Tour overview
Five days across the High Atlas and the eastern Anti-Atlas to the trilobite country of Alnif, the Devonian reefs around Erg Chebbi and the fossil workshops of Erfoud, with a geologist at your side. The tour is private and led by a professional Moroccan geologist with 16 years of field experience in mineral exploration: every stop comes with clear explanations, whether you are a specialist or simply curious about the landscapes.
Day-by-day itinerary
- Day 1
Marrakech → Dades Valley
Cross the High Atlas by the Tizi n'Tichka pass and read the mountain range as a story: Precambrian basement, Paleozoic sediments and the Mesozoic cover folded during the Alpine uplift. Stop at Ait Ben Haddou, then follow the Ouarzazate basin to the Dades Valley.
- Day 2
Dades & Todra gorges → Alnif
Morning in the Dades gorges among Jurassic limestones and red continental beds. Walk into the Todra gorge, a narrow canyon cut through massive limestone, and discuss river incision and uplift. Continue east to Alnif.
- Day 3
Alnif: trilobite country
A full day around Alnif, one of the world's best-known trilobite areas. Visit Paleozoic outcrops and local fossil workshops, see how specimens are extracted and prepared, and learn to tell genuine fossils from reconstructions. Afternoon drive to Merzouga and night at a desert camp.
- Day 4
Merzouga, Erg Chebbi & the Devonian
Sunrise on Erg Chebbi and an explanation of how the dunes form and move. Explore Devonian limestone outcrops rich in ammonoids and reef fossils around the erg, with views towards the Kem Kem escarpment and its Cretaceous beds.
- Day 5
Erfoud → Marrakech
Visit an orthoceras and goniatite marble workshop in Erfoud and the Devonian mud mounds of the area, then the long scenic drive back to Marrakech through the Todra and Ouarzazate.
The itinerary can be adapted to your interests (fossils, minerals, structural geology, landscapes) and to university field-trip programmes. Collecting and exporting fossils and minerals is regulated in Morocco. We visit established workshops and help you buy responsibly, with proper paperwork.
What's included
Included
- Private 4×4 or air-conditioned vehicle with driver
- Hotel, riad, kasbah or desert camp accommodation
- Daily breakfast and dinner
- Field explanations at every stop
- Bottled water on board
- Geologist guide for the whole tour
- Visits to fossil workshops
- 1 night in a desert camp
Not included
- International flights
- Lunches and drinks
- Museum and site entrance fees
- Fossils or minerals you choose to buy
- Tips and travel insurance