The enchanting city of Marrakech founded in 11th century by Berber tribes is Morocco’s third largest city, and undeniably one of the most colorful. With winding alleyways, crowded souks and stunning mosques, there is no doubt that the word “exotic” is the best one to describe it.
In the afternoon we will meet at our hotel for an introductory talk and afterwards we head towards the square of Jemaa el Fna, an open-air theatre full of action. When the sun starts to go down the square becomes totally active and fills with dozens of food-stalls, storytellers, musicians and dancers.
Overnight in Marrakesh in a boutique riad
Dinner included
The morning begins with a fun and insightful introduction to Morocco, through a cultural workshop where you’ll learn simple phrases, greetings, and common gestures in interactive memorable ways. Believe it or not, you’ll draw from the experience throughout your time in the country. For lunch, you’ll learn how to make tajine, one of the most famous Moroccan dishes rooted in Berber culinary tradition. Named after the special pot in which it is cooked, the tagine pot produces its namesake dish: a slow-cooked stew of vegetables, meat and a variety of regional herbs and spices.
Early in the afternoon, we will have a walking tour inside the colorful souks of the Marrakech medina. This will get warmed up for a week of outdoor experiences in Morocco.
Overnight in Marrakesh in a boutique riad
Breakfast and lunch included
Upon departure, we will head in the direction of the High Atlas Mountains and the Tichka Pass. The scenery through the High Atlas Mountains is stunning. The road is lined with Berber villages, goats, and small barefoot children running after chickens. After Tichka Pass, you will leave the main road and travel via a small road to one of Morocco’s most impressive Kasbahs, Telouet located in a fertile valley surrounded by palm, fig and olive trees. We will explore the kasbah, have lunch and then continue towards Ounila Valley for our first hike. Because of its strategic location between the Sahara and Marrakech, different people groups such as Berber, Jewish and Haratin lived here together for many centuries.
Overnight in Ait Ben Haddou in a boutique riad
Breakfast and dinner included
Hiking distance: 8 km / Hiking Duration: 3 hr
Driving distance:
Marrakesh to Telouet 132 km / 3 hr
Telouet to Ait Ben Haddou 50 km / 1 hr
Right after breakfast in order to beat the tour buses, we will visit the fortified city of Ait-Ben-Haddou, which consists of a group of buildings built entirely of local organic material and covered by a rich red mud plaster. This UNESCO World Heritage Site owes its existence to the presence of the Trans-Saharan Trade Route which was connected the North African coast to sub-Saharan Africa.
After that we’ll load into our vehicles and travel via the Thousand Kasbahs Road. In southeastern Morocco the word kasbah is usually applied to a square building with four towers at the corners, built from soil. The road will take us through Skoura Valley, famous for more than 300 kasbahs peppered throughout the valley, where we will visit Amardil Kasbah.
A special feature of this day, is the off-road adventure section between the Amardil Kasbah and Dades Gorge, where you will have the opportunity to share a glass of mint-tea with Berber nomads, living a simple life as goatherders and dwelling in rocky caves. A little later, we will enter Dades Valley where we will have an easy afternoon hike, which will bring us into contact with the everyday life of the local people. We will pass through groves of figs, almonds, walnuts and farming areas where we’ll find the Berber people harvesting small family plots of wheat and alfalfa.
Overnight in Boumalne Dades in a boutique hotel
Breakfast and dinner included
Hiking distance: 4 km / Hiking Duration: 2 hr
Driving distance:
Ait Ben Haddou to Amardil Kasbah 70 km / 1 hr 15min
Amardil Kasbah to Boumalne Dades 100 km / 2 hr
Slot canyons, unique red stone formations, and hidden life in the heart of the desert. This is what awaits us on our hike through the Monkey Fingers. Like most canyon hikes, the start of the canyon is fairly wide, with a gravel path and pretty scenery. But quickly the trail takes a more exciting turn as the path twists and winds through increasingly narrower sections until coming to sections that feel more like a slot canyon. Eventually, the canyon walls will grow higher and higher around us and after some scrambling, we will break free of it, and be rewarded with amazing views of the canyon and Dades valley.
