Overview
Six days. Five nights. The whole of southern Morocco, entirely private, and back to Marrakech.
This is the deep-south circuit — the kasbah road, the palm valleys, the gorges, and the Sahara dunes — done as your party alone, with your own vehicle, your own driver-guide, and your own desert camp. It's the trip for travellers based in Marrakech who want the south done properly: not a three-day dash to the dunes and back, but six days to take in the Route of a Thousand Kasbahs, the Draa Valley palmeries, two different gorges, and the desert, returning to the same city you started from. The market sells this as a fixed minibus with a fixed group. This is the opposite: you set the pace, you linger where you want, and you sleep in private rooms throughout.
Day 1 climbs the High Atlas by the **Tizi n'Tichka pass** to **Aït Benhaddou**, the fortified mud-brick ksar on the old caravan route, then on to **Ouarzazate** — Morocco's film city — and into the kasbah country for the night. Day 2 follows the **Route of a Thousand Kasbahs** through the **Skoura palmery** and up the **Dades Valley** to the dramatic switchback gorge, with an overnight in the kasbah country. Day 3 crosses to the **Todra Gorge** — 300m cliff walls a few metres apart — then turns south toward the desert.
The desert is the heart of the trip. You reach the dunes, meet your camels, and ride into the Sahara as the light goes gold, to your **private desert camp** — proper beds, private facilities, a Berber dinner, drumming, and a sky with no light pollution for a hundred kilometres. Depending on your chosen route (Erg Chebbi at Merzouga, or the Draa Valley dunes near Zagora), the desert leg runs across Days 3 to 5 with a dune sunrise and time in the southern oases. The return to Marrakech on Day 6 crosses back over the High Atlas, with the southern scenery unrolling in reverse.
Best for: travellers based in Marrakech who want a deep southern loop and a return to the same city, anyone drawn to the kasbah road and the southern landscapes more than the northern imperial cities, couples and families who want the journey to themselves, travellers who found the 3-day desert trip too short and want the south done at a proper pace.
Not the right fit if: you want Fes, Chefchaouen, or the imperial cities of the north (this is a southern circuit — see WPVMCFM7 or WPVMCCFM6 for the north), you want a slow beach-and-spa holiday (this is a landscape-and-driving circuit), or you're travelling in peak summer and can't tolerate desert heat (spring and autumn are far more comfortable).
Hakim founded Morocco Way in 2014 with one rule: every guide is born in the region they show you. Your driver-guide knows the kasbah road, the southern valleys, and the desert country as home ground — and a private trip means the south bends around you, not around a minibus timetable shared with strangers.
Day by Day
Your driver-guide collects you from your Marrakech hotel or riad in the morning (pickup time confirmed the evening before — typically around 8:00 AM). Private vehicle, your party only, included in the trip price.
The morning climbs out of the Haouz plain into the High Atlas by the **Tizi n'Tichka pass** (2,260m), the highest major paved road pass in Morocco — a series of switchbacks with long views back over the range, and stops at the best viewpoints. (Optional short detour to the **Telouet Kasbah**, the crumbling palace of the Glaoui lords just off the pass, if your pace allows — tell your guide.)
Down the southern side to **Aït Benhaddou** — the fortified ksar of red-earth kasbahs stacked against a hillside above the Ounila river, on the old caravan route that carried gold and salt between the Sahara and Marrakech. UNESCO World Heritage-listed since 1987 and used as a backdrop in dozens of films. You cross the riverbed, climb through the earthen lanes, and your guide explains the rammed-earth construction and the trade history. About 60 to 90 minutes, plus a lunch stop facing the ksar (your own choice and expense, typical bill 80 to 150 MAD per person).
Continue to **Ouarzazate** — the administrative capital of the south and the centre of Morocco's film industry (the Atlas and CLA studios are here; the Taourirt Kasbah is worth a short stop). From Ouarzazate you continue into the kasbah country for the night.
You arrive at your overnight stop in the early evening — a **private room at a kasbah-style hotel** with views over the valley. Dinner is included tonight at the hotel.
Night: private room at a kasbah-style hotel near Ouarzazate or Skoura (1 night, en-suite, your party only). Dinner included; lunch at Aït Benhaddou at your own choice; no other meals on Day 1.
The kasbah-road day. Breakfast at the hotel, then east along the **Route of a Thousand Kasbahs** — the string of earthen fortresses, palmeries, and oasis towns that line the road through the south.
