Kasbahs, Oases & Deserts: Marrakech, Dades, Merzouga & More

On arrival you will be met by Goway's local representative and transferred to your hotel. The rest of the day is at leisure.

After breakfast, enjoy the city tour of Marrakesh, the "Red City", a majestic place filled with palaces, gardens, markets, and mosques. Upon arrival, you will first stand by the Koutoubia Mosque with its 282 ft minaret, an architectural landmark dating back to the late 12th century.

You will continue to the 19th century stunning Bahia palace and discover the intricate work done by the local artisans to decorate this splendid home built by a powerful Vizir for his Harem. The building includes one hundred and fifty rooms, countless courtyards and interior gardens, a veritable labyrinth of corridors, a Koranic school, hammams, a harem, stables. From there we will start exploring artisan quarters and the colorful Souks to interact with the real life of Marrakech people.

Continue to Dar El Bacha Museum, built in 1910 and was the residence of Thami El Glaoui, named Pasha of Marrakech by Sultan Moulay Youssef in 1912. It is one of the medina's finest examples of Riad architecture, dripping with Moroccan Zellige (colorful geometric tilework), intricate white plasterwork and heavy carved cedar-wood lintels.

Before sunset we will be strolling in the square of which the city is so famed, Jemaa El Fna, where hundreds of locals and tourists come to spend the end of the day watching jugglers, dancers, fortune tellers, story tellers and traditional musicians. After the tour, head to your hotel to freshen up. When you are ready, transfer to a local restaurant in the medina to enjoy a typical Moroccan dinner with entertainment. After the dinner, back to your hotel for overnight.

As you leave Marrakech, the distant haze begins to resolve itself into a jagged mountain range - the High Atlas Mountains, jutting abruptly from the plain. Our route follows the same one caravans used centuries ago, to bring into Marrakech gold and precious wood from the other side of the ocean of sand, the Sahara. Beautiful scenery and small villages built in tiers succeed among oak trees, walnut groves and snow patches before arriving at the Tizi n Tichka pass, at 2260 meters high. Once over the pass a totally different picture is unveiled: the lunar landscape of the Anti-Atlas. Later, skirt past Ouarzazate and stop for lunch (own expense). Past Ouarzazate, our trip tour reaches yet another lush area, nested between the deserted crest and the desolate plateaus: Skoura palm grove. Then, our trip reaches Kelaa des Mgouna, famous for the nearby Valley of Roses and 'Rose Festival', where at the end of a 3 days celebration usually held in May, a local girl is crowned 'Rose Queen'. The most looked after product is eau-de-rose and two factories in the area distil and export the product. The process uses approximately three thousand kilograms of rose petals to extract a liter of rose oil. Further on, Boulmane Dades follows, the starting point to explore the spectacular Dades Gorge, a lush carpet set against the massive rocks and quite popular among those interested to trek. Dinner and overnight at the hotel.

Back on the road, our first stop is Tinerhir (Tinghir), with its extensive palm grove, the ksours built into the rocky hills above it and its mysterious decaying Jewish quarter. Tinghir has been for generations a stop for nomadic Berber tribes travelling from the mountains north of it towards the desert during the winter months. A rather inconspicuous hidden gem is the 19th century adobe mosque nested within the old crumbling ksour, a heaven for photography enthusiasts. Todra Gorges, lie only 15 km from Tinghir, presenting an arresting spectacle with its crystal-clear river emerging from it, its huge walls changing colour to magical effect as the day unfolds. Its 300 meters (1000 feet) high walls are home to more than 150 bolted routes and at any time of day you can catch a glimpse of someone rock climbing his way up the gigantic walls. Before reaching Merzouga where the tarmac ends, we pass Erfoud and Rissani. In Erfoud, we may stop for a visit at Musee des Oasis if time allows. Rissani used to serve as last stop on the great caravan routes south and gold and slave auctions were taking place here as late as 1800's. Before it, the caravan trade and the most important city in Morocco was Sijilmassa, the ruins of which lie opposite Rissani. From its gates, Ibn Battuta and Leo Africanus left Morocco to embark on their illustrious journeys across the Sahara into African countries. Soon after we reach Merzouga and in the distance you glimpse the first leviathans of sand forming the Sahara: the dunes of Erg Chebbi. Serf the sandy sea on a powerful 4 WD Land Rover to the desert camp. Dinner and overnight under tent.

Enjoy a sunrise camel ride along the golden sand dunes in Merzouga. Return to your Riad for breakfast before transferring to Zagora via the Amazigh villages of Alnif and Tazarine. The road to Tazzarine sees almost no traffic, providing a scenic link between Tafilalet and Draa Valley. Aside from the landscape, fossils and prehistoric rock carvings are this region's main attraction. The scenery grows wilder as you approach Tazzarine, set in a grassy oasis surrounded by bare mountains. Continue to Zagora. Famous for its largest palm valley in Morocco. Dinner and overnight in your hotel.

After breakfast, enjoy a tour of Zagora and some of the oldest villages in Morocco. Stop by Tamegroute to visit the village's famous library, which houses ancient Koranic scripts dating back to the 12th century. Visit the pottery section of Tamegroute then transfer to Ouarzazate along the Draa valley. There is an optional lunch stop at Agdez. Your journey continues to Ouarzazate for dinner and overnight.

Begin the day by exploring Ouarzazate, a city originally built as a French garrison in the 1920s. Today, the city is a regional trade center, known for its pottery and carpets. See the Taourirt Kasbah, which now consists of simple clay houses and crenellated towers that are beautifully decorated with geometric motifs. On the way, optional visit to the Film studios. Continue to elaborate Aït Benhaddou, dubbed a UNESCO World Heritage Site and home of the region's most exotic Kasbahs, where structures all but defy the laws of gravity as they perch upon the steep slope. Some of these buildings have been featured in films, including Lawrence of Arabia and Gladiator. You journey over the High Atlas Mountains, observing everyday life in remote rural towns, to the fascinating city of Marrakech. Dinner and overnight at the hotel.

After breakfast you will be transferred to the airport for your onward flight.