6 Days - Atlas to Sahara Ultimate Moroccan Adventure tour

Today involves a fairly stiff climb out of the Azzadene Valley to the Toubkal Refuge over the Aguelzim Mountain, passing at 3,560m. Lunch will be taken with spectacular views over the Atlas Mountain Range. Overnight in the Toubkal Refuge (Niltner Hut), where you’ll likely be sharing a bunk room with other trekkers tackling Toubkal early the next morning.

Up early for the climb up Toubkal (4,167m) from where clouds allow, you’ll have wonderful views over the Atlas Range and the Sahara Desert, then a long way back down past the refuge and the well-worn path back to Imlil. This is a fairly long day with 8–9 hours of trekking, involving 900m up and then almost 2,500m back down to Imlil!

You will be picked up from your accommodation in Imlil at 9 am and head out over the Atlas Mountains, driving over the stunning Tizi-n-Tichka mountain pass. You’ll pass through lots of Berber villages, and once you’re in the desert, you’ll see riverside oases and barren hillsides dotted with kasbahs (fortified dwellings that house families and their livestock). Along the way, you will have the option either to take a break and visit the Ouarzazate Film Studios or stop for a hike. Once you reach Dades Gorge, you have the option of going for a hike or relaxing at your hotel. Overnight in Dades. (Total driving time: 7 hours.).

Breakfast at the hotel. Transfer from the Dades Valley to Todra Gorge, a massive fault dividing the High Atlas mountains, rising up 300 meters in a narrow valley with palmeries and Berber villages. Here, you can go for a hike to explore the Palmery, a green oasis full of large date palms. After lunch, you’ll head further into the desert to the gateway town of Merzouga to pick up supplies for your desert trip. You will then drive on to a kasbah to pick up your camel. At sunset, you’ll trek for an hour and a-half by camel to a Berber camp, where you will enjoy a traditional Moroccan dinner and sleep under the stars or in tents at a desert camp. (Total driving time: 6 hours.).

Wake up early, just prior to sunrise. We have a 1h30 camel ride at sunrise to explore the area further, and we head back to Merzouga on our camels. When we reach Merzouga, we have breakfast and the opportunity to shower, and then we begin our journey through the stony desert and over the Atlas Mountains, with plenty of stops for photos, exploring, and lunch as we return to Marrakech. The usual arrival time in Marrakech is between 17:00 and 18:00. (10-hour drive). End of the 6-Day Mount Toubkal Ascent and Sahara Desert Tour.