1. Arrival in Marrakech
You make your own way to Marrakech and we transfer you from the airport to your accommodation. The day is free to discover the city; we recommend a bike ride at sunset.
A cycling tour through southern Morocco, from Telouet and Ait Ben Haddou to the Saghro massif and the oases of the Draa Valley, with a guide and a 4x4 support vehicle.
| Duration | 8 days / 7 nights |
|---|---|
| Starts from | Marrakech airport |
| Group size | 2-40 people |
| Languages | Spanish, English, French |
You make your own way to Marrakech and we transfer you from the airport to your accommodation. The day is free to discover the city; we recommend a bike ride at sunset.
After breakfast you travel in the support vehicle (an air-conditioned 4x4) towards the Atlas. Before the Tizi n'Tichka pass (2,260 m) there is a stop for tea and photos, and another at the pass itself, where there are stalls selling fossils and minerals. You carry on to the village of Abadou and the kasbah of Telouet.
From there you continue by bike to Anemiter, where you have lunch and the route through the Ounila valley, the old salt route, begins. You pass Berber villages such as Tamdakhte (Imazighen, 'free men', is what they call themselves) until you reach Ait Ben Haddou.
You leave the bikes and cross the Ounila river on foot to visit the kasbah and watch the sunset. Night in a hotel, with free time to rest, have a tea or explore the fortified village before dinner.
Elevation: +246 m / -596 m. Medium technical difficulty. Maximum altitude 1,770 m, minimum 1,305 m.
The day starts with a drive to Ouarzazate to visit its old Taourirt kasbah. A short transfer then takes you to the start of the ride.
You cycle through the Azaghar n'Iyghr valley, home to nomads, where you may come across families in their tents. These vast plains lead to the village of Almdoun, where you have lunch. You then switch valleys heading east through Ighrem Aqdim and, on traffic-free tracks, reach Boumalne Dades.
Elevation: +380 m / -520 m. Medium technical difficulty. Maximum altitude 1,917 m, minimum 1,582 m.
This is the queen stage: a lunar landscape, volcanic terrain that changes completely, leg-sapping rolling sections and encounters with Ait Atta nomads. From your accommodation you drive to the point where the tarmac ends and the route enters the Jebel Saghro massif, in the Anti-Atlas.
Red, black and basalt mountains contrast with the green of the small mountain oases. You climb the Tizi n'Tagmoute pass, the highest point of the trip, and a long descent takes you to the Bab Ben Ali plain, with its pink granite obelisks.
Elevation: +1,026 m / -1,699 m. Moderate technical difficulty. Maximum altitude 1,864 m, minimum 1,030 m.
Another very full stage, with little climbing and plenty of descent. A long downhill through the volcanic heart of the Saghro, on a rough track between eroded basalt flows, and at the end about 5 km of well-marked singletrack to the high point of the day: the towers of Bab n'Ali, two rock formations that stay with you.
After crossing plains of volcanic rock, the track leads to Nkob, a quiet village on the edge of the desert, beside a large oasis.
Elevation: +660 m / -610 m. Medium technical difficulty. Maximum altitude 1,580 m, minimum 1,035 m.
A hard, long stage over stony ground and rough tracks, though the scenery makes up for it. You leave Nkob heading south towards the desert, through empty country, with a walk to see the rock engravings of Ait Ouazik. The final section, with straights that seem to go on forever, leads to the Zagora road.
Night in a nomad tent, at a camp among the small dunes of Nkhila, in the Draa Valley. This is where the cycling ends.
Back to Marrakech through the Draa Valley and its palm groves, crossing the Anti-Atlas and High Atlas mountains. Free time and a night in a riad in the medina.
Transfer to the airport in time for your return flight.