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New Year in Morocco
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New Year in Morocco celebrate with a traditional feast of full roast lamb with all the fixings at M’hamid’s Erg Chigaga Dunes It is the furthest point in the Sahara near by the border of Algeria. This is a must-see event. It includes a dance party with live music and drumming in the desert. Visit Erg Chebbi near Merzouga, which is the most well-liked destination among tourists. It will not dissapoint, for an excursion in the Sahara Desert to the most gorgeous and golden dunes.
1-1: New Years Eve in Erg Chebbi starting from Marrakech
Day 1: Marrakech – Ait Benhaddou – Ouarzazate – Dades Gorge
Obtain a breathtaking perspective of mountains, valleys, and Berber villages as you travel across Morocco’s highest road pass, Tizi-n-Tichka pass (2,260m). The latter leads to the High Atlas Mountains. As you descend, you will find Kasbah Ait Benhaddou, a magnificent UNESCO-protected 16th-century castle. It is where they film Lawrence of Arabia and Gladiator.
To get to this Kasbah, you can either walk there or hire a donkey to ferry you across the river. then travel toward the Skoura Oasis along the Way of a Thousand Kasbahs. The Kasbah Amridil, which features in numerous Moroccan brochures, is there. The Rose Valley (Kella M’gouna), famous for producing Moroccan roses and its array of beauty items, is the next stop. As you continue on your journey, you’ll pass Tamnalt Hills. It is a strange rock formation hillside that resembles monkey feet. End your day at the deep gorge of red and mauve rock known as Dades Gorge.
Day 2: Dades Gorge – Todra Gorge – Merzouga – Erg Chebbi
Leave Dades Gorge and travel to the Todra Gorge. It is another deep oasis in Morocco. Its 300m-tall walls are only 20m apart at their narrowest point. Before continuing your journey toward the Sahara Desert, take some time to admire this natural wonder. You will see the Erg Chebbi sand dunes as you get closer to Merzouga. Your camels will be waiting to transport you across them. Then, later in the afternoon, mount your camels and travel for roughly two hours through the desert while seeing a stunning sunset. Then continue traveling to your tent for the night. Spend the night in the Nomad tent surrounded by the stars, Berber music, and excellent food. Your guide will prepare it for you. Celebrate New Year’s Eve in the Erg Chebbi desert in Morocco.
Day 3: Merzouga – Midelt – Ifran – Fes
The greatest moment of the Merzouga desert is when the sun rises above the Erg Chebbi dune field. After breakfast, you’ll journey to Fes via the spectacular mountain city of Midelt. It has traditional structures reminiscent of those in southern Morocco, and the Ziz Valley Gorge. It is conveniently at 1,488 meters above sea level, just at the base of Jbel Ayachi (3,737m). You continue your journey through Azrou and the cedar forests, passing across amusing monkey colonies. Evening drop-off at your hotel or riad.
1-2: New Years Eve in Erg Chebbi starting from Fes
Day 1: Fes – Midelt – Erfoud – Erg Chebbi
You will start your trek across the Middle Atlas Mountains after an early breakfast. As you traverse the Atlas Mountains and start to descend toward the Sahara Desert, you will spend the majority of the day winding your way through picturesque, lush woods, angular rock walls, and Berber settlements. You will stop for lunch at the town of Midelt. It is well-known for its fossils and rocks, halfway through. As we travel on mountain roads, we get a view of the expansive, gurgling Oued Ziz.
Passing through Kasbahs and palm groves we head towards the adobe colored city of Er-Rachidia before arriving in the late afternoon at Merzouga, a city on the outskirts of the Sahara Desert. Then later in the afternoon, saddle on your camels for your journey across the desert during a beautiful sunset for about 2 hours, to reach your camp for the night by the sand dunes of Erg Chebbi. Overnight in the Nomad tent, under a night sky full of stars, Berber music and delicious food prepared for you by your guide. A night you will not forget. Ring in the New Year in Erg Chebbi.
Day 2: Merzouga – Todra Gorges – Dades Gorge
You’ll get up early to ride your camels back to Merzouga while watching the sunrise over the sand dunes. After breakfast, you leave behind the High Atlas Mountains on your way to the Todra Gorge, passing by nomads along the way, and head toward Erfoud.You’ll go for a hike through the imposing Todra Gorges (985 feet high). The travel to Morocco’s southeast is made attractive by the scenic river valleys. Then carry on your journey past the strange rock formations of the Tamnalt Hills to another impressive gorge called Dades. Spend the night in Dades Gorge’s center.
