Our Story – About Wild Morocco
Born from a Love of Wild Places
Wild Morocco began as a passion project back in 2012 — and in many ways, it still is. We’ve always been drawn to the outdoors and wide, open landscapes, and when I first visited the Moroccan desert, it left a lasting mark. I never really left.
Before discovering the Sahara, I spent time trekking in Morocco’s mountains — places that remain remarkably untouched, where time seems to have stood still. But it was the vast silence, raw beauty, and spirit of the desert that changed everything. As I often write, Morocco offers it all in one captivating package: mountains, coast, desert, and ancient cities.
The People Who Make It Possible
At the heart of everything we do are the people we work with — our local guides, drivers, and hosts. This community brings every journey to life and ensures our guests are welcomed and cared for every step of the way. Moroccan hospitality is world-renowned, and it’s something we’re all incredibly proud to share.
From Camel Caravans to Custom Journeys
Wild Morocco first began by offering remote, multi-day desert treks with wild camping and traditional camel caravans — where camels carry all the gear and travellers sleep beneath the stars.
From there, we expanded into vehicle-based tours, running round-trips from Morocco’s main cities down to the desert and southern oases. Later came our own fixed desert camp — a comfortable glampsite tucked among the Erg Chigaga dunes — and a growing range of special interest tours, including photography and wildlife/bird-watching trips, all inspired by the desert.
Our Expertise: Reading the Land and the Light
Our expertise lies in understanding the rhythms of the desert — the shifting light and shadow that make for perfect photography, the seasons of bird migration and wildlife activity, and the art of choosing the best wilderness camp locations to take guests truly off the beaten track.
This knowledge comes from both lived experience and years spent exploring our desert backyard. We’ve come to know Morocco intimately, and for most of our guests, the Sahara desert remains the highlight.
A Deep Connection to the Desert
Our aim is to share just how diverse and beautiful this region really is. The Sahara is far from barren; it’s alive with resilient flora, fascinating wildlife, and subtle colours that shift with every hour of the day. It’s a landscape that continually surprises, inspires, and reminds us why Wild Morocco began in the first place.
About Wild Morocco
Tailored Tours
Wild Morocco is a registered Amazigh-Anglo operator organising private tailor-made Morocco tours and activity holidays in Morocco, including photography holidays. We specialise in unique Moroccan travel experiences in the Sahara Desert, connecting you with nature through desert hiking and camping in Morocco’s unique outdoors. Read about our purpose-driven travel goals below.
Explore Morocco with local guides and discover our best-selling Morocco tours in the Sahara Desert with a range of guided 4×4 trips starting from Marrakech, the North or the Coast (or optional self-drive packages on demand). Experience the Sahara in as little as 3 or 4 days excursion. We offer the chance to hike in Morocco’s vast Iriqui National Park, with wilderness camps in the seclusion of isolated dunes.
Enjoy a variety of desert camping options in Morocco, at the Erg Chigaga dunes and the Erg Chebbi dunes; from glamping sites, or en-suite tents, to mobile wilderness camps that will truly take you off-grid.
Whatever your interest or your reason to explore Morocco, please take inspiration for your Morocco tours from our site and get in touch.
Travel With Purpose
Our team is the last generation to have grown up as children in the desert, previously practising a way of life that was unchanged in centuries. Our parents kept farms and livestock in the desert when water was freely available. That way of life became untenable more than three decades ago when the river to this region (Draa) was dammed near its source and the desert encroached on farmland.
Our responsible travel goals, purpose-driven, aim to support a very poor region of Morocco, educate visitors on the nomadic way of life, and care for our very fragile desert environment.
Community
Supporting Local Communities in Mhamid El Ghizlane Through Ethical Tourism
We aim to support a poor region of Morocco through providing work to the main breadwinners of large families.
Tourism is the mainstay in this region of Morocco. Young people normally have to move away from the local village (Mhamid El Ghizlane) to find work elsewhere.