Stops on the way: the **Skoura palmery** with its famous Amridil Kasbah (one of the most photographed kasbahs in Morocco, and once pictured on the 50-dirham note); the **Valley of the Roses** near **Kelaat M'Gouna**, where Persian roses are grown for rosewater and the May rose festival; and the climb up the **Dades Valley** — the "valley of a thousand kasbahs" proper — to the dramatic **Dades Gorge** with its famous hairpin switchback road carved into the rock. Lunch on the way at your own choice (typical bill 80 to 150 MAD per person).
There's time for a short walk in the gorge and the classic photograph of the switchbacks from the viewpoint above. The Dades is one of the most scenic stretches of the whole south.
You overnight in the **Dades area** in a private room at a kasbah-style hotel set in or above the gorge, with valley views. Dinner is included tonight at the hotel.
Night: private room at a kasbah-style hotel in the Dades Gorge area (1 night, en-suite, your party only). Breakfast and dinner at the hotel included; lunch on the road at your own choice.
The desert day. Breakfast at the hotel, then to the **Todra Gorge** — a canyon where the rock walls rise some 300m and narrow to barely ten metres apart, with a shallow river running through and a road threading the gap. You walk a stretch on foot with your guide (flat and easy), about 45 to 60 minutes, with time for mint tea at one of the cafés in the gorge.
Then the road runs south and east toward the **Sahara**. The landscape opens out — stony hammada, date-palm oases, the first sight of the dunes on the horizon. Lunch on the way at your own choice (typical bill 80 to 150 MAD per person).
You reach the dunes in the late afternoon. (Your route runs either to **Erg Chebbi at Merzouga** — the great 150m dune sea — or to the **Draa Valley dunes near Zagora and M'hamid**, depending on the version you book; your booking confirmation specifies which, and you can choose at booking.) You meet your camels — well cared-for working animals with a local handler — and ride into the dunes as the sun drops, about an hour in the saddle, with a 4x4 alternative available on request at no extra charge.
Your **private desert camp** sits among the dunes, booked for your party only. Proper beds, blankets, private or en-suite washing facilities. Dinner is a Berber meal around the fire — soup, tagine, fruit, mint tea — followed by drumming and a sky with no light pollution for a hundred kilometres. The Milky Way is visible in season.
Night: private tented desert camp in the Sahara (1 night, proper bed, private/en-suite facilities, your party only). Breakfast at the kasbah hotel, dinner at the camp included; lunch on the road at your own choice.
The desert immersion day — the reward for the longer 6-day frame, and the day that sets this trip apart from the 3-day dash.
The morning begins before dawn for the **Sahara sunrise** — the dunes shifting through grey, pink, orange, and gold as the sun comes up over the eastern horizon. About 30 to 45 minutes. Camel trek (or 4x4) back from the camp and breakfast at the edge of the dunes.
The rest of the day stays in the desert region at a slower pace, exploring what the area around your camp offers. Depending on your route, this may include:
- A visit to a **nomad family** for tea and conversation (translated by your guide), a genuine window into desert life
- The **Khamlia village** and its Gnaoua music (near Merzouga) — descendants of sub-Saharan communities who play a hypnotic, trance-style music
- **Rissani**, the old caravan town and gateway to the Sahara, with its busy souk (one of the most traditional markets in the south)
- A 4x4 run deeper into the dunes or out to the **fossil beds** and old mining settlements (optional)
- Or, on the Draa Valley route, the **palmeries and kasbahs around Zagora and Agdz**, and the famous "Timbuktu 52 days" caravan sign
Lunch is your own choice at a desert-town restaurant or arranged at your accommodation (typical bill 80 to 150 MAD per person).
You overnight in the **southern desert region** — either a second night at a desert camp or a kasbah-style hotel near the dunes, your party only. Dinner is included tonight.
Night: private accommodation in the southern desert region — desert camp or kasbah-style hotel (1 night, en-suite or private tent, your party only). Breakfast and dinner included; lunch at your own choice.
The valley day — the long, green palm corridor that threads the desert south. Breakfast at your accommodation, then the road west and north back toward Ouarzazate.
