Tour Leader
Rosa is a Swiss photographer based in Morocco since 2007. She has excellent knowledge and a deep understanding of Morocco and its culture, especially of the desert. Rosa’s keen ability to act as a bridge between cultures increases the opportunity to get into contact with local people and to achieve unique and narrative images. She has an excellent knowledge of the places visited during the tours.

Photo Tour Description
All the Magic of Morocco
Language: English and German
Tour length: 14 days/13 nights
Price: €4,850 per person (single room supplement €580)

The price of the photo tour includes
– Airport transfer in Morocco to and from the airport to the hotel.
– Photography tuition and guidance during the tour, including workshops and picture reviews for those interested.
– Transport with a 4×4 off-road car (max. three people per car) or a minivan, with the driver, including petrol.
– 13 nights accommodations in a hotel, riad, or camp in the desert. Arrival and departure nights are included.
– Breakfast and dinner (not including alcoholic drinks).
– Local guides.
– Entrance fees.

The price of the photo tour does not include
– Airfares to Morocco and any transport outside of Morocco.
– Lunch
– Alcoholic drinks
– Tips are customary in Morocco and are not included in the price.
– Travel Insurance

Program
Day 1: Marrakech
Individual arrival in Morocco. A driver will welcome you at Marrakech airport and bring you to your hotel. The group will meet at 19:00 at the hotel’s reception for an introduction, followed by dinner – accommodation in a hotel in Marrakech.

Day 2: Marrakech
On our first day, we will explore Morocco’s probably most interesting city: Marrakech. The highlights will include some interesting architectural sites such as the Koutoubia mosque and the Bahia Palace, but the main focus will be the lively medina (old town), with its colourful shops and souks (markets), followed by the famous place Djemaa el’Fna with the snake charmers, acrobats and storytellers. Finally, at sunset, we will enjoy the view from a rooftop restaurant for sunset images – accommodation in a hotel in Marrakech.

Day 3: Marrakech to Ouarzazate
After breakfast, we will begin our photographic adventure to the Sahara desert. We will leave Marrakech and drive south across the High Atlas Mountains and the col of Tizi-n-Tichka. We will stop along the way to enjoy the panoramic view and capture beautiful images of these majestic mountains. In the afternoon, we will continue to one of the most impressive and well-preserved kasbahs and UNESCO world heritage sites, the ksar of Ait Ben Haddou. We will visit this picturesque fortified village, which has been used as a film location in numerous famous films such as Gladiator, Alexander, The Mummy, Kundun, The Jewel of the Nile, and many more. It is an exciting place to explore and photograph – accommodation in a hotel in Ouarzazate.

Day 4: Ouarzazate to M’hamid
We will leave Ouarzazate, driving through mountainous wild landscapes, until we reach the first town in the Draa Valley called Agdez. We continue through the Draa Valley along the life-spending Draa River with its vast date palm oases. The Draa Valley once served as a link between the Sahara and the North of Morocco for the trading caravan routes that passed by the river for centuries. This part of Morocco is still much preserved in terms of traditional customs and way of life. Passing Zagora, the landscapes become more and more deserted and arid. After the small village of Tagounite, we will drive off-road to reach the windswept dunes of Erg Lihoudi. There will be enough time to explore the dunes with particular sand patterns that offer unique photo opportunities – accommodation in a hotel in M’hamid or a bivouac in Erg Lihoudi.

Day 5: M’hamid to Chagaga Dunes
Early morning, you can enjoy a sunrise and the soft morning light on the dunes. After breakfast, we will leave for M’hamid. In M’hamid, the paved road ends, and we start an adventure of 60km off-road. The route passes different features of the desert: erg (sand dunes), reg (rocky desert), hammada (stony desert) and oases. The Chagaga sand dunes are far away from any civilization. It is a mesmerizing place where you can really feel the overwhelming tranquillity and expanse of the desert. The Chagaga sand dunes area is the largest in Morocco – accommodation in a bivouac near the Chagaga dunes.

