After an early breakfast, we collect you from your hotel or riad in Fès in preparation for our ascent across the Middle Atlas Mountains.

Except for the summer months, you’ll catch imposing views of the snow-capped High Atlas Mountains in the distance.

Once through the mountains, we wind our way through beautiful, lush forests, jagged rock faces and Berber villages. After stopping for lunch at Midelt – famed for its rocks, fossils and apples – we continue on mountain roads that afford spectacular views of countless villages, Kasbahs and palm groves through the Ziz Valley.

Passing through the adobe coloured city of Er-Rachidia, by late afternoon the terrain has changed dramatically. With the slopes behind us, we’re now in what is best described as a lunar landscape as we head for Merzouga – a small town of the edge of the Sahara where we will spend the night in a hotel.

After a relaxing breakfast we set out to discover more about this beautiful region of the Sahara Desert.

We begin with a visit to the ancient city of Rissani, an important fossil centre and home to the Alouite dynasty in the 13th century. This is of special significance to Moroccans as the lineage from the Alouites, principally Moulay Ali Cherif, carries through to our present king, Mohammed VI. Rissani is also an important cultural destination in Morocco, boasting many beautiful examples of early Moroccan architectural styles and notable palaces and temples such as the Ksar Oulad Abdelhalim.

Expect to see many of the local Moroccan men wearing their brightly coloured indigo robes – distinctive of the Saharan people. Depending on the timing of your tour, you may be lucky to catch one of the three markets held every week in the town.

This part of your tour also includes a visit to the village of Khamlia where you will have the opportunity to listen to (and perhaps join in with) traditional Gnaoua music. Later in the afternoon, we return to Merzouga and an auberge, from where we prepare to climb on to our camels for a trek into the desert, accompanied by Berber guides who will be our hosts for the evening.

Against the backdrop of Erg Chebbi and the impending sunset, we wend our way through the peace and natural beauty of the Saharan dunes until we reach our bivouac camp where you will stay in a Nomad tent.

Our guides will not only prepare a sumptuous, traditional meal but also invite you to join in with their special brand of music and entertainment, until the final embers of the campfire fade away under the canopy of stars.

After an early start to catch the sunrise over the dunes, your camels will be waiting to help you return to the auberges at Merzouga where you can shower, change and take breakfast.

We depart for the Todra Gorge, en route passing the most sought after dates in Morocco, which are grown between Rissani and Erfoud.

As we climb into the High Atlas Mountains and through Tinghir we begin our approach to the gorge. There will be ample time to explore and take photographs, as well as enjoying a drink or lunch at one of the restaurants that is squeezed in to the jaws of the gorge. Refreshed and inspired, we set off for more of nature’s wonders in the Dadès Gorge, including the mind-boggling rock creations of the Tamnalt Hills.

Overnight in the heart of the Dadès Gorge.

A traditional Moroccan breakfast will set you up for the journey through the Rose Valley (most fragrant in April and May) and the town of Kella M’gouna an important centre for the rose growing cooperatives throughout the valley.

With Ouarzazate – the doorway to the desert - firmly established as the centre of Morocco’s film industry, it’s appropriate that our first stop on this final tour day is another great movie location. Aït Ben Haddou.

The historic ksar is one of the iconic images of Morocco and, not surprisingly, the backdrop for countless well known movies including Lawrence of Arabia, Gladiator, The Jewel of the Nile and Cleopatra. With the Kasbah that evolved around it, Aït Ben Haddou’s commanding position in the Ounila Valley served as an important trading post along a former caravan route from the Sahara to Marrakech and beyond.

We enjoy lunch amid the spectacular scenery of the High Atlas Mountains before heading through the Tizi n’Tichka Pass for our descent to Marrakech where we arrive late evening and your hotel and riad for the night.