Desert and waterfalls

Morning departure at 8 o’clock from your hotel or riad in Marrakech to cross the High Atlas mountains. After the Tichka pass, you leave the main road and take a side road to the kasbah of Telouet. From there you continue along the Ounila valley to the kasbah of Ait Ben Haddou which we visit after lunch. Later we continue as far as Ouarzazate to spend the night in a guest house there.

After breakfast, you will continue south to Agdez, the head of the Dra’a valley, where you can visit the oldest Kasbah in the valley. A little further south at Tansikht you turn east and follow the long line of Bani Mountains towards the dunes of Merzouga. We stop for lunch in N’Qob. Later we pass through the villages of Tazzarine, featured in the film “Babel”, Alnif and Rissani and reach the luxury desert camp in Merzouga, where you will be greeted with a glass of tea. After you have settled a little, you take a camel ride to watch the sun go down over the dunes of Erg Chebbi, followed by dinner and the night in the luxury desert camp.

If you wake up early enough, you can watch the spectacle of the sunrise, when the colour of the dunes and the play of shadows are an awesome sight. After breakfast, the itinerary continues to the Todra gorges, passing Erfoud, famous for its dates and the date festival in October. It is also well-known for the myriads of fossils found in the neighbourhood. In Todra gorges, there are plenty of opportunities to walk, such as along the river through the gardens or up the road on the other side of the gorges. We have dinner and spend the night in a riad.

After breakfast, we set off departure north to Tamtattouchte and into the mountains south of Imilchil, the famous town where there is the marriage festival in September. The road here is especially beautiful but slow and windy. In the winter the snow may make it impassable. We reach the lake of Ben El Ouidane (where the mountains come down to the water) by the lunch time. In the afternoon, you can take a walk to enjoy the peace and the green of the area. Later you continue to the Ouzoud waterfalls which we reach by the end of the afternoon, dinner and night in a riad.

After breakfast you can visit the Ouzoud waterfalls, which constitute one of the most spectacular natural beauty spots in Morocco. The surrounding countryside offers red cliffs, oleander and doves. If you are lucky you will catch a glimpse of some Barbary apes. A short walk will bring you to the top of the falls from where you can see the river stretching away from the magnificent falls. On the road back to Marrakech at Demnate, we drive the six kilometres to Imi-n-Ifri, which in the local dialect means “door to the cave”. It is a natural rock bridge formed by the an underground cave system collapsing. Another three hours drive will bring you back to your hotel or riad in Marrakech.