A gateway to Africa and a country of dizzying diversity, Morocco is a land of epic mountain ranges, ancient cities, rich sweeping deserts and warm hospitality. Essentially Africa and the Middle East rolled into one, lyrical landscapes carpet this epic slice of North Africa like the richly coloured rugs you’ll lust after at local stores in Marrakech.

Your hosts will meet you at Ouarzazate Airport at approximately 2.00pm (or if you have chosen to arrive a day or two early you can be collected from your hotel in Ouarzazate) where you’ll begin your 3 hour overland transfer. It’s during this drive that you’ll get your first taste of the vastness of the desert dominated by the majestic Atlas Mountains and interspersed with kasbahs, oases, dunes and small villages. You are heading in the direction of the famed desert outpost of Zagora. It’s here that the Saadians launched their expedition to conquer Timbuktu in 1591, and desert caravans passing through gave this isolated town a cosmopolitan character.

Tonight’s accommodation will be at a riad (a traditional Moroccan house converted into a hotel with a central courtyard). Your evening meal will be your first opportunity to sample one of the greatest cuisines in the world. Moroccan cooking abounds with subtle spices and intriguing flavour combinations – think tart green olives paired with chopped preserved lemon rind stirred into a tagine of tender chicken, the surprise of rich pigeon meat pie dusted with cinnamon and icing sugar, or sardines coated with a flavourful combination of coriander, parsley, cumin and a hint of chilli. Oh my word, I am literally drooling now just thinking about it. The unique food in Morocco is one experience you will want to try!

YAY- it’s FINALLY time to swing a leg over a Barb horse and head out into the desert. You’ll be following the famed Draa Valley, a picturesque world of expansive palm groves, earth-red kasbahs and Berber hamlets. Formed by a narrow ribbon of water from the High Atlas mountains that flows south to the Sahara, it’s a long, green oasis in a dry, rocky landscape. Inhabited since prehistoric times, the villages of the Draa Valley prospered at the end of the 16th century thanks to the trans-Saharan gold, salt and spice trade under the direction of the Saadien dynasty. Watchtowers and ksours rise up in front of you as you ride through the middle of palm groves and it’s in this setting that you’ll begin to understand how this very fertile land resisted continuous attacks. Known as ‘the date basket of Morocco’, this fertile corridor is home to many date palms, orchards and irrigated fields.

You’ll ride through palm groves and Berber villages, breathing in the smells, sights and sounds of this exotic landscape, before arriving at the first campsite in the late afternoon. You can expect a Moroccan ‘shower’ (a bucket with warm water) every night while camping in the desert and a chemical toilet will be available.

You’ll continue on through the Draa Valley in the direction of the gorges today, struck
by unparalleled scenery and interesting rock formations. Amongst the vast palm groves, there are small clusters of farms, single dwellings, villages – everyone here lives off the land, a life far-removed and out of sight of the larger centres of Zagora or Ouarzazate. It’s an unspoilt part of the world and a unique privilege to discover it on horseback. A saddle bag-packed picnic will be enjoyed amongst the palm groves before you begin the descent into Tagounit where you will camp the night under a glistening starry sky.

This morning’s ride will take you across the Col of Foum Al Hisn as you reach the vast sand dunes that surround the village of M’Hamid. Once a lonesome oasis, M’Hamid has shed its wallflower qualities and is now the last major town of the Draa Valley before the immense arid expanses of the Hamada take over. Border tensions between Algeria (just 40km south), Morocco and the Polisario had isolated this caravan stop until the 1990s, when accords allowed M’Hamid to start hosting visitors again.

From here it doesn’t take long to reach the dunes of the Sahara, and you’ll spend the night in a traditional nomadic camp where you’ll be welcomed with warmth by the locals, eager to help you understand their land and culture. This camp consists of rooms with beds, and shared bathroom facilities (hot showers & flushing toilets – yes!). There is electricity in the rooms so this will be your chance to charge all your electronics as required.

It’s time to be enveloped by the towering dunes of the world’s largest desert – the Sahara! A scape of solitude and the desert of childhood imaginings, to ride this ancient land on horseback has our globetrotting hearts beating fast and hard with excitement. Covering a territory roughly equivalent to the United States, a journey into the Sahara can be as varied as the desert itself. But instead of the more traditional march across the sands of a great camel caravan of Saharan lore, your horses will carry you over dune after dune after dune. The heat of the day will see the pace slow to one more suited to the Sahara’s unforgiving climate, allowing you to appreciate the finite details and pass through this spectacular terrain at one with your surroundings.

But don’t worry globetrotters, for the speed demons among you there will be time to really let it rip and go for a gallop across the dunes either in the early morning or late afternoon when the mercury isn’t quite so sky-rocketing high.

You’ll camp out in the dunes again tonight, and while you’ll have the option of a mattress in a tent, the more adventurous among you may prefer to sleep outdoors on a soft bed of sand beneath the clearest show of stars on earth.

Today will be spent further exploring the desert of dreams. Being able to travel across this landscape on horseback and not in the hustle and bustle of a noisy 4WD allows you to experience perhaps the greatest luxury the Sahara affords – silence. I think it will be the simplest moments that will prove the most rewarding on this globetrotting adventure – learning to tie a turban, singing with your guides, standing astride your Barb horses atop the mountainous dunes at sunset, and lazing beside a crackling fire by the light of a full moon.

*Please note, today’s ride includes an approximate 1-hour ascent on foot to get over the top of a mountain range. We recommend you wear comfortable walking shoes when you set off from camp this morning.

Time to say goodbye to the ancient desert lands Globetrotters, and after a final gallop across the red sands, clouds of dust left in your wake, you’ll be back in the palm groves and stunning oasis of the Draa Valley. It’s here you’ll say a sad goodbye to your loyal horses who have carried you through one of the hottest and most arid climates on the planet, and your guides who have been with you every step of the way.

Your final night will be in a riad in Zagora (similar to the one you stayed in on the first night) and you’ll share one last dinner together as a group. Be sure to savour those rich tagine flavours as you eat, because you never know when (or if) you will be able to get back to the wondrous country.

This morning after breakfast, you’ll start the 3 hour drive back to Ouarzazate. If you are flying out today, please ensure you don’t book departing flights until after 12 midday. And should you choose to stay on and continue your travels in Morocco, you can be dropped off at your hotel in Ouarzazate.