If you have less than a week for your trip to Morocco and don’t want to miss out on any of its two major tourist attractions (the Sahara and Marrakech), then this proposal is perfect for you. This tour from Errachidia to the desert includes a guided tour of Marrakech, in a 6-day program. This way, the dunes of Erg Chebbi will be a stone’s throw from the start and you can return home from one of the largest airports in the country. Take note and if you are interested, purchase your package in . Private travel mode with Tenere Tours.
On this tour of 6 days from Errachidia to the desert, the landscapes that will appear before your eyes will be genuine. Of course, sand dunes that make up a golden sea with gentle waves in the form of hills. Or rocky canyons of unbelievable perfection. Or high mountains, snowy for many months of the year. But the genuine thing about this trip is also in its people, who live in these remote places of civilization and preserve the purity of their culture. And we will help you get to know them.
One of the aspects that make the difference between this tour and others in our catalog is that, on the penultimate day, we include a guided tour of Marrakech with an accredited expert. This is because this spectacular city, declared a World Heritage Site by UNESCO, hides fascinating monuments and incredible stories, and only in this way can you discover it. In addition, that will not prevent you from exploring Marrakech at your own pace, as there will also be free time for you to dedicate to what you most want: gastronomy, shopping, leisure, new cultural visits, rest…
In a total of 6 days, staying 5 nights, this tour is distinguished from others by starting in Errachidia, ending in Marrakech and completing the entire route by road, in a private and comfortable vehicle. This is the program:
The location of Errachidia is strategic for ‘assaulting’ the Moroccan Sahara. Located in the province of the same name and founded at the beginning of the 20th century during the French Protectorate, it is only 125 km from the dunes of Erg Chebbi, in the Merzouga desert.
Therefore, it makes a lot of sense to land here or travel here to start this tour. At the place you indicate (airport, hotel, etc.), we will pick you up to start the route in a private vehicle and head south, through the Ziz Valley.
One of the first cities that will come our way will be Erfoud. As you will see everywhere, there are posters with fossils and minerals, as paleontological remains of Cretaceous fauna have been discovered here, and the geological richness of the subsoil is also remarkable.
Shortly after, the great objective of the day is already palpable: we will arrive at Merzouga, a small town that serves as the entrance to the dunes of Erg Chebbi. But that will be the next day, as on this first night you will settle into a picturesque hotel-kasbah in the town, with dinner included and an atmosphere inspired by Berber culture and the desert itself.
The second day will be a day that will touch the most sensitive side of each traveler. Both for the landscapes we will see and for the people who make them more human. This is the case of the humble town Khamlia, where a black community lives very proud of its origins: former slaves brought on caravan routes who, after settling here, have preserved their gnawa music as a true sign of identity. For this reason and for its uniqueness, it is an Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity. And to get excited about it, there is nothing better than the musical performance we will attend.
The other human and moving moment of the day will be the visit we make to a nomadic family, whose living habits are practically the same as those of centuries ago: grazing and exploitation of the scarce resources of the environment. But chatting with them, with our mediation, will be a most edifying moment.
To move from one place to another we will use a 4×4 that will allow us to travel along sand tracks, as the off-road vehicles and motorcycles did in the Paris-Dakar Rally, which passed through here years ago. The route will also put before our eyes vestiges of abandoned kohl mines, among other curious places. And there will be no shortage of panoramic views from an elevated viewpoint to contemplate the dunes of Erg Chebbi.
To access them, we will take dromedaries (one per person), as it is the most practical and genuine way to take that walk through the sand. If desired, you can also request the change for 4×4 vehicles.
And so, on the backs of dromedaries, we will make the last stretch of the day to the jaimas camp. In these canvas tents, used by the Berber nomads, you will have dinner and they will be your particular home until the next day, offering greater comfort than expected. And above all, tranquility thanks to the silence and stillness of the night.