The route follows the **Draa Valley** — Morocco's longest river valley, a ribbon of date palmeries running between the desert and the mountains, lined with old earthen kasbahs and ksour (fortified villages). It's one of the most beautiful and least-rushed stretches of the south. Stops along the way for the palmery viewpoints, a kasbah or two, and the oasis towns of **Agdz** and **Zagora** (if your route runs this way). Lunch on the way at your own choice (typical bill 80 to 150 MAD per person).
(If your booked route took you to Erg Chebbi rather than the Draa dunes, Day 5 instead returns west along the kasbah road with time for any sites missed on the way out, and a stop at the Fint Oasis or a southern kasbah — your driver-guide plans the best of the return.)
You overnight in the **Ouarzazate or Skoura region** in a private room at a kasbah-style hotel — your last night in the south, well placed for the High Atlas crossing in the morning. Dinner is included tonight.
Night: private room at a kasbah-style hotel near Ouarzazate or Skoura (1 night, en-suite, your party only). Breakfast and dinner included; lunch on the road at your own choice.
The return over the mountains. Breakfast at the hotel, then the drive north back to Marrakech.
The road climbs back over the **High Atlas by the Tizi n'Tichka pass** — the southern scenery unrolling in reverse, with stops at the best mountain viewpoints and a final argan cooperative or village tea stop. (If you didn't visit the **Telouet Kasbah** on the way out, there's a chance to detour to it now — tell your guide.) Lunch on the way at your own choice (typical bill 80 to 150 MAD per person).
Down the northern side into the Haouz plain and **Marrakech**. We drop you at your Marrakech hotel or riad, or at Marrakech-Menara airport (RAK) for a departure, your party only, timed around your plans (tell us at booking). Arrival is typically in the early-to-mid afternoon, leaving the rest of the day free in Marrakech.
If you'd like to extend — nights in Marrakech, a guided Marrakech medina tour, a day trip to the Ourika Valley or Essaouira, or a cooking class — tell us at booking and we'll build it in.
Breakfast at the hotel included. Other meals on Day 6 are at your own choice and expense.
Includes & Excludes
What's included
Not included
Frequently Asked
Morocco has one of the lowest crime rates in the world and, compared to the US and Europe, is considered a very safe destination. Moroccan people are known for their hospitality and they will make you feel very welcomed, for more information on the topic contact us and we’ll provide you with some personal single-traveller experiences.
No. You may wear whatever you feel comfortable in, we only have one exception on tours of the Mosque like Hassan II. To enter you would need to dress conservatively as you would in a church (no shorts, tanks tops, etc.).
As in any country you should use direction with your attire if you want to avoid unwanted attention.
US Dollars, Sterling and Euros are readily exchangeable. We recommend you take a mixture of cash and credit cards. Scottish bank notes and Australian dollar travellers cheques and cash are NOT normally accepted in Morocco.
With accurate information on the schedule of your arrival, our guide and our driver await you at the customs exit at the airport, with a sign with your name and first name. It’s always easy, this appointment. In case of concern, you can contact us by phone with our contact information noted in our emails. We are always at your disposal 24 hours a day
Fully private, from the Marrakech pickup to the Marrakech drop-off. The vehicle is yours alone — your party only, with Morocco Way's driver-guide, never pooled with other bookings. Your rooms are private throughout, and the desert camp is booked for your group, not shared with strangers. This is the key difference from the standard market version of the southern circuit, which packs strangers into a shared minibus and a shared camp for a much lower price. With Morocco Way you set the start times, the stops, and the pace, and you never wait for anyone else — which matters on a southern loop where the scenery rewards an unhurried stop at the right kasbah or viewpoint. The trade-off is cost: a private trip costs more per person than a minibus seat, and the per-person price depends on how many of you are travelling (larger parties pay less each).
The 3-day desert tour (WPVMRMM3) is a fast there-and-back run to the Erg Chebbi dunes — one night in the desert, two long driving days, and the headline sights (Aït Benhaddou, the Dades and Todra gorges) seen at speed. This 6-day southern circuit is the south done properly: two desert-region nights, time in the Draa Valley palmeries, the Route of a Thousand Kasbahs, the Skoura palmery and the Valley of the Roses, both gorges at an unhurried pace, and a desert immersion day (nomad encounters, Gnaoua music, the Rissani souk, or the Zagora oases depending on your route). If you have only three days, the short trip delivers the dunes. If you have six and want to understand the south — its kasbahs, valleys, oases, and desert — this is the trip. Both are fully private and both return to Marrakech.
