Happy Valley Trek
(12 Days / 11 Nights )
This is an amazing 12 days adventure!
Booking this trekking adventure in Morocco means in that in 12 days time many wonderful Berber Villages, very green valleys and splendid views of the Atlas Mountains and the magical sahara desert will be under your belt. More than this, you will crown your Morocco Trekking Holiday with your feet on top of the highest peak in Morocco and North Africa, Jebel Toubkal (4167m / 13,671ft) and the second highest peak in Morocco, Ighil M’Goun (4,068m) in one single trip.
Our Morocco Trekking Adventure starts at Imi Oughlad, a Berber village few kms aways from Imlil at the foothills of the High Atlas Mountains. Imlil is the centre of mountain tourism in Morocco. It is 1,740 metres (5,710 ft) above sea level and it is 68km away from Marrakech. At Imi Oughlad, a Magical Trekking Holiday in Morocco is waiting for you.
Welcome to a Trekking Adventure of a Lifetime in Morocco.
Cities covered in this tour
Detailed Itinerary:
Meet and greet at Casablanca airport, then transfer to Marrakech. Enjoy an evening tour of the famous Jema El Fna square. Light dinner at a local restaurant. Overnight in Marrakech.
(Altitude profile +3207m) (5Hrs walk)
Leave Marrakech early in the morning taking a secluded mountain road route standing at 1700 meters above sea level. You will pass through traditional Amazigh (Berber) villages built from adobe and stones. Arrive at Asni valley. The latter is famous for its fruit trees (Apples, walnut, almonds, peachs…). In Asni, you will enjoy the sight of the snowy summits of the High Atlas Mountains. Arrive to Imlil at the higher foothills of the western High Atlas Mountains. Meet up with our Berber muleteer crew, then start our trekking to Toubkal base camp. Picnic along the way.
Dinner at the refuge at the base camp of Toubkal at 3200 meters.
(Altitude profile +960m / -1700m) (7Hrs walk)
Enjoy a very early breakfast, before going on a three hour steep climb to get to the highest peak in North Afrika, Jebel Toubkal (4167m). The panoramic views from the roof of the Atlas Mountains are amazing. Enjoy yourself there and engrave your name on a rock as one of the Lords of the Atlas. Later in the morning, start your descent from the roof of North Africa back to the Refuge for a picnic lunch.
After lunch, follow the zigzagging trails of the slopes of the Atlas Mountains towards the Shrine of Sidi Chamharouch. Continue your trip to Imlil.
Dinner and overnight in Imlil
After breakfast, leave Imlil through Marrakech, heading towards the east. Drive passing many Berber towns and villages on the way. Optional lunch on the way. Arrival to Ait Bougumez valley, also known as the Happy Valley. Join our muleteers’ team near Agouti (1800m) then start our trekking of this magnificent region. Head up towards the village of Arous, where we set our camp (2000m). Dinner and overnight.
After breakfast, leave Assif N’Arouss valley and its marvelous gorges heading to Djbel M’goun. The trip takes us through Tizi Oumzkik (3100). In this area, stop to enjoy the amazing views of the magnificent M’goun Gorges and the valley of Aït Boulli. Continue to Tarkeddid Plateau. The scenery in the area is amazing, with the mountain massif on the horizon and immense valleys stretching around. The road continues up to the mountain pass of Tizi-n-Tazite (2909m), then to the second pass, Tizi-n Targadit (3400m). The views over the valley from here are breathtaking. Follow a good path down to our camp on the Tarkeddid Plateau (2960m) for dinner and overnight.
After breakfast, make your way to the top of the second highest peak in Morocco and one of the most famous mountain peaks in North Africa, Ighil M’Goun (4,068m). On the top of this Central High Atlas majestic peak, enjoy stunning views of the Ait Bougmez Valley (the Happy Valley), Djbel Saghro and Mgoun and Dades valleys. These valleys look like silk threads from Ighil M’Goun. Take you time to enjoy this achievement, then descend along the path in a corridor to reach the camp near sheepfolds of Oulilimt (2700 m) for dinner and overnight.
