Tour Overview
Four days from Fes to Marrakech, giving the desert crossing room to breathe. After the Middle Atlas and Ziz Valley bring you to Merzouga for a sunset camel trek and a night under canvas, the journey continues through the Todra and Dades Gorges before reaching the Draa Valley's kasbah-studded oases. A final crossing of the High Atlas via Ait Benhaddou and Ouarzazate delivers you to Marrakech.Tour Highlights
- Visit the UNESCO World Heritage kasbah of Aït Benhaddou
- Cross the High Atlas via the spectacular Tizi-n-Tichka pass (2,260m)
- Walk through the dramatic Todra and Dades Gorges
- Pass through the fragrant Rose Valley and Skoura palm oasis
- Follow the Draa Valley, historic gateway to the Sahara
- Sunset camel trek into the dunes
✓ Included
- 3 nights accommodation
- Breakfast & dinner daily
- Camel trek in Merzouga
- Guided tour of Ait Benhaddou
- English guide/driver
- Private transport
- Hotel/riad pickup and drop-off
- Bottled water during the trip
- All local taxes
✗ Not Included
- Lunches
- Drinks
- Personal expenses
Day by Day Itinerary
Departure from Fes (7:30 AM). Drive south through the Middle Atlas highlands: Ifrane (Morocco's alpine ski resort at 1,665m, nicknamed "Little Switzerland"), the Azrou cedar forest with wild Barbary macaques, and the mountain town of Midelt. Afternoon through the Ziz Gorges — 50km of dramatic red-rock canyon — and the vast Ziz Valley palmeries dotted with ancient ksour. Arrive in Merzouga as the light turns golden. Camel trek at sunset into the Erg Chebbi dunes. Berber dinner, live Gnawa drumming, and overnight in the desert camp.
Sahara sunrise — climb a dune before dawn to watch the desert colors shift from midnight blue to gold. Breakfast in the camp. Drive west through Erfoud (famous for Devonian fossil beds) and Tinghir oasis — a 50km-long palm palmery hugging the rocky banks of the Oued Todra. Stop to explore the narrow alleys of Tinghir's ancient mellah (Jewish quarter). Enter the spectacular Todra Gorges — 300m-high vertical walls of rose and amber limestone that narrow to just 10m wide at the canyon floor, with a cold emerald river running through. Walk into the gorge and feel the dramatic scale. Continue west along the scenic Dades Valley — the "Valley of a Thousand Kasbahs" — to Boumalne Dades. Explore the Dades Gorges (famous for their extraordinary rock formations known as "Monkey Fingers") before dinner. Overnight in a guesthouse in the gorges.
Morning drive through the Rose Valley (Vallée des Roses) — centered on the town of Kelaat M'Gouna where hundreds of thousands of Damascus roses are cultivated for the world's rose water and rose oil industry. In spring (late April–May), the road is pink. Visit a local rose cooperative. Continue south along the Draa Valley — Morocco's longest river valley, lined with oasis palmeries, ancient ksour, and Berber villages. Stop at Kasbah Tamnougalt (17th century). Arrive at Ait Benhaddou — UNESCO World Heritage Site, the most dramatic earthen ksar in Morocco, filming location for Gladiator, Game of Thrones, Babel, and dozens of other productions. Guided walk through the six kasbahs. Sunset views from the hilltop granary. Overnight near Ouarzazate.
Morning optional visit to Ouarzazate's Atlas Film Studios — one of the largest film studios in the world, where the sets of Gladiator and Game of Thrones still stand. Begin the High Atlas crossing via Tizi-n-Tichka (2,260m) — Morocco's highest paved road. Stop at the summit for panoramic views and at roadside Berber artisan stalls selling fossils, silver, and argan oil. Descend through a series of hairpin bends into the Haouz plain, arriving in Marrakech early afternoon. Drop-off at your riad, hotel, or the Jemaa el-Fna. Afternoon free to explore: the Koutoubia mosque, the souks of the medina, or the Bahia Palace. Tour ends.
