Desert Adventure

Please meet your tour leader in the hotel reception at 08:00. Today you depart from Ouarzazate on a fascinating journey through the lush Draa Valley – a strip of intense cultivation along the Oued Draa, a river formed from the melt waters of the Atlas Mountains. The beauty and colour of the fields and villages is intensified by their stark contrast to the towering Atlas Mountains to the north and the desert to the south.

For lunch (not included) you stop in Zagora, a small town dating from the 13th century and the administrative centre for the Draa Valley. Afterwards, you continue your journey deeper into the desert but still following the life-giving vein of the Oued Draa. Soon you come to the tiny settlement of Beni Ali where you get to meet your camel drivers. The latter are intriguing men from the Aït Atta ethnic group and lead nomadic lives, driving camels and herds of sheep and goats from the higher valleys of the Atlas Mountains across the lower anti-Atlas to the great oases of the southern desert in wintertime. The journey may take months, yet in springtime they turn around and ascend once again to the higher pastures.

As you set off with one camel per person and with additional animals to carry the baggage, the camping equipment and (most importantly) the water, you form a typical desert caravan for the remainder of the day’s journey. Not all deserts are sandy and much of the afternoon is spent crossing flat stony ‘hamada’. Walking or riding as you please, you follow a wide, dry valley. Later you pass a number of wells – always a site of much activity in this parched landscape. Locals from nearby villages surround each well with donkeys, carts and dozens of plastic jerry cans and lower buckets on ropes to draw the precious commodity. You too fill up here before continuing.

Towards the end of the afternoon you’ll reach your camp at Imin Ougni. Your traditional nomad tents are made of dark woven material stretched over wooden props with sides that can hang down or be raised for ventilation. Each is sufficiently large to sleep six or eight people on a floor of carpets and mats. This evening you dine on traditional Moroccan cuisine in the tranquillity of the desert night. Total driving time approx. 4 hours. Camp - 1 night (BD)

This morning, after an early breakfast, you board your vehicle for the long return trip to Marrakech. (total driving time approx. 8 hours, plus meal stop) As you retrace your steps through the beautiful Draa Valley you can reflect on the privileged insight you have had into the ways and customs of the region and be amazed at the completely different pace you have been travelling at. You stop in Aït Benhaddou for lunch; a small village whose focal point is one of the best-preserved fortified kasbahs in the country. With its slit windows and dramatic walls of red earth, this is a magnificent example of a stronghold. Dating from around the 15th  century, its importance as a trading post gradually dwindled, and today’s inhabitants eke out a living from farming the meagre soil. However, due to its stunning photogenic qualities it has been used as a setting for several recent Hollywood films including Gladiator. After lunch you continue over Tizi-n-Tichka pass - the highest in North Africa - and witness the astonishing transition from the arid semi-desert of the south-facing slope, to the fertile terraces and fields of the well-watered northern face. On descending from the mountains you cross the plain to enter the imperial city of Marrakech whose old town is surrounded by a cordon of protective ramparts. Even today, the name Marrakech conjures up images of scenes from the Arabian Nights: alleyways, souks, stalls and markets. This remarkable city, dating from the 11th  century, never fails to satisfy the curiosity of adventurous travellers. It has everything from the graceful architecture of the renowned Koutoubia Minaret, which dominates the skyline, to the wonderful atmosphere of souks and alleyways that make up its old quarter.

On arrival you check into your hotel, shower off the sand, and enjoy a celebratory meal in a restaurant for a change! Later you can wander the Djemaa el-Fna, the famous market square at the heart of the medina and the focus of night-time activity. An almost medieval pageant ensues as acrobats and magicians, minstrels and fortune tellers, jugglers and snake charmers all come to entertain the crowds of onlookers. Hotel – 2 nights (B) The hotel is located just outside the city walls around the old Medina. It is about a 25 minute walk to the main square Djemaa el Fna but close to local shops and restaurants