Horses, Dunes & Nomads - Sample Itinerary

Day 1

Arrive in Ouarzazate

No riding

Fly into Ouarzazate or Marrakech. If there are no direct flights to Ouarzazate it may be easier to fly to Marrakech and transfer by road to Ouarzazate. If flying to Marrakech then you need to arrive early enough to allow time for the transfer (4 hrs), payable locally and split between all who are sharing the transfer. You will be transferred to your hotel.

Day 2

Ouarzazate - Imi N'Chaabte - Tafraout

2-3 hours riding

Meet at your hotel reception at 7am and transfer in the direction of Zagora through the Draa valley, until reaching Tansikht. Continue along the Djebel Sagho, passing through Nkob and Tazzarine and stop for a picnic along the way. After about 6 hours drive you turn off the tar road and follow a track for 60kms to Mcissi.

It's a long transfer, with limited facilities along the way, so make sure to bring some snacks! Here you will meet the team and horses. After a short riding assessment you will set out into the desert for your first ride amongst the dunes.Ride up to the sand dunes and enjoy the views. The terrain is ideally suited for fast canters and gallops! You ride lovely Arabian and Barb Arab stallions - there is a horse for everyone.Overnight in a comfortable inn.

Day 3

Tafraout - Foum Mharech

4-6 hours riding

Riad Nomad

Ride through the village of Tafraout and reach the plateau of Ahbouche Ntkouyte (Lake Tafraout). The terrain is perfect for some decent canters. Ride along the base of Tattihate, between Djbel Mohre and Djbel Zireg. The scenic splendour of the Sahara desert is laid out before you - endless dunes alternating with distant cliffs. At the end of the day you reach a beautiful inn in the desert valley of Mharech where you spend the night. The inn is located over a hill with stunning views over the valley.

Day 4

Foum Mharech - Remlia Dunes - Ouzina Dunes

4-6 hours riding

Inn Ouzina Rimal

Set off riding south, through the Tamarisk trees and sand dunes. Your journey takes you across the Chouiref plateau to Tizi n Guidou pass and on to the abandoned village of N'Oubahllou. The orange dunes of Remlia provide a spectacular background for pictures before you ride down to another vast plateau where horses and riders alike will enjoy a gallop. Keeping the mountains and "Mount Tajine" to your left, the ride alternates between long stretches of walk,trots and controlled canters before you reach your inn for the night.

Day 5

Ouzina Dunes - Jdaid

4-5 hours riding

Inn Itrane Sahara

Depart on horseback through the superb dunes at Ouzina. Your trail will take you from the dunes and onto plateaus - from sand to rocky mountain. Your day in the Sahara ends at the village of Taghaoucht-n-Jdaid - a place of water.

Day 6

Jdaid - Merzouga

5 hours riding

Guesthouse

In the morning, you will ride through various environments until reaching the highest sand dunes in Morocco: Erg Chebbi. Enjoy stunning views while your horses carry you safely through the large seas of dunes.

Day 7

Merzouga - Ouarzazate

3 hours riding

Your final morning on horseback takes you from Chebbi Erg to Taouz where you say goodbye to the team and horses. You are then transferred in the direction of Erfoud, Boumlane and Dades along the "road of a thousand kasbahs" until reaching Ouarzazate. Dinner and overnight in a hotel.

Day 8

Departure

After breakfast you will be transferred to the airport for your flight back. If you are flying from Marrakech then your flight must depart late enough to allow time for the road transfer. (payable locally).

Desert Cavalcade - Sample Itinerary

Day 1

Arrival

Riding: No riding.

You'll be transferred from Ouarzazate airport to your three star hotel for the night. Dinner at your hotel.

