Toubkal & 4000m peaks
in the High Atlas Mountains

If you are looking to climb only Toubkal (in e.g. 3-4 days),
then please go to our Private / Customised Trip page.

Fitness / experience required
Trip is mostly on trackless ground with boulder/rock and scree covered terrain being common on some days. General average days around 6-7 hours per day. 

Basically - a fitness ability to trek and climb for the week (which will of course be scheduled to allow for proper rests and time to enjoy the mountains to their maximum!) and wilderness camp is required. You should be confident on rough ground and enjoy scrambling! This trip will be supported by mules (to carry your gear and food) and their associated drivers - thereby ensuring you're not carrying all your gear - all you will only need is to carry a light daypack at the very most.

Accommodation
We will be starting and finishing the trip in a comfortable hotel in either the ancient "souk" (market) town of Taroudant OR Marrakech (depending on your flight arrangements and whether you opt to fly into Agadir for Taroudant or Marrakech).  During the trip we will be staying in a mixture of Berber village houses, a CAF refuge and our quality expedition tents.  Sharing rooms and tents with others in the group is the norm.  If you are coming on your own, then single accommodation in the hotel (only) can be arranged for you at no additional cost. 

Food on the trip
Morocco is said to have one of the finest cuisines in the world - our cooks pride themselves in their cooking, and ensure that all the food on the trek is freshly prepared using local ingredients and that there is plenty for everyone. A typical menu on this trip would be:
Breakfast: Fresh bread with cheese, apricot jam, margarine, fried eggs, tea, coffee and hot milk.
Lunch: A light lunch consisting of mixed salad, tinned cold fish or meat, bread and cheese, followed by fresh local fruit.
Dinner: The evening meal is always a hot meal and is different every night - traditional Moroccan cuisine of Tajine or couscous with meat and vegetables or the occasional pasta meal. This is followed by fresh fruit and the famous mint tea.!

Trip itinerary
The morning after you fly into Morocco will see us heading for the High Atlas village of Tissaldai on the south side of the main watershed of this range. From here we will begin our journey into the mountains.   For the next 5-6 days, we will be travelling around the Toubkal area and summitting some of the high 3000m and 4000m peaks in this region. We will be finishing off the trip by climbing the highest peak in North Africa - Toubkal at over 4100m's.  Our routes go to areas and traverse high ridges that are seldom done by other groups and so we will be avoiding the main "highway" up Toubkal from Imlil to Neltner!  At the end of the trip, we will return back to Taroudant or Marrakech for the last night and some last minute shopping and exploring the souks before our flight back the following day.

Kit List / Clothes / Weather etc
As per list supplied - normal walking and camping equipment. (We supply all the tents, stoves / cooking implements etc). Items are specified in the kit list which is sent to you on receipt of booking fee.
The weather should be warm (but not too hot) during the day with cool evenings and cold nights. Walkers should realise however that weather in the high mountains is unpredictable and should be prepared for this. 

Environmental / Health
All our guides are qualified in remote and wilderness first aid and always carry a fully equipped first aid kit for serious medical emergencies. However this is not a general dispensary (!) - walkers should bring their own supplies of plaster, blister prevention pads, paracetmol etc. and any medication they are on. There are no compulsory vaccinations for Morocco but, as always, you should keep Hep A, Tetanus, Polio, Typhoid and possibly rabies up to date. Consult your GP or a vaccine specialist for professional advice. The most common complaint can be diarrhea which can be caused simply by a change of diet or more likely your poor hygiene standards. Non spring bottled water should never be drunk without first sterilising with iodine tablets or by boiling.

Money Matters / Currency / Visas / Language
Our price for this week-long trip includes hotel accommodation either end of the trip in either Taroudant OR Marrakech (depending on your flights), all food throughout (except meals (breakfast is included) whilst in your starting city either end of the trip), all transport costs associated with the official trip itinerary (e.g. buses, jeeps, hire of mules etc), professional guiding services and hire of trek equipment (as required - e.g. stoves, tents etc) for the duration of the trek. The additional costs for you therefore would be flights, airport transfers, insurance, personal spending, drinks etc.
Visas for entry into Morocco are not required by nationals of Ireland, the U.K, U.S.A, Canada, Australia, New Zealand and most E.U countries.
The currency in Morocco is the dirham (dh). There are about 10.5 dh to the €. Impossible to get dirham outside of Morocco - therefore take € Euros (preferably) or US$ and exchange over there.
Language is Arabic / Berber but French is also understood / spoken widely. Little or no English spoken / understood.
Time difference = GMT all year.

Insurance
We ask you to effect individual holiday insurance against travel delays, loss of baggage and money, mountain rescue & medical expenses, personal accident and any cancellation costs. You should note that there are no official mountain rescue services in Morocco and that any evacuation in the event of a serious medical emergency to the nearest hospital will be by land as opposed to helicopter.  
We will require documentary evidence of your insurance prior to departure.  

Trip Ethos
A small group (6 persons maximum), personally led by one of our guides whose job it is to ensure that you have a quality mountaineering week summitting high 3000m & 4000m peaks in the High Atlas Mountains in good company - it’s that simple! 

Travel
We do not generally include the cost of the return travel to/from the starting point of the trip in our prices. This is to allow for greater individual flexibility and potential economy in travel arrangements. We always however recommend and suggest the various alternatives for travelling to your chosen destination and can of course provide you with train / bus / plane timetables to suit as required.

The most realistic airports in Morocco for this trip are either Agadir for starting the trip in Taroudant or Marrakech.  There is a charter flight from Dublin to Agadir direct every Saturday through Sunway Travel. Generally seat only tickets are available without much trouble.  (Late availability deals seldom apply to peak holiday breaks such as Christmas / New Year and Easter)
Scheduled flights are best had with Atlas-Blue.Com; RoyalAirMaroc.Com or British Airways (BA.Com) who offer a good service from Gatwick, Heathrow and most major cities in Europe to Agadir and Marrakech daily.
For those with time on their hands, another very attractive way of seeing the country is to get a cheap flight to Malaga in southern Spain, get the ferry across the Straits of Gibraltar and overland it (train mainly) to Marrakech and then onto Taroudant.

www.nomadicmorocco.com