Morocco Mountains & Desert Trek
A superb combination of high mountains and desert trekking, along with Morocco's legendary cities of Marrakech and Ouzarzate make this a truly outstandign adventure.

Situated on the northwest corner of Africa, Morocco is a land of great contrasts, from the white-washed houses on the fertile Mediterranean coast to the arid brown mountains of the interior. We begin in the ancient city of Marrakech where we are able to explore the exotic souks in the old Arab quarter and visit the famous Medina. The snow-capped summits of the high Atlas Mountains provide a magnificent back-drop to the ochre coloured buildings of the city. The highest peaks of the Atlas mountains are located in the Toukbal Region, this trek will explore the best of this area summiting Djebel Toubkal (4167m), the highest peak in North Africa. From here we will have outstanding views of the High Atlas stretching South across to the Sahara. The second stage of our challenging tour takes us south to the region bordering the Sahara Desert where we embark on a fantastic three day trek across sand dunes and desert alive with exotic vegetation. Camels carry our loads as our trek follows the Jbel Bani mountain range. We conclude in the ancient cities of Ouzarzate and Marrakech..

Season April - November

Grade Strenuous

Duration 11 days

Suggested Itinerary

Day 1 Fly to Marrakech - Drive to Imlil - Trek to Aremd
We fly from London to the Moroccan city of Marrakech. Upon arrival we are met by our local guides and transfer to our city centre hotel, with the remainder of the day free for local sightseeing.

Day 2 Trek to Aremd
After breakfast we drive for two hours by minibus across the Haouz plain to Imlil (1740m) in the beautiful Mizane Valley. This is one of the most verdant valleys in the High Atlas and the region's fertile valleys support a thriving agricultural community. From Imlil we start our trek through delightful groves of walnut trees to the Berber village of Aremd (1950m). Our local guides are from this village and will treat us to some traditional Berber hospitality.

Day 3 Trek to the Neltner Refuge
From Aremd we set out for the Neltner Refuge, head first up to Sidi Chamharouch a small Islamic shrine with a few local houses nearby. The local Berber people here are sharp traders and will try to sell us all manner of tourist trinkets. After a leisurely lunch we continue on to the recently extended Neltner Refuge at a height of 3,207m. The refuge is owned by the French Alpine Club and is operated along similar lines to those refuges in France. There are large and spacious dormitories where we sleep, and a comfortable dining room where our staff will prepare our meals. We go to bed early in preparation for a dawn start.

Day 4 Summit Toubkal - return to the Neltner Refuge
The climb to the summit of Toubkal takes around four hours from the Refuge. Nowhere on the climb are there any technical difficulties, but it is a long and tiring ascent up long scree slopes. The initial part of the climb is done in the very early hours of the morning just after dawn, but by the time we reach the Tizi-n-Toubkal col at 3941m the sun will have risen and we will be rewarded with sensational views across the entire Atlas chain. From the col the route ascends a ridgeline towards the summit at 4167m from where we have views in all directions. To the north we can look down over 2000 metres to the village of Aremd, whilst to the south we can gaze over the line of rocky peaks stretching out across towards the Sahara, and the next stage of our adventure. After a long rest and numerous summit photographs we begin our descent back to the refuge.

Day 5 Neltner Refuge - Aremd
After breakfast we retrace our route back down to the village of Aremd and welcome hot showers. Day 6 Aremd - Foum Zguid - Erg El Mhazil After breakfast we say goodbye to our local muleteers and travel south by road to the small town of Foum Zguid. The journey takes around six hours. We drive in minibuses until the paved road ends, after which we transfer to jeeps for the final off road section. There is a final trek of about 1 hour which leads to our desert campsite.

Day 7 Erg El Mhazil - Erg El Ghoul
We awake to our first morning in the desert and usually it is a glorious orange sunrise. The Sahara is vast, awesome and very disorientating yet peaceful and therapeutic to the senses. After breakfast we begin by loading up the luggage and start our trek. We spend the day hiking across the dunes and tamarisks toward Erg El Ghoul. Overnight under tents close to sand dunes

Day 8 Erg El Ghoul - Dunes de Cheggaga Second night.
The hills of sand stretch out to the horizon like an ever-shifting carpet. Smooth-sided, sharply crested dunes, each much alike, mimic the regular waves of a sea. After breakfast, we spend our day hiking while crossing the dunes toward Cheggaga. Tonight we plan to camp near the dunes at Chegaga, the highest dunes in this part of Morocco. After setting up camp we will be able to go for a short nature walk to look for trails of the desert-dwelling birds, insects and other animal life. After a hearty Berber-style meal, we enjoy a night of tranquillity sleeping under a blanket of twinkling stars set deep in an African night-sky. Rather than sleeping in tents, many trekkers choose simply to sleep out in the open to watch for shooting stars and enjoy the sky. Overnight under tents close to the sand dunes.

Day 9 Cheggaga dunes - Ouazarzate
After breakfast we are picked up by our 4x4 vehicles and drive off road to the small town of M'Hamid. Here we transfer to more comfortable minibuses and make the road journey to Ouazarzate, arriving early afternoon. There will be time to explore the exotic medina before our evening meal.

Day 10 Drive to Marrakech - Afternoon Free
In the morning we will have an early start to drive back to Marrakech (4 hours). We should arrive in time for lunch with the remainder of the day to explore the city's lively markets and bazaar, and its famous central square, the Djema al fna with its colourful array of musicians, jugglers and traders.

Day 11 Fly from Marrakech to London
We depart from Marrakech for our homeward flight to London.