Day 2

Ouarzazate - Zagora - Djebel Rani

Riding: 5 hours

At 7am you depart your hotel and transfer by road to Zagora, passing through the Draa Valley (c. 3.5hr drive). On arrival you meet the team and your horses. Set off in a south-westerly direction crossing the great Feija range and eventually the last mountain range that separates you from the Sahara - Jebel Bani. Follow a narrow path to the top for magnificent views across the plateau of Feija and beyond to Jebel Saghro. Descend by another narrow path to reach you camp in a small oasis frequented by nomads.

Day 3

Djebel Bani - Oued Naam

Riding: 5 hours

Ride to a new desert plateau where only a few parasol acacias seem to withstand the drought. Here you'll tackle your first dunes of the Moroccan Sahara whose size increases as you progress further south. The horizon is limitless and this area is being repopulated with gazelles and ostrich as a nature reserve.

Day 4

Oued Naam - Ouled Driss

Riding: 5 hours

Continue riding through dune fields dotted with tamarisk plants and nomadic camps consisting of kheimas - low tents made of camel and goat skins which are typical of southern Morocco). You head towards the end of the Draa valley and some houses appear in the midst of palm trees - this is Bounou ksar (fortified village) and is one of the most beautiful in the valley. Continue into the village of Ouled Driss and your campsite.

Day 5

Ouled Driss - Nesrate

Riding: 5 hours

Ride through the Draa valley, crossing more dunes to reach a plateau which you cross at a fast pace to reach Jebel Selmane pass. Here you'll cross more dune fields to arrive at the oasis of Tagounit where there are fields and small villages with decorated walls. Your route joins an old palm grove near the village of Nesrate and you camp amongst the dunes.

Day 6

Nesrate - Oued Draa

Riding: 4 - 5 hours

Todays ride takes you through the villages in the valley - a successions of ksours and gardens amongst the palm groves which provide refreshing shade. The palm groves continue to the wide pass of Wadi Draa between Jebel Bani and Jebel Tadrart. Follow this wide pass until reaching another oasis where you set up camp.

Day 7

Oued Draa - Tinfou Dunes - Ouarzazate

Riding: 2 hours

Head north along trails between ksours and cultivated fields of palm groves until reaching the village of Tinfou where the impressive dunes threaten to engulf the houses and crops. Dune stabilisation measures are being taken but their effectiveness is uncertain. Here you say a fond farewell to your horse and riding team before transferring to Ouarzazate (c. 4 hour drive). You'll arrive in the afternoon to your hotel which faces the medina. Dinner in town with your guide.

Day 8

Departure

Riding: No riding.

After breakfast, you are transferred to the airport for your flight home.

Please note that this ride may run in reverse.

Saharan Caravan - Sample Itinerary

Day 1

Arrival

Riding: No riding.

You'll be transferred from Ouarzazate airport to your two star hotel for the night. Dinner at your hotel.

Day 2

Ouarzazate - N'esrate

Riding: 3 hours

After breakfast at your hotel, you are transferred across the Djebel Saghro (volcanic massif) to head down into the Draa Valley. This is a very beautiful road and the transfer takes c. 3 hours. Upon reaching your starting point, south of Zagora and Djebel Bani, you'll meet your guides and horses.

Set off on horseback towards the southwest, covering easy terrain through beautiful small dunes. To the north the horizon is dominated by the Djebel Bani and to the south, from the top of the dunes, you can spot the border mountains with Algeria. Pass through an area of tamarisks at the well of Mouzmou and then leave the dunes behind to cross a completely different desert which is harsher and more austere. Your campsite is nestled amongst small dunes which isolate you from the large plateaus.

Day 3

N'esrate - Oued N'naam

Riding: 5 hours

Early breakfast at sunrise before preparing your own horse for the day ahead. It can take a while this first day for everyone to get the hang of it!

Your morning ride is beautiful as you pass through sand, dried-up wadis and small hills with stones burnt by the sun. A few steps from a well which still contains water you find a magnificent tamarind which serves as a parasol for lunch. After a siesta in the shade, you continue riding west and cross a succession of wadis and sandy, stony mounds until reaching the superb canyon of Oued l'Ataach. The wadi is invaded by Tamarisks which retain the sand and form many small basins, which make them superb camp spots.