You choose at booking. The two southern desert options each have their character. Erg Chebbi at Merzouga is the classic — the big 150m dune sea, the most iconic Sahara dunes in Morocco, with the Khamlia Gnaoua music village and the Rissani caravan souk nearby; it's further east, so the drive in is longer. The Draa Valley route runs down Morocco's longest palm valley to the dunes near Zagora and M'hamid — smaller dunes but a richer valley journey, the old "Timbuktu 52 days" caravan country, and fewer other travellers. Both give you a camel trek, a private desert camp, a sunset and sunrise, and the southern kasbahs and gorges. Tell us which appeals, or tell us your priorities (biggest dunes vs richest valley, more driving vs less) and we'll recommend. The price is similar for either.
The camp is a proper private tented camp, booked for your party only — proper beds (not mattresses on the floor), blankets, and private or en-suite washing facilities, with a Berber dinner around the fire and a sky with no light pollution for a hundred kilometres. The camel trek into the dunes at sunset (about an hour) is included but optional: the camels are well cared-for working animals with a local handler, and if you'd rather not ride — a back issue, a fear, a young child, simple preference — we arrange a 4x4 transfer to the camp instead at no extra charge. You can ride one way and take the 4x4 the other. If you'd prefer an upgraded luxury camp with full en-suite bathrooms and more space, tell us at booking and we can arrange it at additional cost.
The south is vast, so there's driving most days, but the 6-day frame keeps it more comfortable than the 3-day dash and the scenery is genuinely the point. Rough daily driving: Day 1 (Marrakech over the Atlas to the kasbah country) about 5 to 6 hours with major stops; Day 2 (the kasbah road and Dades) about 4 to 5 hours; Day 3 (Todra and the road to the dunes) about 4 to 6 hours; Day 4 (desert region) is the lightest, a slower day around the camp and oases; Day 5 (the Draa Valley or kasbah return) about 5 to 6 hours; Day 6 (back over the Atlas to Marrakech) about 4 to 5 hours. Being private means you stop whenever you want, break the drives where you like, and travel in an air-conditioned vehicle with only your own party. If you have any back or travel-sickness concerns, tell us at booking and we'll plan stops accordingly.
Spring (March to May) and autumn (September to November) are ideal — warm days, cool nights, comfortable for the kasbahs, the gorges, the valleys, and the dunes. Spring is especially lovely in the Valley of the Roses (the May rose harvest and festival) and the Draa palmeries. Summer (June to August) is very hot in the desert and the southern valleys; daytime temperatures regularly exceed 40°C, the camel trek is timed for the cooler late afternoon, and the camps stay warm into the night — doable if you're heat-tolerant, but not the comfortable option. Winter (December to February) brings warm, clear days, genuinely cold desert nights (near freezing after dark), and the chance of snow on the Tizi n'Tichka pass — the kasbahs and dunes in winter sun are beautiful, just pack warm layers. We run the trip year-round; tell us your dates and we'll advise honestly.
Yes — that's the advantage of a private trip. Common adaptations: add a night for two full desert nights or a slower Draa Valley; combine both deserts (Erg Chebbi and the Draa dunes) on a longer custom loop; add a High Atlas hiking day or a visit to a specific kasbah or oasis; finish in Fes instead of returning to Marrakech (an easy one-way variant that turns the desert loop into a forward journey north); or add Marrakech nights and a guided medina tour at the end. Pricing adjusts with the changes. Tell us what you'd like at booking, or send a WhatsApp, and we'll build the itinerary around you.
Book through our website, or send a WhatsApp (+212 628 848 511) with your dates and party size for an exact per-person private-tour quote. We confirm within 12 hours during Morocco business hours. A deposit secures your dates; the balance is paid in cash to your driver-guide on Day 1 or in advance via PayPal — most travellers pay the balance on arrival. At booking, please provide: (1) your dates and number of travellers (and children's ages if any), (2) your Marrakech hotel or riad name for the pickup, (3) your desert route preference (Erg Chebbi or the Draa dunes — or ask us to recommend), (4) any dietary restrictions (forwarded to the hotels and camp), (5) any mobility or travel-sickness concerns, (6) camel or 4x4 preference for the dune transfer, (7) whether you want any extensions, an upgraded luxury camp, or a one-way finish in Fes. We are flexible for genuine reasons such as illness or family emergency — talk to us.