Dates: November 8 - 17, 2007
Price £1295 (land only in Morocco)

David Simchock, specialist travel photographer, teams up with us for this 10-day photography tour, beginnning in Marrakesh, renowned for its vibrant square and covered markets (the "souks"), then on to one of the world's most famous landscapes -- the Sahara.

To see David’s work and a gallery of photo’s taken whilst on tour with Equatorial Travel visit www.vagabondvistas.com

Learn David's "tricks of the trade" while being entertained by our local guides and welcomed by the warmth of the Moroccan people.

This tour / workshop is not recommended for "beginner" photographers, but is perfectly suitable for those who are hobbyists / enthusiasts, through to intermediate level. Instruction will be geared toward 35mm digital camera users.

Join David and Equatorial Travel for this special tour. To register, please contact us:

Tour open to only six clients – register now!

Brief itinerary

Day 1 meet or arrive Marrakech - tour starts with evening meet and greet

On your arrival at Marrakech airport you are transferred to your riad. Depending on your time of arrival the day is spent independently exploring. In the evening there will be a meet and greet session where Brahim and David will outline the programme for the tour.

Days 2 and 3 Marrakech

Now a fascinating blend of the old world and the new, Marrakech has over the last few years developed rapidly as a major tourist centre and also an economic centre.

The medina or old walled part of the city is a famous for its maze like souks (covered market) and the Djem-el-fnaa, the central plaza which every nights hosts a food market and is home to a plethora of street entertainers. Recently designated a UNESCO world cultural heritage site this area of Marrakech is vibrant in colour and life and a travel photographers dream.

So how do you get beyond the ordinary tourist snapshot and move on. The first two days of the tour will be an exploration of city photography as a well as an introduction to Moroccan culture. Rather than visit the “sights” the tour will be more of an ad hoc visit through the bustling streets of the medina.

Day 4 to Zagora – travel day

Leaving Marrakech early the majority of the day is spent travelling to Zagora. Your journey takes you across the lowlands and up into the Atlas Mountains, across the stunning "Tizi-n-Tichka" high pass (2545m) and then down towards Ouarzazate.

From there it is a downhill drive across the Anti Atlas mountains and a descent to the desert along the beautiful Draa valley, a snake like oasis following the River Draa, filled with palmeries, olive groves and Kasbahs. The journey ends at the end of the "valley of a thousand Kasbahs" in Zagora.

Along the route there will be photographic opportunities but in essence the day is set aside as a travel day.

Day 5 Into the Sahara - Kasbah life in the Valle Du Draa

The day is set aside as an exploration of the Kasbah. The Kasbah is the traditional dwelling of the extended Berber family made from local sandstone.

Life in the Kasbah has remained static over the centuries, the modern world having brought in, as of yet, relatively little change. Brahim your local guide is a specialist region and can give you access to places where no tourists venture. Consequently it is a rare cultural opportunity as well as being of great interest to the travel photographer.

By late afternoon you are transferred into the edge of the Sahara to a desert camp close to the dunes of Erg L’houdi, the first large set of dunes in this part of the Sahara.

Days 6 and 7 Chigaga and nomad encampments

Continuing the Sahara adventure for the next two days you are transferred to the largest swathe of dunes in this part of Morocco called Chigaga meaning the “sea of sand”. Spending two nights gives you the opportunity to experience two sunsets and two dawns, the time of day when the light is conducive to photography in the Sahara.

This area of the Sahara also gives you the opportunity to encounter nomad camps. Mostly semi-nomadic groups who travel between the Sahara and Anti-Atlas mountains this is the region where families are based at this time of year.

Day 8 return to Zagora

Following the early morning workshop around the dunes the day is spent slowly returning to Zagora taking a different route across the Sahara. The afternoon is a chance to freshen up in a hot shower to wash away the desert dust before an early evening visit into the Valle Du Draa for photo opportunities when the light is at its best.

9 to Marrakech - travel day
Return to Marrakech along the same route.

10 home or independent
Transfer to the airport for your flight home or carry on independently. Optional extra days travelling independently could be spent exploring the imperial cities of the north or maybe the Atlantic coast at Essaouira.