High Atlas charity trek, Morocco
| country: | Morocco |
| location: | Atlas Mountains |
| departures: | 2008: 9 Jul, 27 Aug |
| price: | From £145 deposit + £1375 fundraised (55% to charity) (6 days) including flights from the UK. Self funders pay £145 deposit + £719 including flights from the UK & £100 donation to chosen charity. This trip can also be booked without flights |
the amazing things you'll be doing
Choose to support one of your favourite charities or travel on one of our selected charity departures. This challenge offers a tough, yet incredibly rewarding trek combining unforgettable mountain scenery with the splendour and colour of Morocco and its traditional people, the Berbers.
Highlights include:
Breathtaking views, trekking at high altitude Daunting peaks scattered with Berber villages Summit Jebel Toubkal, Morocco's highest mountain Explore the souks of Marrakech
Morocco is a country full of mysticism and mythology, a diverse and spectacular land. In the midst of it all lies the High Atlas mountain range, home to Jebel Toubkal one of the tallest peaks in North Africa, standing at 4,167m. Reaching the summit of this awesome mountain signifies the peak of your long weekend trek. You will navigate your way, climbing and scrambling over huge, obstructive boulders and loose rock.
Trekking will be for 5 to 8 hours each day and will be strenuous yet incredibly rewarding as you trek through peaks scattered with remote Berber villages. A good degree of fitness will be required for this trip, however there is no technical climbing involved. The weather is unpredictable and can make the going very difficult.
The challenge ends in the vibrant city of Marrakech, where the southern tribesmen and Berber villagers bring their goods to the souks, providing plenty of excitement.
Please note: Some of the dates are exclusive for specific charities, please contact us for details.
Highlights include:
Morocco is a country full of mysticism and mythology, a diverse and spectacular land. In the midst of it all lies the High Atlas mountain range, home to Jebel Toubkal one of the tallest peaks in North Africa, standing at 4,167m. Reaching the summit of this awesome mountain signifies the peak of your long weekend trek. You will navigate your way, climbing and scrambling over huge, obstructive boulders and loose rock.
Trekking will be for 5 to 8 hours each day and will be strenuous yet incredibly rewarding as you trek through peaks scattered with remote Berber villages. A good degree of fitness will be required for this trip, however there is no technical climbing involved. The weather is unpredictable and can make the going very difficult.
The challenge ends in the vibrant city of Marrakech, where the southern tribesmen and Berber villagers bring their goods to the souks, providing plenty of excitement.
Please note: Some of the dates are exclusive for specific charities, please contact us for details.
day-by-day itinerary
| Day 1: | Fly from London to Marrakech and meet your local guide. |
| Day 2: | Drive to the Atlas village of Imlil and trek to Neltner Refuge (1,600m). |
| Day 3: | Head for the summit of Mount Toubkal (4,167m), north Africa's highest peak, with your mountain guides, stopping to enjoy the stunning views along the way. |
| Day 4: | Easy descent to Chamarouch (2,310m) then on to Imlil, before rejoining the vehicle back to Marrakech, where you have the remainder of the day free for shopping, sightseeing or relaxing. |
| Day 5: | Guided bus tour of Marrakech and celebration meal this evening. |
| Day 6: | Transfer back to the airport for your flight back to the UK. |
Highly Commended
This tourism business was Highly Commended in our 2007 Virgin Holidays Responsible Tourism Awards - the largest awards of their kind in the world, and organised by responsibletravel.com in association with The Times, World Travel Market and Geographical Magazine, of the Royal Geographical Society.Since 2004, the Awards has recognised individuals, companies and organisations in travel making a big commitment to the culture and economies of local communities and helping to conserve biodiversity.
how this holiday makes a difference
 Our Responsible Tourism commitment extends to helping the local communities we visit. We employ local guides, porters and other essential support staff, and where possible use locally owned accommodation. We donate approximately USD$500 per trek to the SOS Children’s Village in Morocco. Hermann Gmeiner's idea of giving a home and a family to orphaned and abandoned children was realised when the first SOS Children's Village in the country went into operation, 40kms south of Marrakech in 1985. Now the SOS organisation has facilities throughout the world. SOS Children's Village mothers and co-workers have been trained in SOS Vocational Training and care for children at Kindergarten, children and young people at Middle school and older ages who may not be able to afford to go to school, are orphans, have special needs or learning difficulties. The children learn how to work with nature and its resources by working in the fruit and vegetable gardens belonging to the SOS Children's Villages and by tending livestock. Young girls and women are also given the opportunity to learn a profession such as weaving or confectionary as well as have access to mother and child counselling. |
Tourism can be good and bad for destinations & local people. We carefully screen every holiday against our criteria for responsible travel. 'Look behind the brochure' to find how each holiday makes a difference (see left). We don't claim to be perfect - there is no global accreditation - but we've lead the way since 2001 and screened 1000's of holidays. We invite every traveller to write a review about their experiences and responsible tourism. This valuable feedback is sent to the people who run the holidays. We keep a very close eye on it and take off holidays that don't live up to our standards. |