Day 3: Dades Gorge – Ouarzazate – Marrakech
After breakfast, you set out on your trek across the High Atlas Mountains toward Ouarzazate for the day. Before reaching the center of Moroccan roses and rose-related products, travel about 25 kilometers off the beaten path in your 44 to see nomad life in caverns. Take the Road of a Thousand Kasbahs to reach your destination. Just before you reach Ouarzazate, you will pass by the Skoura palm oasis.You will go to the Kasbah Ait Benhaddou, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, here. In classic Moroccan style, the real riches need to be sought out and found… typically away off the established route. In fact, more movies have been filmed here than anywhere else in Morocco, including Lawrence of Arabia, Jesus of Nazareth, and most recently The Gladiator. You will be dropped off at your hotel or riad in the afternoon.
Section 2: Casablanca – Marrakech – Ouarzazate – Merzouga
Day 1: Casablanca – Marrakech
Your guide will meet you at the airport. As you set out for Marrakech, plan on arriving in the late afternoon. Before being driven to your riad/hotel in the evening, you will tour the city’s lovely Jardin Majorelle garden and Koutobia Mosque. You can explore the bustling Djemaa el Fna Square after taking a break to experience the sights, sounds, smells, and flavors that Marrakech has to offer.
Day 2: Marrakech – Ouarzazate – Rose Valley – Dades Gorge
Pickup from your riad at 8:30 a.m. The Tizi-n-Tichka pass (2260 m) is the highest road crossing in Morocco and the starting point of your day’s travels towards the High Atlas Mountains. It offers one-of-a-kind vistas of mountain ranges, valleys, and Berber communities. Continue on the Road of a Thousand Kasbahs after passing the Skoura oasis, where you will have time to visit Amineter, another significant Kasbah that is included in numerous Moroccan travel publications. Your route continues through Rose Valley and Tamnalt Hills, passing by a peculiar rock formation on the way to Dades Gorge.
Day 3: Dades Gorge – Todra Gorge – Merzouga
Take the Todra Gorge, Morocco’s highest oasis valley gorge, to get from Boumalne Dades to Merzouga. When you get to the desert, your camels and guide will be there to help you traverse the Moroccan Sahara’s sand dunes. Approximately two hours of camel trekking will bring you to your desert camp, where you will spend the night in a typical nomad tent. Your guide will prepare a delicious lunch of tagine and fresh Moroccan salad for you at your desert shelter while serving you mint tea and providing entertainment throughout the night with Berber music.
Day 4: Merzouga – Nekob – Agdez – Ouarzazate
When you wake up early, you will have the opportunity to see a magnificent sunrise over the soaring desert dunes before going back to Merzouga to have a shower and leave. We travel to Rissani, an old city that served as the entry point for early Arab empires into Morocco. Men will be donning the recognizable indigo blue robes of the Saharan tribes. Then you proceed to the Saghro volcanic mountains, which have spectacular vistas and stunning rock canyons. We arrive at Draa Valley, the largest oasis in Morocco, which is bordered by numerous palm groves.
Day 5: Ouarzazate – Ait Benhaddou – Marrakech
You will be picked up in the morning to see Taourirt Kasbah. It is one of the most popular sights in Ourzazate. This was Thami El Glaoui’s former residence when he was the Pasha of Marrakech in the nineteenth century. It is an amazing building made of tall, smooth earthen walls. they are embellished with geometric motifs. Additionally, you will go to Kasbah Ait Benhaddou. It is another of the most magnificent places in the south of Morocco. It is also one of the best maintained and has been included as a UNESCO World Heritage site since 1986 for its distinctive architecture. Several films, notably “Jesus of Nazareth” and “Laurence of Arabia,” used the ksar as a backdrop. Ait Benhaddou Ksar will be renovated as part of a recent government initiative to preserve cultural assets. You will return to Marrakech after lunch.
Day 6: Marrakech – Casablanca
Transfer to airport.
