The Berber Villages Sketchbook – 6 Days: Atlas Valleys & Earthen Kasbahs
- Private vehicle & driver — Pick-up at your riad, pace set by you
- Local licensed guide — Licensed guide nº2898 · since 2011
- Book on WhatsApp — Reply within 1 hour · no payment at this stage
- Two nights in the Imlil valley — gîtes, walnut shade, Toubkal overhead
- A mule to carry the art bag on valley days
- Ouirgane's red-earth country and a night among its olives
The Berber Villages Sketchbook is a 6-day private drawing journey through the High Atlas, from €900 per person — two gîte nights in the Imlil valley, one among Ouirgane’s olives and two at Telouet beside the Ounila valley, half-board, with a local guide on walking days and a mule to carry the art bag. It is the slowest route we run, by design: the sketchbook sets the pace, subjects sit at walking distance from every bed — terraced fields, pisé hamlets, the Glaoui kasbah’s painted salons — and lunches happen at family tables that get drawn as often as eaten. No tutor and no demonstrations: a trip for people who already draw, and for photographers of the patient kind. Telouet and the Ounila deliver the earthen architecture sketchers cross the world for, with almost nobody else in the frame. Written quote, gîtes named, within the hour on WhatsApp.
| Duration | 6 Days |
| Price | From €900 per person — car, driver and accommodation included |
| Departures | Your dates — every departure is private, never a shared group |
| Languages | English- and French-speaking driver-guides; licensed city guides where included |
| Booking | WhatsApp +212 661 454 738 — written quote within 1 hour, no payment at this stage |
The route’s secret is its geometry: it takes the Atlas at village scale, linking three valley systems the highway versions only glimpse — Aït Mizan’s walnut terraces, Ouirgane’s red-earth olives, the Ounila’s saffron cliffs — so every day changes palette without ever changing pace.
Against our other formats: the trekking itineraries climb; this one sits still and draws. The 12-day Artisans tour teaches crafts in workshops; this one records villages on paper. Pair them and you have Morocco by hand, twice over.
- Two nights in the Imlil valley — gîtes, walnut shade, Toubkal overhead
- A mule to carry the art bag on valley days
- Ouirgane's red-earth country and a night among its olives
- Two nights at Telouet and the Ounila valley — pisé kasbahs, almost no tourists
- Lunches at family tables, drawn as often as eaten
- Subjects at walking pace — the sketchbook sets the speed
Itinerary
Open a day to see the detail: transport, accommodation, meals and activity time.
Day 1 Marrakech to the Imlil valley
Pickup and the short climb to Imlil, with the first sketch stop usually forced by the Moulay Brahim gorge. The gîte sits among walnut trees; the afternoon is the valley's first pages, the evening a Berber table.
Day 2 Imlil: the valley on foot
A full drawing day at walking pace: irrigation channels, stacked pisé hamlets, Toubkal's wall for backdrop — with a local guide who knows which rooftops welcome sketchers and a mule that carries everything but the pencil.
Day 3 To Ouirgane, the red-earth country
Over the shoulder of the range to Ouirgane's softer landscape — olive groves, red soil, the Nfis river — and a lodge night among the trees. The light here is warmer; the pages notice before you do.
Day 4 The Tichka to Telouet
The grand crossing, drawn from the viewpoints: the Tizi n'Tichka's switchbacks, then the lonely side road to Telouet, where the Glaoui kasbah's painted salons and crumbling pisé walls are the subject sketchers cross the world for — with almost nobody else in frame.
Day 5 The Ounila valley day
Downstream through the Ounila: fortified granaries, saffron-coloured cliffs, villages the tour buses cannot reach. The day ends back at the guesthouse with the week's richest pages and dinner at the family table.
Day 6 Return over the pass
A last Telouet morning — the kasbah opens early and empty — then the Tichka back to Marrakech by mid-afternoon, flight-compatible, sketchbooks heavier than the luggage.
The slowest route we run, on purpose: the sketchbook sets the pace, the mule carries the bag, and the subjects — terraced fields, pisé villages, the Glaoui kasbah at Telouet with its painted salons — sit at walking distance from every night's bed. No tutor, no demonstrations: a drawing trip for people who already draw, and for the patient kind of photographer. The entire route stays village-scale; the only crowd you will sketch is a market day.
Included in your tour
- Private air-conditioned vehicle with English/French-speaking driver — 6 days
- Pickup and drop-off in Marrakech
- Nights 1-2: Berber gîte in the Imlil valley — half-board
- Night 3: lodge among the olives at Ouirgane — half-board
- Nights 4-5: guesthouse at Telouet / Ounila valley — half-board
- Local mountain guide on valley walking days
- Mule and muleteer for bags on walking stretches
- Village lunches at family tables en route
Not included
- International flights
- Lunches and beverages
- Entrance fees to monuments and historical sites (optional — pay directly)
- Tips for guide and driver
- Personal expenses
- Travel insurance (recommended)
- Art materials (bring your own)
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Questions travellers ask
How much does The Berber Villages Sketchbook – 6 Days: Atlas Valleys & Earthen Kasbahs cost?+
From €900 per person, per person. The price includes private air-conditioned vehicle with english/french-speaking driver — 6 days, pickup and drop-off in marrakech, nights 1-2: berber gîte in the imlil valley — half-board. You receive a written itemised quote before paying anything — no hidden fees.
How long is this tour and when does it depart?+
6 Days, departing on the dates you choose — there is no fixed schedule, because every departure is arranged for you alone.
Is this a group tour or private?+
Fully private: your own vehicle, driver and licensed guide, never seat-in-coach and never mixed with other travellers. The daily pace flexes around you.
How fit do I need to be?+
Our walking days come in honest grades: valley and village walks (2–4 hours, anyone who walks at home), full hill days (4–5 hours with climbs), and the Toubkal summit (a serious two-day effort at altitude, moderate mountain fitness required). Tell us your real level and the route bends to it.
Who leads the treks?+
Licensed Moroccan mountain guides — it is both the law in Toubkal National Park and the difference between walking through a landscape and understanding it. Mules carry the bags on multi-day treks; you carry a daypack.
What gear do I need to bring?+
Broken-in walking shoes or boots, layers (mountain weather turns fast), sun protection and a refillable bottle. For the Toubkal summit add warm gloves, a hat and a headtorch; in winter we arrange crampons and ice axes locally.
Can I combine a trek with the desert?+
Yes — it is one of our signatures. The 5-day Toubkal & Sahara route summits North Africa's highest peak on day two and puts you on a dune crest by day four; several longer circuits weave shorter hikes between the desert and the coast.
More answers in the “Trekking & the Atlas” chapter of our Travel FAQ →
Itinerary and prices last updated October 2026.
