MYSTERIOUS MOROCCO

NORTH AFRICA

GUIDED WALKING HOLIDAYS FrOM FEZ TO MARRAKECH

Morocco's sensuous beauty is legendary, from imperial cities with labyrinthic souks to the awesome grandeur of the Sahara. Our journey begins in Fez, a walled city suspended in a medieval dream. From here it is only a short distance to Meknes, one of the 4 imperial cities. It is the perfect place to get lost in a traditional souq (market) where you'll find activity at every turn. We walk to the ancient Roman ruins of Volubilis, Rome's most far-flung base, in the midst of Morocco's hills and valleys.

The Dades Valley is an amazing area in the High Atlas Mountains - a photographer's paradise! The valley has lush green fields, spectacular gorges, and slot canyons of rose-coloured sandstone. The Dades Gorge has a fairy-tale feeling and the strength of the colours will never escape your memory. The Dades area is filled with lush valley oasis towns and many of the Kasbahs are in ruin, which lends to the mysterious atmosphere.

We settle at the foot of Erg Chebbi where Morocco's tallest sand dunes stretch to the horizon and admire the magnificent sunet. The next morning we try not to miss the sun rise over the Erg Chebbi dunes. They stretch over kilometres and kilometres and are sublime at dawn and sunrise as they change colours from pink to ochre and from red to orange.
We cross the desert where only few villages brave those difficult living conditions. Eventually we enter the Drâa valley and the oasis of Agdz, located in a vast palm grove on the old caravan route, linking Marrakech and Timbuktu and renowned for its fine dates.

We leave Adgz and travel north through the Draa Valley which is lined with palm trees and; pink laurels. We by-pass Ouarzazate, which has become a small Moroccan Hollywood (numerous films took place, and are still shot there). In the afternoon we cross the Tizi n'Tichka pass in direction Marakech and travel to Asni from where it is not far anymore to the lovely town of Ouirgane. It is nestled amongst the tranquil foothills of the High Atlas Mountains, right in the heart of the Berber country. Ourigane is also known as a health resort.

Together with our local guide we discover the Toubkal National Park in the High Atlas Mountains. It covers an area of 100,000 hectares and boasts the highest mountain peak in North Africa, Jbel Toubkal, which rises to 4167 meters. The park, the largest and oldest of Morocco, is located near the Sahara desert and has an incredible variety of wildlife and diverse ecosystems.

OUR HOTELS & CUISINE

The first two nights we stay in a beautifully restored Riad in the old Medina of Meknes. From the dining room of our Kasbah in the Dades Valley we enjoy panoramic views and savour some of the country's traditional cuisine - a delicious couscous, the famous Pigeon Pie, the Moroccan soup Harira or the many varieties of Tagine with meat.

In Erg Chebbi we spend two nights in the renovated Tombouctou guesthouse. Its privileged location near the sea of dunes is just magical.

In Agdz we stay in a beautiful, newly built Kasbah for 3 nights. Our peaceful hotel, inspired by many Moroccan Kasbahs, is in the heart of the palmarie and has a scrumptious restaurant, which opens up to the pool area. It offers fine Moroccan cuisine but we might also escape for one night to the more familiar European cuisine.

At an altitude of 1,000 metres, our charming hotel in Ouirgane originally provided simple living accommodation for the French Foreign Legion soldiers who built the bridge over the river in the early twentieth century.

According to legend, the building was christened "le Sanglier qui fume" because of its subsequent use by wild boar-hunters. Paul Thevenin opened his rustic mountain inn in 1945 and in 1998 Annick and Richard Pousset were proud and delighted to take over the management of the hotel and continue their father's work. Their catch words are friendliness and hospitality. All hotels on this tour have swimming pools.

TOUR COMBINATION

Departure dates have been arranged to allow the "Mysterious Morocco" and "A Journey Back in Time" walks to be combined.

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