If you’re thinking only about money you can find two exhausted and meaningless days’ journey to the desert but if you want to escape, indulge and explore the real desert and real local experience join our MSITravels Morocco cultural excursion to see the extraordinary hidden aspect of to the largest Sahara in Morocco
Through this excursion you'll experience one of the most amazing adventure. you'll be driven via the Atlas Mountains the North Africa’s greatest mountain range, and on the other side of it you plunge south east into the 125km belt of date-palm oasis that eventually merges into the Sahara near M’hamid, worm where you’re going to drive 60km on the dunes to get to Erg Chigaga where you’ll surely choose to drift off to sleep while watching the twinkling stars in mid of an awesome stretch of golden sand sea after dinner. Wake by dawn to watch the sun starting its daily arc with a cool blue morning sky as it replaces the Sahara shadows just before becoming a glowing ball of fire
Inclusions & Exclusions
✔ Some meals will be home-cooked with local families
✔ Private transportation
✔ On-board WiFi
✔ Camel ride at the desert
✔ Lunch
✔ Dinner
✔ In-vehicle air conditioning
✔ Visit to local women cooperatives
✔ Breakfast
✔ Surcharges on fuel
✔ An opportunity to give back and meet up with locals
✖ Gratuities
Pickup Locations
1. Hotel Massimo Kech
2. Hotel Hicham
3. Ibis Hotel Essaouira
4. La Maison des Oliviers
5. Riad Jnane Salmaa
6. Riad Aladdin
7. Riad Palais Azukar
8. Riad Paula
9. Riad Aventurine
10. In Club Palmeraie Resorts
11. La Villa Nomade
12. Dar Loula
13. Riad Joya
14. Riad Hamza
15. Riad Kaiss by Anika
16. Hotel CTM
17. Villa El Gada
18. Hotel Central Palace
19. Riad Hasna Espi
20. Hotel Mimosa
Additional Info: You can contact meany time by phone, whatsApp or email
Itinerary
Marrakech - Talouate - Ait Benhaddou - Ouarzazate - Agdez - Zagora
1
From Marrakech we jump-off to some of Morocco’s most stunning landscapes, set against the soaring peaks of the Atlas Mountains. We drive along craggy cliff tops to tiny Berber villages in the North Africa’s highest mountain range. As long as we drive towards Ait Benhadou we drive over the Tizi n’Tichka pass (2260m/7400ft) to the splendid Glaoui Kasbah in Talouat and the lush green Ounilla Valley all the way to Ait Benhadou, the UNESCO-protected red mud-brick Ksar from the 11th century, where we offer a home-cooked meal experience with a local family.
Duration: 2 minutes
2
Draa Valley
While the more scenic route takes you to « Ouallywood » movie studio and the sprawling Taourirt Kasbah. You descend into the Drâa Valley, a 125km belt of palm trees oasis that eventually merges into the Sahara near M’hamid, At Agdez, a classic caravanserai oasis with a still-pristine palmeraie, 17th century ancient mud-brick Kasbah and a secret desert prison then you get to a star attraction of the Drâa valley, Tamnougalt a 16th century fortified Ksar that perched on a hill 6km south of Agdez. Arriving to Zagora.
Duration: 0 minutes
Zagora - Tamegroute - M’hamid El Ghizlane -Erg Chigaga Desert
1
Today, we head to Morocco’s wildest desert via Tamegroute, an unusual place that was once the most important settlement in the Valley of Draa with its green pottery. The Zawiya Naciria is still a site of pilgrimage and refuge for the mentally-ill and a working Quranic school with a library that was once the richest in Morocco of ancient illuminated texts containing 4000 books.
Duration: 60 minutes
2
Erg Chigaga
Leave Temegroute through a dauntingly bleak landscape of sun-scorched rubble to the end of paved road of M’hamid El-Ghizlane to begin you off-road journey to Erg Chigaga where you’ll surely choose to drift off to sleep while watching the twinkling stars in mid of an awesome stretch of golden sand sea after dinner.
Duration: 12 hours
Erg Chigaga - Foum Zguid - Taznakht - Taliouine
1
Foum Zguid
just before becoming a glowing ball of fire. You exit Erg Chigaga heading north to Taliouine via a rough-road out of the desert through the 80s km long dry lake bed of Lac Iriki that made well-known by the Paris-Dakar rally and through the Sahel and Reg to Foum Zguid and then 85km north to Taznakht, a handy stop for a quick bite coffee, petrol and, yes, carpet. Then we head to the struggling village of Taliouine and the African Centre of l’orrouge (red gold) or saffron, the most expensive spice
Duration: 0 minutes
Taliouine - Taroudant- Tizi n’Test - Marrakech
1
Taroudant
From Taliouine to Marrakech via Taroudant that is considered to be one of the most elegant purely Berber towns of Morocco with its majestic, tawny-brown and honey-gold circuit of 7km walls. While you stroll and linger around, note the distinctive, highly beautiful blue veils that many of older local ladies put on.
Duration: 60 minutes
2
Later on you will be driven via the road that blasted through the high Atlas Mountain by the French in the late 1920s and famed by Tizi n’Test that offer one of the best panoramic drives in morocco. Heading north to Marrakech we will stop over for Tinmal village to visit the 1156-year mosque.
Duration: 0 minutes
Cancellation Policy
If you cancel at least 6 full day(s) before the scheduled departure time, you will receive a full refund.
If you cancel between 2 and 6 day(s) before the scheduled departure time, you will receive a 50% refund.
If you cancel within 2 day(s) of the scheduled departure, you will receive a 0% refund.
Additional info
• Wheelchair accessible
• Infants and small children can ride in a pram or stroller
• Service animals allowed
• Infants are required to sit on an adult’s lap
• Specialized infant seats are available
• Transportation options are wheelchair accessible
• Suitable for all physical fitness levels