Early in the morning, rejoin a mule trail which leads us to Assif Oulilimt. Continues across sunblasted plains to picnic en route at an ancient, and now uninhabited, once-Jewish village. Continue towards the beginning to M’Goun Valley. Stop at the campsite of Tighermt n’Aït Ahmed (2100m), which was once a stopover for caravans trading with Sub-Saharian Africa. Continue your way along the banks of Assif M’Goun. On the way down the valley, you will pass through green occasional fields of barley and corn potato. The valley is also rich with nut and fig and almond trees. Continue down the riverbed heading to the village of Imi’Nirkte. The latter is a very beautiful village with a population of very active women. Stop at the village to visit Berber women as they weave beautiful intricately-designed carpets. Dinner and overnight in the village.
Breakfast tucked away, we set off further down the river through the beautiful M’goun Canyoun, also well known as Mgoun Gorge. With your feet in the water, you will walk through the most spectacular part of the M’goun gorge, which is protected under the national preservation program. The gorge creates a very long canyon of 1500 m. Stop at Tighanimin village (1790 M) for lunch. Continue your hike to Boutaghrar, an authentic village and wonderland with beautiful Kasbahs and abode houses on the edge of the river. All over the area, enjoy the beauty of nature pictured in green fields rich with olive, pomegranate, apple trees and fields of roses. Dinner and overnight in a guest house.
Boutaghrar is the village where our hiking will be finished. This morning, drive through Kelaat M’Gouna, a big touwn famous for cultivating roses. Expect to find many fine, rose-infused products there. Continue through Dades, known as the valley of the figs, to Tinghir. The drive to Dades is spectacular, with hundreds of Kasbahs lining the route, winding through stunning desert landscapes, villages, palm grooves, and with the expansive Jebel Sarhro lunar-scape to the south. Arrive at Tinghir, which is famour for its charming oases and Toudra Gorge. Explore the Todra Gorge, a 300m wall, carved deep into the High Atlas Mountains. Optional lunch in Tinghir then transfer to the Sahara desert in Merzouga with sometime stop at Rissani to change your vehicule with 4Wheel Drive. Arrive to Merzouga to ride your camels to your charming desert camp. Sunset camel ride and dinner and overnight at a charming desert camp.
After breakfast, transfer to Ouarzazate, passing through a series of Berber villages. The trip to Ouarzazate is amazing as you will pass through Draa valley cuting a deep channel between the Jebel Sarhro and the Anti Atlas Mountain ranges. You will drive through a series of steep canyons famous for their cliffs of green and black rock. Stop at Ouarzazate for an optional lunch. Take pictures of Taourirt Kasbah, which is considered one of the most beautiful kasbahs in Morocco. Continue your drive crossing the Tiz in Tichka pass to Marrakech for dinner and overnight.
Enjoy a half day guided city tour of Marrakech. Begin with the Kotoubia Mosque, the largest in Marrakech and one of the oldest mosques in the world. The minaret, 77 metres (253 ft) in height, includes a spire and orbs. It was completed under the reign of the Almohad Caliph Yaqub al-Mansur (1184 to 1199). Your next stop is the Bahia Palace, and the Saadian Tombs. The Saadian tombs in Marrakech date back from the time of the sultan Ahmad al-Mansur (1578-1603). The tombs were discovered in 1917 and were restored by the Beaux-arts service. Complete the city tour of Marrakech with the world-famous Jemaa el Fna Square, which houses arrays of food, snake charmers, local musicians, and fortune-tellers. Optional lunch in Marrakech, then transfer to Casablanca. Enjoy an outside visit of Hassan II mosque, the largest mosque in the country. Continue to Ain Diab Corniche for a pleasant stroll along the coast. Dinner and overnight in Casablanca.
After breakfast, transfer to Casablanca airport for your departure flight.
– Accommodation in double /twin / single rooms.
– Breakfast daily
– Dinners in Ouarzazate & Merzouga
– Modern A/C vehicle during the tour
– English speaking driver/guide
– Local guides in Marrakech Fes &Volubilis
– Sunset camel ride in the desert
– Entrance fees to monuments
– Porterage at airport and hotels
– All taxes
– Any services not mentioned in the program
– Tips & porterage
– Beverages
No Surprises !