complete the trip at the end of the afternoon.