land arrangements for this tour
booking conditions
This tour is organised and led by Steve Davey | The land arrangements are sub-contracted to Intrepid Travel, but the tours don't appear on the Intrepid Travel website | The only way to book is through this site! | ||
![]() | ![]() | ![]() |
Morocco is a fascinating and colourful country, with some tremendous scenery and a number of ancient and evocative sites. We have run the Impressions of Morocco trip a number of times, but in response to a number of people who have indicated that they would favour a shorter trip, we have developed this ten day itinerary.
We have timed this itineracy to visit some of the most photogenic, and relaxed places in the country. Although this does involve some long journeys, they are through atmospheric scenery and the rewards are well worth it. Ait Benhaddou looks like it could be a film set - and in fact has been used as one many times! Armed, a remote mountain village, gives you an incredible insight into traditional lives of the Berber people. We also pass through a couple of ancient Gorges as well as spending a night amidst the dunes of the Sahara Desert. No visit to Morocco would be complete without a walk through the craziest square on earth: the Djemaa el Fna in the centre of Marrakech.
The trip will include extensive photography tuition from professional travel photographer, Steve Davey, countless photo opportunities and the company of fellow photography enthusiasts.
We start off in Marrakech: arguably the most exotic and rewarding city in Morocco. This is only a quick visit though as we will return at the end of the itinerary.
From Marrakech we drive to the Dades, and Todra Gorges. This is the territory of the Berber people, and we will visit the small Berber village of Todra at the end of an atmospherically deep and narrow gorge.
A long drive takes us into stunning sand dunes in the vast Sahara Desert, where we will stay in a comfortable camp under the stars. This is an amazing experience, and a good chance to shoot star trails in the clear desert skies. We will also have the chance to climb a sand dune to see the sunrise!
From the Sahara, we drive back to the town of Ouarzazate at the heart of the Moroccan film industry, home to the famous Atlas Film studios. After looking around the town, we continue to the evocative kasbah of Ait Benhaddou. This has been used in a number of productions, including Gladiator and Game of Thrones. At night we have a cooking display, and can test our night photography skills photographing the Kasbah by moonlight.
In the morning we can visit the Kasbah, before embarking on the atmospheric drive through stunning mountain scenery to the Toubkal National Park in the High Atlas Mountains.
In Imlil, I have opted for us to stay at a mountain gite, in an atmospheric village and surrounded by the mountains. Accommodation is on the basic side, but the views of sunrise and sunset in the mountains more than make up for this. In the morning we can explore the village.
From the mountains, we drive to the coast at Essaouria, famed for being the inspiration of the Hendrix song; Castles Made of Sand. A pretty and relaxed town, there are striking city walls, and a pretty harbour with dozens of blue fishing boats. It is predictably a fantastic place for seafood!
We end our odyssey back in Marrakech. We spend two nights here, giving us plenty of time to explore what this incredible place has to offer, including souks, the atmospheric Djemaa el Fna square, exquisite gardens that were once owned by Yves Saint-Laurent and a ruined palace topped by nesting storks.
To keep costs to a minimum, we will need to manage the bookings so that no one is left with a single room, without paying the single supplement. If you are a solo traveller then every effort will be made to ensure that there is someone for you to share with. This has usually always been possible, but if you are flexible about the choice of accommodation when filling out the booking form, then that will give you more chance to secure a place.
We are opening bookings from now, until the 25 November, to give people who are currently travelling the chance to apply to join the trip. We will then decide on the final group to manage the roomings, and by lottery if necessary.
Highlights of this trip
• Djemaa el Fna by night
• A night in the Sahara
• Kasbah of Ait Benhaddou
• Atlas Mountains
• Souks of Marrakech
• Relaxed Essaouria
• Photography tuition
better travel photography•COM
photo tours with steve davey
Website, Images and text © Steve Davey/stevedavey.com 1990 - 2019
This tour is led by Steve Davey - a professional photographer, whose work appears in publications all over the world. He is the author of the bestselling Unforgettable Places To See Before You Die (BBC Books). Steve recently published Footprint Travel Photography (Footprint Books), which covers everything that you would ever want to know about travelling with a camera. Click for more.
Land arrangements are sub-contracted to Intrepid Travel, who have many years experience in running small group adventures.
Bookings are made through the Intrepid Special Groups Dept. in the UK not the Intrepid website or Stores. Use this link for more information
Impressions of Morocco Itinerary
Day 1: Marrakech
Day 2: Boumalne Dades
Day 3: Sahara Desert
Day 4: Ait Benhaddou
Day 5: Armed
Day 6: Essaouria
Day 7: Essaouria
Day 8: Marrakech
Day 9: Marrakech
Day 10: Tour ends
Start: 19 Sept. 2019
End: 28 Sept. 2019
Code: IOMO19
Price: From £1495 pp
excl. flights, based on
Min 8, max 12 people
Places left: 0
(Trip is full)
Trip is confirmed.
Single supplement: £295
Estimated current
flight cost £295