Off-Road 5 Day Tour: High Peaks and Desert

Six nights from Ouarzazate through the Jebel Saghro to Erg Chebbi, guided, five days of riding on a KTM 450 or in a buggy.

This is the version for riders who want an even split rather than a weighting: rocky mountain trail, a great deal of sand, and the tallest dunes in Morocco at Erg Chebbi, which reach 205 metres.

Ouarzazate opens it, reached directly or by minibus over the Tizi n’Tichka. Dades comes first, up the gorge that cuts back into the High Atlas, then Merzouga at the edge of Erg Chebbi, where the dune ascent is attempted. Ouzina follows with its hilltop riad above the sand, then N’Kob and the return to Ouarzazate. The terrain across the week takes in fast tracks over dried lake beds, sandy river beds and trails, muddy rivers that sometimes still run, and the Jebel Saghro range, an austere lunar massif with its own formation the operator calls Monument Valley. The buggies can join the whole route, which keeps it open to anyone who would rather not ride.

The KTM 450 EXC or a buggy, third-party insurance, all the fuel, GPS on every vehicle, airport transfers, twin-shared half-board accommodation, picnic or cafe lunches, drinking water in the support vehicle and a support truck with driver and mechanic are all included; flights, medical insurance with repatriation, gear and a returnable deposit of €700 for the bike or €2,000 for the buggy are not. Accommodation runs from three-star auberges to kasbah-style hotels, with one night in a genuine kasbah over two hundred years old. September to May is the season, and a full biking licence is required.