Overnight in Boumalne Dades in a boutique hotel
Breakfast, lunch and dinner included
Hiking distance: 8 km / Hiking Duration: 3 hr
In spring, the snowmelt from the High Atlas Mountains collects in rivers and rushes downhill. This southerly flow, has cut deep ravines and dramatic valleys over time. The most dramatic of these, at almost 200m high and only 10m wide at its narrowest point, is the Todra Gorge. Hiking through the gorge, is a Moroccan experience not to be missed. From the lush green valley, we will walk towards barren mountain scenery, passing nomadic settlements high up in the hills with epic views towards the 30km green ribbon of Tinghir Oasis twisting between villages and towns to the south.
After lunch, we head to the small city of Arfoud, known as the “Gate to the Sahara Desert”, where our journey continues towards the impressive Erg Chebbi Sand Dunes. We will settle into our luxury desert camp, from which will watch the sunset and the continually changing colors across the sand. Afterwards dinner will be served, followed by music around a fire while gazing at the stars scattered through, the Milky Way, and the never-ending sky.
Overnight in Sahara in a Luxury Desert Camp
Breakfast and dinner included
Hiking distance: 11 km / Hiking Duration: 4 hr
Driving distance:
Boumalne Dades to Todra gorge 51 km / 1 hr
Todra Gorge to Merzouga 200 km / 3 hr 30 min
About breakfast, we will board our camels for a two hour ride through the sand dunes. The camels will be tied together by a rope much like the ancient camel caravans on the historic routes. They will know their way into the serene environment and back out. Later on, we will drive towards the village of Khamlia, famous for its indigenous black-skinned inhabitants and their authentic music known as “Gnawa music”. There we will have a lunch of Nomad pizza. At first glance, it looks like a circular flatbread but the secret to this delicious dish is the surprise found inside! Baked fresh in mud ovens, there are versions with meat, vegetables, and spices.
After lunch, we depart Merzouga and make our way to the town of Midelt, which lies on the high plains flanked by the Middle Atlas and the High Atlas Mountains. Midelt makes for a handy break between the desert and Fes.
Overnight in Midelt in a boutique hotel
Breakfast, lunch and dinner included
Driving distance:
Merzouga to Midelt 265 km / 5 hr
Today we will drive towards, Ifrane National Park, often referred to as Morocco’s “Garden of Eden” due to its contrasting scenes of marshy wetlands, cherry orchards and Alpine forests. Visitors often marvel at the sheer diverse ecology of this protected park, and its typically “un-Morrocan” landscapes. The best way to explore the region is to walk one of the many loops and wildlife trails crisscrossing throughout the park, home to a tenth of the world’s cedar forests and a massive concentration of Barbary Macaque, an old-world monkey species.
After lunch, our journey continues toward Fes, the oldest of Morocco’s imperial cities. The entire medina is a designated UNESCO World Heritage site and it hasn’t changed for centuries.It is a place where ancient traditions are in everyday practice
Overnight in Fes in a boutique riad
Breakfast and lunch included
Hiking distance: 6 km / Hiking Duration: 2 hr 30 min
Driving distance:
Midelt to Ifrane 135 km / 2 hr 30 min
Ifrane to Fes 70 km / 1 hr
The narrow streets and alleyways of Fes, some barely an arm’s length wide are crammed with hundreds of merchants and skilled artisans, crowds of locals and tourists brave enough to find their way through the maze. Even Moroccans who didn’t grow up in Fes can easily get lost through them. So today alongside our licensed guide we will explore the city. One of the most interesting parts of the tour will be following our noses to the Tanners Quarter where barefoot workers dye skins in a kaleidoscope of small stone pools. The tannery still operates as it did a thousand years ago. It is still the place where cow, sheep, goat, and camel hides are brought to be preserved, dyed, and turned into the handbags, jackets, and wallets sold in the surrounding souks.
Overnight in Fes in a boutique riad
Breakfast and dinner included
Breakfast is at your leisure at the hotel and following that, your Tripin Adventures trip in Morocco concludes. There will be a transfer from our accommodations in Fes to an international airport for return flights home or you can continue your explorations of this marvelous region of Morocco.
Breakfast included
We are constantly updating our unique itineraries based on new information and experiences available. The walks, accommodations, and visits listed may be adjusted. The itineraries presented are subject to modification and change by Tripin Adventures. We reserve the right, without penalty, to make changes in the published itinerary whenever, in our judgment, conditions warrant, or if we deem it necessary for the comfort, convenience, or safety of participants, anything not mentioned in above program.
