1. Marrakech - Agafay Desert - Lalla Takerkoust Lake - Kik Plateau - Berber village (Asni) - Imlil - Toubkal National Park - Marrakech
Your driver is at your Marrakech hotel at 09:00, with a private Toyota Land Cruiser and the air conditioning already running. The road runs southwest through farmland that thins out and turns barren as you come into the Agafay stone desert, with photo stops at the best of the viewpoints, rocky lunar ground in front of you and the Atlas peaks along the horizon. At the Agafay base a camel is waiting, and you ride it for an hour through rocky hills, dry riverbeds and a lot of quiet. From there it is a short run to Lalla Takerkoust, an artificial lake held in the Agafay hills with the mountains behind, worth stopping at for the view.
The road then climbs to the Kik Plateau, a high viewpoint that opens out 360 degrees over the Atlas ranges, the terraced valleys and the Berber villages scattered below. On a clear day the snow-capped peaks run all the way to the horizon. Next a Berber family opens their traditional mountain house to you. Mint tea, brewed fresh, and bread made at home come out on the terrace while your guide translates their stories about mountain life, farming and the seasons. On Saturdays the weekly Berber market at Asni village is added to the day, and locals come to trade spices, handcrafts, livestock and produce.
Imlil comes in the afternoon. At 1,740 m it is the Atlas Mountains' base village and the way into Toubkal National Park, all stone houses and terraced gardens with the Toubkal massif filling the skyline. Your local mountain guide is waiting here. The walk that follows lasts one to two hours through the Toubkal Valley, past terraced walnut groves, mountain streams, small hamlets and waterfalls under the peaks. The path is well-worn, the pace is set to suit you, and the difficulty is easy to moderate with nothing to climb or scramble. Afterwards it is a Berber home in Imlil for lunch, three courses: Moroccan salad, then tagine or couscous, then fresh fruit and mint tea. It is eaten on a terrace over the valley, Mount Toubkal behind all of it.
The drive home takes a different road, by way of the Moulay Brahim Gorge and Asni village, and runs about 1.5 hours. You are back at your hotel by 17:00, after roughly 8 hours out.