Section 3: Big Morocco Desert Tour
Day 1: Marrakech – Ait Benhaddou
Travel to the High Atlas Mountains, passing through the mountain ranges via Tizi-n-Tichka, Morocco’s highest road pass (2,260 m), which offers a unique view of the mountains, valleys, and Berber villages. Before traveling a side road to Kasbah of Telouet, take in the magnificent panorama of the Atlas Mountains.The powerful Glaoui tribe, known for its “vulture” sultan, and his son resided in the collapsing Kasbah until the 1950s. It was once a stunning Kasbah, and today it is still worthwhile to see because the drama and history will reveal themselves. After that, you can choose to follow the main road or venture off-road via the Ounila Valley, which offers unmatched views of lush valleys, a river, and stunningly colored hillsides and slopes. Visit the magnificent Kasbah Ait Benhaddou, a 16th-century site that is recognized by UNESCO.
Day 2: Ait Benhaddou – Ouarzazate – Dades Gorge – Todra Gorge
You will travel this morning to the tranquil provincial town of Ouarzazate, which has broad streets, hotels, and public parks. Continue traveling along the Route des Mille Kasbahs to reach Skoura Oasis, which is bordered by several palm trees and the Rose Valley, which is famous for producing Moroccan roses.You can use the shorter path to go to Dades Gorge from Boumalne Dades. We’ll pass past a fascinating rock formation called the Tamnalt Hills that looks like monkey feet. We will ascend the steep Dades Ravine, a gorge filled with red and mauve rocks that loom over the road. Then, after coming back to Boumalne Dades, we continue on to Todra Gorge, which is another another magnificent gorge.
Day 3: Todra Gorge – Merzouga – Erg Chebbi
Leave Todra Gorge this morning and travel to Tinejdad and Touroug Erfoud. Visit the fossils museum and the historic city of Rissani, which flourished from the eighth to the fourteenth century due to the kingdom of Sijilmassa’s caravan routes.The Alaouite people, who were the first to conquer all of Morocco, also called it home. Men will be donning the recognizable indigo blue robes of the Saharan tribes. Then, later in the day, mount your camels and ride for roughly two hours through the desert while admiring a stunning sunset to arrive at your camp for the night near the Erg Chebbi sand dunes. Spend the night in the Nomad tent beneath a starry night sky.
Day 4: Merzouga – Khamlia – Taouz – Ouzina – Ramlia – M’harch
As you make your way back from the bivouac, you’ll stop in the village of Khamlia to listen to Gnaoua music. Following a brief stop for mint tea, travel to Taouz (the final village in the south) and Oued Ziz along the Paris-Dakar route, passing through the small desert villages of Ouzina (lunch spot) and Ramlia. You will come to a very sandy Wadi Rheris and a track that follows the mountain Jusq’a M’harch after crossing Ramlia.
Day 5: M’harch – Zagora
After breakfast, depart towards Zagora along the Paris-Dakar rails, passing a plain desert plateau with acacia trees, Calotropis, and hamadas, and coming into contact with a nomadic tent. Breakfast is included in the price of dinner and one night at the hotel.
Day 6: Zagora – Tamagroute – M’hamid – Dunes de Chigaga
After viewing the medieval Koranic school in Tameg, you will proceed in a 4×4 across a stunning desert environment to the village of M’hamid for lunch. This oasis, which has year-round running water, is made up of a few palm trees gathered around a source in the middle of the desert. For the nomads, it serves as a source of life. You will arrive in the Chigaga dunes around 45 kilometers south of M’hamid (Chegaga). This area’s largest group of dunes spans 40 km and rises to a height of 300 m. Dinner and entertainment in a nomadic tent or under a starry sky.
Day 7: Erg Chigaga Dunes – Ouarzazate
After eating breakfast in Erg Chigaga (Chegaga), drive a 4WD to Foum-Zguid and cross the Iriqui Lake. This route was once used for the Paris-Dakar race. Lunch break in Tazenakht, a Berber village.
Day 8: Ouarzazate – Marrakech
Travel to Ouarzazate, the Kasbah of Taourirt, the Kasbah of Tifoltout, and Studio Cinema after breakfast. Then on through Merzgane Ighrem, where you will stop for lunch, before traveling by road through the Tizi-n-Tichka pass to Marrakech.
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