Day 6: Chagaga Dunes to M’hamid
Early risers can watch the sunrise from a high dune and experience the soft light of the new day. In the course of the morning, we will leave the bivouac, driving again off-road over the stony desert back to M’hamid. We will explore the little village in the afternoon and photograph some small beautiful dunes nearby. In the evening – accommodation in a hotel in M’hamid.

Day 7: M’hamid to Merzouga
We will leave for a new desert adventure to Merzouga in the morning. First, we will drive to Zagora and the Draa Valley, famous for its dates. While we drive along the Draa River, you will see huge date palm oases and small cultivated fields. Then, we will leave the Draa Valley in Tansikht and drive through desert landscapes dotted with acacia trees and small Berber villages until we reach Rissani and, later, Merzouga. After arriving at the sand dunes of Erg Chebbi, we will have time to explore the beautiful sand dunes, with their deep shadows, during the ‘golden hour’ – accommodation in a hotel near the dunes of Erg Chebbi.

Day 8: Merzouga
Early risers can experience the sunrise and the wonderful soft morning light in ‘the sea of sand’. After breakfast, we will drive to Rissani and visit the Sunday market with the famous donkey “parking place”. It is a colourful, very authentic, rural market where the farmers come on their donkeys from far to buy and sell their goods. Before sunset, you will enjoy a camel ride into the sand dunes – accommodation near the Sand dunes of Erg Chebbi.

Day 9: Merzouga to Fes
After saying ‘Goodbye’ to the magnificent sand dunes, we will drive to Erfoud, famous for its dates and fossils. We will then continue, via the Ziz Valley, to Midelt, with a view of the Middle Atlas Mountains. Finally, we will cross the Middle Atlas Mountains in the afternoon, heading east via Ifrane to Fes. Ifrane is often called ‘The Moroccan Switzerland’. On the way, we will hopefully be able to see and photograph some Berber monkeys in a forest. At the end of the day, we arrive in Fes, the oldest of the four imperial cities. Fes is also called Morocco’s cultural, intellectual, and spiritual capital – accommodation in a hotel in Fès.

Day 10: Fes
Today, you will enjoy a day tour of Fes, considered the Athens of Africa. It is famous for its historical monuments, rich heritage, and handicraft. In addition, you will discover the mysterious Medina called Fes El Bali (UNESCO World Heritage site), with its narrow alleyways and lanes with shops, medersas, mosques, and residences. Highlights of the city tour will include the Borj Sued and Borj Nord, the Bou Inania Medersa, the tanneries, and the gates of the Royal Palace. In addition, Fes is an interesting place for people who enjoy street photography – accommodation in a hotel in Fes.

Day 11: Fes to Chefchaouen
After breakfast, we will leave Fes, heading eastwards to Chefchaouen. We will drive through green mountains covered with trees until we reach the blue city of Chefchaouen. The small, charming mountain-city Chefchaouen is a photographer’s paradise. The blue and white painted houses and the small colourful medina invite you to explore and photograph this peaceful place, hidden in the mountains – accommodation in a hotel in Chefchaouen.

Day 12: Chefchaouen
Today, we will visit the Kasbah of Chefchaouen, followed by a walk through the narrow lanes of the medina. We will enjoy photographing old, blue-painted houses, street cats in their search for food, and the plenty of tiny shops offering unique handicrafts of the region. The medina invites you to get creative and enjoy excellent street photography – accommodation in a hotel in Chefchaouen.

Day 13: Chefchaouen to Marrakech
After breakfast, we will leave for Casablanca, where you can photograph the beautiful mosque Hassan II. It is the largest mosque in Africa and has the world’s tallest minaret (210m). After the visit, we continue to Marrakech, where the photo tour ends – accommodation in a hotel in Marrakech.

Day 14: Marrakech
Individual departure. A car will take you to the airport in time for your flight home.

Option: Adding some days in the coastal town of Essaouira at the end of the tour is possible at additional costs.