7 Days Atlantic Coast and The Sahara desert from Marrakech

OVERVIEW

This unique tour of the Sahara desert covers a great region of Morocco that is still very interesting. The Atlas Mountains, the Erg Chigaga Desert, and the Atlantic coast are all locations for this private excursion into the Sahara Desert. you will start Essaouira, go through the magical seaside then sleep in Sidi Ifni and Tafraouite with Taroudant, then sleep under millions of stars in the Erg Chigaga desert. Continue your tour to Ouarzazate then go back to Marrakech.

Itinerary of the 7 Days from Marrakech to The Atlantic Coast

Check out the 7 Days from Marrakech to The Atlantic Coast below to know what to expect from this tour. you can Customize your Itinerary

Highlights of the 7 Days from Marrakech to The Atlantic Coast

Explore the Essaouira.
Enjoy the Atlantic ocean of Sidi Ifni.
Visit the Berber Villages.
Discover the Tafraoute.
See the rocks with over 18 tons of different colored paint.
Enjoy the Chegaga Desert.
Visit the Ouarzazate Studios
Sightseeing in Marrakech.

Itinerary: 7 Days from Marrakech to The Atlantic Coast and & The Sahara desert

Day 1: Marrakesh – Essaouira

Your guide will pick you up from your hotel at 8.00 a.m. and will take the motorway to Essaouira, a seaside town on Morocco’s Atlantic coast. The route will take you through acres of argan trees native to a particular region of Morocco, whose yield of precious argan oil is reputed to have anti-aging properties and is much sought after in the cosmetic industry.

Essaouira, where you will spend the night, is one of Morocco’s most ancient and most charming fortified port towns, which for centuries, has not only been one of the most important trading ports linking Morocco to the world, but also a magnet for artists, poets, and musicians from all over the world. Essaouira has a picturesque and working fishing harbor and is noted for its fish food cuisine. The town’s eclectic architecture reflects the influence of its turbulent and multicultural history from the Phoenicians and the Romans, to the Portuguese and the French.

Its whitewashed walls and blue shutters are somehow reminiscent of Portuguese towns; its beautiful doorways are entirely Moroccan while the medina and fortress, are a good example of 18th-century French military architecture. It’s worth paying a visit to the Sidi Mohammed ben Abdallah Museum, which displays ancient artifacts, as well as some fine marquetry examples crafted from local Thuya wood, and jewelry and carpets. The town is also home to the annual, international Gnoura music festival, which is usually held around June.

Day 2: Essaouira – Sidi Ifni

After breakfast, you will take the coastal road south, passing Agadir to Tiznit, an attractive little garrison town built in the late 19th century, and notable for its silver jewelry. The road turns towards the sea again and runs parallel to it and is the most beautiful drive to Sidi Ifni, a cliffside town named after the marabout Sidi Ifni.

The town is a picturesque sprawl of blue and white buildings overlooking a magnificent Moroccan beach. Like Essaouira, it has a history of foreign occupation, notably the Spanish, and there is still a noticeably Hispanic atmosphere in the little town. You will spend the night here and enjoy some interesting art deco architecture and a charming promenade.

Day 3: Sidi Ifni – Tafraoute

When you leave Sidi Ifni, you will head back towards Tiznit and then up into the Anti-Atlas Mountains, taking a road that runs through a spectacular landscape leading to Tafraoute, a verdant little pink and red town, but set rather uncomfortably in an arena of massive granite rock formations.

But in spring, it is transformed by the exquisite blossoming almond trees for which it is famous. It is a rock climber’s paradise, and also boasts some excellent restaurants.

Day 4: Tafraoute – Taroudant

After breakfast, before heading off North to Taroudant, you will be taken just four kilometers from Tafraoute to see the famous and controversial painted rocks or “land art” conceived by Belgian artist, Jean Vérame, who with the help of the local fire brigade sprayed a selection of rocks with over 18 tons of different colored paint.

We then take the winding road, but with wonderful views, to the River and town of Ait Baha, and then follow the road to Taroudant, a beautiful little walled city and market town, whose ramparts are similar to those of Marrakech, hence its nickname “Little Marrakech”. We will stop here, to explore the town and spend the night.

Day 5: Taroudant – Chigaga

After breakfast, we drive towards the desert, crossing two passes, Tizi-n-Tighatine and Tizi-n-Ikhsane, before reaching Kourkouda and Taznakht, a small town famous for its Berber rugs and carpets, and its carpet souk.

From here, we continue south and drive into the Sahara across the stony desert, or hammada, and across the salt flats of Lake Iriqui, where we will stop and hunt for fossils, and then on to the ‘real’ desert and marvelous dunes of Chegaga, and our Berber nomad camp where we will have lunch and a camel ride, and in the evening, clamber to the top of the dunes to watch the sunset – always a spectacular event–then enjoy the conviviality of a typical Berber dinner.

Day 6: Chigaga – Ouarzazate

After breakfast, we break camp and cross the desert through the small palm grove of the Sacred Oasis near Bougarn, to M’hamid, a small town on the edge of the desert, and then on to Erg Lihoudi for a camel ride.

We will stop for lunch near M’Hamid and then head north up the beautiful Draa valley towards Zagora, the largest oasis town in the valley and renowned for its dates. Then we follow the ancient caravan trade route between river and mountains and through villages of picturesque kasbahs and gardens – a magical drive known as the ‘Road of the thousand kasbahs’. We will stop at Agdz to visit the magnificent Kasbah Tamnougalte, still partly inhabited.

We then go through the Tizi n’Tififte pass to Ouarzazate, home to the famous Atlas Studios where many epic films such as Gladiator were made, where you will spend the night.

Day 7 : Ouarzazate – Marrakech

After breakfast, we can enjoy a visit to the movie sets and studios located at Ouarzazate which is known as Africa’s Hollywood. Afterward, we will visit the universal heritage site of the kasbah of Ait Benhaddou, as it was appointed by UNESCO in 1987.

Ait Benhaddou is a World Heritage site that served as the backdrop to over 20 films including “Gladiator” “Indiana Jones” and “Lawrence of Arabia”. Take a stroll to explore the traditional Moroccan style of architecture in which the kasbahs are constructed. We continue our journey to Marrakech through the mountains of the High Atlas and the Tizi n’Tichka pass. Lunch break surrounded by the Atlas Mountains. Return to your Marrakech Riad/ Hotel and this will be the end of our private trip to Morocco. Have a nice trip back home.