Day 4

Oued N'naam - Chegaga

Riding: 5 hours

Set off riding in a north/northwesterly direction towards a mountain centred between the Djebel Bani to the northwest and the large dunes to the southwest. You cross many stony plateaus interspersed with wadi beds. At the foot of this mountain, the Oum Laalag awaits you for lunch. Oum Laalag (literally the wadi of leeches in Berber!). The picnic spot is hidden in a recess in the canyon (chosen according to the weather of the day to avoid either sun or wind).

In the afternoon you head south on a plateau overlooking wide panoramas of "plains" which open the paths to the dunes of Cheggaga. Descend onto the plains, which can be green in winter and are sought-after by nomads and their dromedaries. Here there is the opportunity to take advantage of the speed of your horse and race across this ideal terrain. Stop at a well to refresh the horses and camp is a few hundred metres away in the middle of tamarisks and euphorbias.

Just before the sun sets, it's possible to walk on foot to climb the highest dune in Morocco - a magical moment not to be missed.

Day 5

Cheggaga - Erg

Riding: 6 hours

Today you ride into the "laughing" desert of very isolated dunes punctuated with tamarisk, euphorbia, acacias and pastures. Head for the dunes and you'll be surprised how well the horses climb on the "hard" faces. You follow the high dunes in a westerly direction and then turn northwest to cross long dune cords that are very wild and impenetrable by any means other than on foot or horseback. It is not uncommon to see gazelles here amongst the sea of sand. Between the erg and the Bani mountains there is a well to mark your exit and few nomadic camps standing on the edge of the dunes - there is even a nomadic school in the area!

Picnic in the shade of a tamarisk. The landscape during the afternoon ride is more "African savannah" with many acacias marking the route. Ride between mountains and dunes, stopping to quench your horses thirst at a well before turning due south back into the dunes to find you camp site in a sandy "arena". There is no wood here for the campfire - the Erg Ghoul does not offer a single tree and therefore no dead wood.

Day 6

Erg - Iriki

Riding: 6 hours

Early wake-up and breakfast, then remount and head straight to the well so your horses can drink. You then head due west to approach the plain of Iriki - this was a huge lake which has now completely dried up and is 40km of completely flat ground. On windy days there is no obstacle to slow the wind from blowing sand at you, and the ground is very hard from extended drought. There are still opportunities to test your horses paces though! Cross the lake at its shortest point to stop for a picnic on the north bank, where there are a few acacias to offer shade.

In the afternoon, depending on the conditions on the day, you either cross directly through the black stone plateaus interspersed with small hills, or you go around the escarpments on the banks of the Iriki. On the plateaus there are many fossil sites, including "Ortoceras" - molluscs that disappeared 250 million years ago! The M'Douar mountains block the horizon to the southwest and mark your camp site a few steps from a well, which is unfortunately too salty for the horses.

Day 7

Iriki - M'Douar - Ouarzazate

Riding: 3 hours

Rise early this morning to watch the sunrise over the mountains before breakfast. You also need to depart early to complete the long ride and reach the foothills of the mountains. Passing through landscapes of small vegetated dunes where you'll find nomads with their herds of dromedaries and goats, you'll find a well-hidden well with excellent water in the middle of the dunes - it's a wonder that you guide can find it! After the horses drink their fill, you cross between the mountains of M'Douar Srir and M'Douar Kbir, an area reminiscent of the great American canyons. Head along the cliff of M'Kbir where a few tufts of palm trees curl up and stop for lunch.

After lunch, you are transferred back to Ouarzazate (c. 3 hours) to check into your hotel. Dinner at a local restaurant.

Day 8

Departure

Riding: No riding.

After breakfast, you are transferred to the airport for your flight home.