Deep South Tour: Our most comprehensive tour yet...
This tour includes a wide variety of scenery and terrain. From twisty mountain tracks to wide open desert plains to rocky coastal pistes, this tour has everything. This 7-day tour demands a good degree of fitness and riding ability.
Although we think the full 7 days will give you the most enjoyment so that you can experience the full range of the variety and diversity of this tour, we realise that not everyone can take 7 days away from work. If you would still like a taste of Morocco's "Deep South" but cannot ride for 7 days, we can modify this tour to be a 5 or 6 day tour. Request details for these shorter tour itineraries.
Please note that the starting point for the tour is Ouarzazate, but the finishing point is in Marrakech. You will need to book your flights accordingly.
Arrival in Ouarzazate
A visit to our location this afternoon will allow you to try on and choose your riding equipment.
Day 1: Ouarzazate to Foum Zguid
An easy run on fast, graded piste to get the tour started, taking us South from Ouarzazate, through to Tazenakht, where we have a Tajine lunch.
A dramatic ride through the Jbel Saghro in the afternoon, over little used mountain tracks, that lead us through remote villages hidden in some of the spectacular canyons in this mountain range. Rocky in places, with some tight uphill/downhill turns that will help develop your use of the rear brake on these challenging tracks.
We spend the night in a luxury hotel in the town of Foum Zguid. Swimming pool and bar facilities.
Total distance: 220 km
Day 2: Foum Zguid to Tata
The start of 3 days of desert riding that takes us from the desert down the Morocco’s Atlantic coast.
Fast and flowing tracks take us South, until we arrive at the Draa river bed, which we follow westward.
Some flat plains enable us to enjoy high-speed riding for much of the day, with occasional halts as we pass through some of the military check points that indicate our close proximity to Morocco’s Southern border.
A picnic lunch en route. Swimming pool and bar facilities.
Total distance: 240 km
Day 3: Tata to Assa
Continuing in a south-westerly direction, we follow the direction of the Draa river as it heads towards the coast.
Some very enjoyable, little used tracks. Fast and flowing, with some sandy sections. A detour in the afternoon takes us along a palmtree lined desert canyon where there are Neolithic rock paintings.
Again, a picnic “on the road” for lunch. Bar facilities but no swimming pool.
Total distance: 240 km
Day 4: Assa to Tafnidilt
A short tarmac stretch to start the day takes us to the end of the tarmac road in this lightly-populated area of the country. We'll pass through our final “check point” of the tour as we leave Torkoz, before we head due East across the rocky flood plains of the Anti Atlas mountains. We cross two mountain passes, before an afternoon drink stop at the impressive deserted Foreign Legion fort of El Aiyoun du Draa. A further hour off-road brings us out onto the Tan-Tan road, just North of the Draa river.
Due to these tracks being lightly used by tourist traffic, many of the tracks we cover are poorly maintained, requiring a high level of concentration.
A picnic lunch and bar facilities and a swimming pool in the evening.
Total distance: 250 km
Day 5: Tafnidilt to Mirleft
We experience our last taste of the desert this morning as our first piste brings us out to the Atlantic coast. We'll follow a rugged coastal track for the rest of the morning which brings us to our lunch stop at the former French Foreign Legion fort-turned-auberge, Fort BouJerif. Our afternoon track will lead us down onto the beach where we'll ride past 2 rusting ship-wrecks. We continue northward up the coast to the small town of Mirleft where we'll enjoy the night at a popular surfer and biker auberge overlooking the Atlantic ocean. We'll arrive in plenty of time to enjoy the sunset over the waves.
Total distance: 220 km
Day 6: Mirleft to Ouled Berhil
After a short tarmac liason, we'll continue northward up the Atlantic coast on a spectacular piste that combines sand and scenery. Be sure to have your camera ready! After a picnic lunch, we'll head in-land following twisty, sandy pistes. We'll make good use of the GPS to make sure we find our way through the maze of criss-crossing tracks. We'll spend the night in a restored Kasbah that once belonged to the Pacha of Ouled Berhil. Bar and swimming pool.
Total distance: 260 km
Day 7: Ouled Berhil to Marrakech
Our final day of riding will be one of the most spectacular as we climb up and over the High Atlas mountains. The morning piste includes twisty mountain tracks that take us to an altitude of 2400 metres. A steep descent follows on the other side which will bring us down past an abandoned French gold mine. We'll enjoy a delicious tajine lunch at a small Berber inn. A twisty tarmac liaison to start the afternoon will allow you to try out your supermoto skills as we follow a river valley down to the start of our final piste. The last piste of the tour takes us up on top of the Plateau de Kik, and then down into Marrakech. Everyone will feel a great sense of achievement as we enjoy our final dinner together at a 3-star hotel in downtown Marrakech. Bar and swimming pool.
Total distance: 220 km
Depart from Marrakech