Welcome to Morocco! Today, you arrive in Marrakech and meet your guides at Menara Airport. After collecting baggage and introductions, you will enjoy a sumptuous meal and some rest.

After breakfast, head to Telouet, a small town once noted for both its gold and salt production. This was a principal stop for traders along the route to sub-Saharan Africa, and the powerful Glaoui family who once resided here would charge a toll to anyone passing through. In fact, a stop will be made so that you may visit the Kasbah ruins of the warlord Pasha Glaoui. Upon leaving Telouet, descend from the High Atlas Mountains into Ouarzazate. Once there, you will visit such historical sites as the Taourirt Kasbah of the Pasha of Marrakech, the al-Mansour ed-Dahabi Dam, and the Tifoultout Kasbah on the banks of the nearby river. Spend the night in a comfortable riad in the city.

You leave Ouarzazate after breakfast and travel to Zagora, a major outpost of the edge of the Sahara. Once there, you will prepare for your voyage into the sprawling desert, which begins on all-terrain 4x4 vehicles. Afterwards, continue your journey atop dromedary camels, known as Ships of the Desert, to take in the austere beauty of the landscape and learn about this fascinating environment from your guides. At that time, you may wish to continue your desert stay overnight, with an evening meal cooked over a campfire and a celebration of drums, dance, and song before falling asleep under a blanket of Saharan stars.

Today, leave Zagora and journey on to Tazenackt, an important crossroads of the Moroccan south. In a country of beautiful carpets, every Moroccan knows that some of the best come from Tazenackt. Here, you have a chance to spend a few hours relaxing: take a stroll to stretch your legs, enjoy a slow-paced Moroccan meal, or perhaps bargain for the best price on souvenirs from some of the shops. Afterwards, you continue on to Talaouine, where you will spend the night.

Awake in Talaouine, the saffron capital of Morocco. Today you will have the chance to view demonstrations of saffron harvesting and/or processing, depending on the time of year of your visit. Travel on through the magnificent formations of rose and ochre hued rock in the Atlas Mountains, before arriving at Taradount. Take a short stroll through the town to familiarize yourself with the scenery and admire the well-preserved city walls that still stand after several hundred years.

Journey today to the charming southern town of Tiznit, where you have the morning free to explore on your own. Perhaps you will visit the jeweler’s souk in the medina, or stop by the Great Mosque, where Ahmed al-Hiba was pronounced sultan in 1912. After lunch, head to Tafroute. Many beautiful rock formations surround this town, and many boast clever names that attempt to describe their shape: The Gazelle, The Finger, and most famously, Napoleon’s Hat. Tafroute is also known throughout Morocco as the premiere location for top-quality babouche, the leather slippers of every Moroccan owns. If you fancy yourself a pair, this is the place to get a pair of 'Berber Adidas.'

After breakfast, travel to the seaside city of Agadir. Destroyed by a Leap Year’s Day earthquake in 1960, the city was nearly entirely rebuilt, and was done so in the European style. Therefore, there is no old-town medina in Agadir as there is in other Moroccan cities, but what Agadir lacks in that department, it more than makes up for in its beaches. This area is known the world-over for surfing and windsurfing enthusiasts alike, and in a country where the sun shines 300 days a year, the best place to catch some rays are the beaches of Agadir.

This morning is free time to spend as you wish, perhaps strolling along the beach one last time before heading on after lunch to Essaouira. Once only a fortress along the sea, Essaouira was expanded into a full-grown city in the 17th century, and has since built its reputation as a peaceful, seaside oasis. Musicians, artists, and surfers make the pilgrimage to Essaouira every year, yet the tourist trade hasn’t yet discovered this coastal gem, making many visitors feel as though they’ve stumbled onto Morocco’s best-kept secret.

Today, continue your exploration of Essaouira. It is not hard to understand why artists flock here, as Essaouira is home to numerous small workshops that produce nearly every type of craft available: leather goods, jewelry, lamps and teapots, embroidery, ceramics and pottery, paintings, and above all, carved and inlaid boxes of polished thuya wood, available nowhere else but Morocco. The old ramparts built by the Portuguese are a favorite place for stray cats to congregate, as they amusingly wait for the fishermen on the docks to accidently drop one of their catch. The cats have a point, after all, as Essaouira is undoubtedly one of the best places for seafood.

This morning, depart for the Pearl of the South, the imperial city of Marrakech. Here, you will spend some time on a guided tour, seeing such sites as the Saadian tombs, the Ben Youssef Mederssa, and of course, the ever-bustling main square known as Djmaa el Fna. Enjoy your evening meal here, and be entertained by legions of magicians, snake charmers, storytellers, acrobats, musicians, and artists.

Your adventure draws to a close! Today you head back to the airport to check-in for your flight home.