However, we aim to put local knowledge and skills to work locally through employing local guides, local cooks, local camel-handlers and local drivers. Young men who are often the main breadwinners of their extended families will be the source of funding all living costs for three generations of their families.
Employing local men ensures that they in turn benefit their own community by contributing money there.
We garner loyalty from our team through fair and equal treatment, including recognition for hard work.
We buy all of our food from local shopkeepers. Fruit and vegetables are seasonal only.
We donate to animal welfare charities.
Environment
Eco-Friendly Desert Hiking in Morocco: Sustainable Travel Practices
- We aim to care for our very fragile environment and show visitors the beauty of the desert wilderness.
- Having grown up in this region of the desert we are acutely aware of the scarcity of water.
- We only transport enough water on our desert hikes for food preparation and hand-washing. We do not transport water for ‘showering’ which is non essential for responsible travel. We don’t encourage desert hiking trips longer than 6 days, again to conserve water.
- We customise desert hiking on a private basis, and certainly for group sizes no larger than 16. Most of our hiking trips are arranged for couples and individuals who want peace and quiet.
- We encourage our visitors to collect litter whenever they find it in the desert, as we instruct our local guides and camel-handlers to do so.
- We ask that our visitors take their litter out of the desert with them or hand it over to their guide who will bring it out of the desert.
- We do not encourage the rental of quad biking which is harmful to the environment.
- We offer our visitors information on the flora and fauna of the desert environment in the Iriqui National Park before they visit the region.
- We encourage our visitors to travel by public bus to the desert frontier. ctma.ma
- We encourage our visitors to visit Jarjeer Mules and/or SPANA if they are staying in Marrakech.
- We reuse paper and recycle card/plastic in the office. We do not produce printed brochures.
Social
Authentic Nomadic Experiences in Morocco: Discover the Nomadic Way of Life
We aim to offer authentic Moroccan adventures, simple experiences which are unique to this part of the world. We aim to educate visitors on the nomadic way of life.
Please refer to the introduction on our background. We are passionate about sharing our nomadic background and desert experience with our visitors. The majority of our team are indigenous Amazigh, or Sahrawi (whose forebears migrated from much further south). The local guide will act as a bridge between the visitors and the cook and camel-handler.
During Sahara Desert trekking, our team wear traditional dress and we give our visitors each a desert turban to protect from the sun/wind when hiking.
Examples of the nomadic experiences we offer – walking for several hours each day accompanied by a camel caravan; preparing tea on the campfire; preparing sand-bread in the embers of the fire; singing traditional songs in the evening at camp; using the stars to navigate.
We provide detailed Frequently Asked Questions pages to visitors once they confirm a desert trip. We promote responsible travel/packing tips.
We encourage our visitors to visit one of the remaining ‘Ksar’ (series of earth-built dwellings) at Mhamid, on the Draa Valley. It is possible to visit a local family and take tea with them in their home, if so our guide will offer a small donation to the family.
Our Tours Are Different
Unique adventures
We’re passionate about crafting unique adventures that highlight the country’s rich cultural heritage and remarkable landscapes. Get to know us!
We’re thrilled that Lonely Planet has listed us for ten years (since the print edition of 2014). After we opened our desert camp in 2017, Lonely Planet included it (see Camp Al Koutban).
The Telegraph featured our seven-day trek from Marrakesh through the Sahara desert (in 2024, ‘Why this is the year you should discover Morocco – and 30 ways to do it’). We are also listed with Horizon Guides where we give a flavour of what to expect in the unique Iriqui National Park and desert hiking.
Our Close-knit Team of Guides
We work alongside the most trusted and respected guides, drivers and support team, who are long-standing colleagues and friends, more akin to family. Our collective aim is to give you an unforgettable holiday that will have you talking about Morocco for years to come, and will hopefully bring you back!
Ready to discover your Morocco?
Let us help you plan a journey that’s as unique as you are — from desert dunes to mountain passes. Get in touch today to start creating your Wild Morocco adventure.