The dawn has a special color in the desert, and it is worth getting up early to check it out. The first rays of sun that illuminate the dunes of Erg Chebbi tinge the sand with warm tones and the sky, which the night before shone with stars, is lit up until it reaches its characteristic sky blue.
With these images in the retina, you will have breakfast and return to Merzouga on a dromedary, where there will be time for a shower in a hotel in the town (in some packages, it is included in the jaimas). And with renewed freshness, we return to the asphalt. Ahead, the road that will take us to the Dades Valley.
In one of its detours, we will enter a rocky canyon that seems to be the product of a supernatural whim: the Todra Gorges, whose stream runs encased between imposing walls that exceed one hundred meters in some sections. Therefore, it is an ideal destination for climbers, but also for the rest of mortals who simply enjoy walking through natural corners of such beauty.
Returned to the Dades Valley, we will begin to understand why this route is called ‘of the Thousand Kasbahs’, as the Berber adobe fortresses are present in many places, reminding us that this was a passage area for ancient caravan routes. Later, we will stop in one of its towns for you to settle in a charming riad, where dinner will be served.
What was outlined on the third day is confirmed on the fourth: the kasbahs will be the protagonists in the first section of this day. And we will stop especially in one, after leaving behind the Valley of the Roses: we are talking about the kasbah of Taourirt, located on the outskirts of the city of Ouarzazate.
Taourirt was the fortified residence of the Glaoui family, whose patriarch held the titles of Lord of the Atlas and Pasha of Marrakech. His power was comparable to the robustness of this impregnable castle, made of adobe, but also to the refinement with which the interior was decorated, owing to the best Arab tradition: works in wood, plaster and ceramics, demonstrating that the humility of the materials is not at odds with extreme elegance.
After delighting ourselves with the kasbah of Taourirt, we will set our sights on the horizon: the mountains of the High Atlas will be the barrier that will separate us from Marrakech, and to overcome it we will use the port of Tizi n’Tichka, at more than 2,200 meters of altitude. A place so high that it will give us panoramic views worthy of immortalizing.
The descent will be a pleasant process through valleys dotted with Berber villages and farms with animals. And arrived at the plain, we will enter Marrakech for you to settle in the riad of the medina where you will stay this night and the next.
Of the six days that this tour from Errachidia to the desert lasts, Marrakech and its guided tour are the protagonists of one of them: the fifth. Thanks to the explanations of an official guide, you will admire the beauty of its monuments and understand a little better the history of the city and the way of being of its people.
The route of the visit will be through the historic center and will depend on different factors, such as the availability of access to some monuments. But as a guide, among the must-sees are usually the Bahia Palace, the Saadian Tombs and the Ben Youssef Madrasa. Other exterior or non-visitable spaces may be the Koutoubia Mosque and the Jemaa el-Fna Square, authentic icons of the city.
The afternoon of this fifth day is free, and that means that you can choose a plan. More cultural visits? Then, the Marrakech Museum, the Yves Saint-Laurent Museum or the El Badi Palace are options to consider. Relaxation? The Majorelle Garden is a whole oasis in the center. Shopping? The souks will provide a good opportunity to get local crafts of great value. Gastronomy? The restaurants of Marrakech are among the best in the country…
There are many proposals, as there are many others that you can learn about here and from which we can give you advice. At night, you will spend another night in the riad of the medina.
Depending on the time of departure of your flight, we will organize the sixth day. If it does so early in the morning, we will come punctually to pick you up at the riad, after check-out. And we will use the same punctuality in the event that the flight departs in the afternoon. In that case, our meeting can be in the riad or in any other place in the center, if you decide to take a last walk through the city.
In all cases, the transfer is private and with a driver, and we will leave you at the airport terminal so that you can do the boarding procedures, not without first saying goodbye full of gratitude.
Here you can check the services that are included in the travel package, covering what is necessary for the tour to run correctly:
These services have a separate cost and Tenere Tours does not reserve them, so the client must decide on them:
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