The best of the South

We travel in the morning from Marrakech to Essaouira, a relaxed town set 3 hours from Marrakech, is a UNESCO World Heritage Site – a protected city. The ramparts of Essaouria and the 16th century walled city offer astonishing views of the Morocco’s Atlantic Ocean. After lunch, there is time to visit the highlights of Essaouira, Dinner and night in a hotel.

Leaving Essaouira after breakfast, you follow the coastal road south with constant views of the Atlantic, often battering the rocks and sending up picturesque spray as it beats against them. We stop in Agadir for lunch. In the afternoon, the itinerary continues to Taroudant where you spend the night.

We travel from Taroudant to Ouarzazate passing by Taliouine (the heart of the saffron growing area of Morocco) and Taznakht where we stop for lunch. Later, we continue to the Kasbah of Ait Ben Haddou for a visit before reaching Ouarzazate for the night.

After breakfast, you will continue south from Ouarzazate to the dunes of Merzouga passing by the Anti-Atlas and Agdez, the head of the Dra’a 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 bivouac 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 a desert camp.

If you wake up early enough, you can watch the spectacle of the sunrise. After breakfast, a three-hour camel ride across the great sand dunes and through the stony Sahara, is scheduled, stopping to prepare lunch among the dunes. In the afternoon, a camel ride for another three hours is programmed to reach the dunes of Erg Chebbi so as to watch the sunset from the summit (250m). After sunset, the night will be spent in a desert camp, which is also the venue for dinner.

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 return to the hotel for having a shower is on camel back and, after having a tea, the itinerary continues from Merzouga 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 neighborhood. 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 hotel.

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 hotel.

After breakfast you can visit the falls, 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 Marrakesh 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 in Marrakesh.