Climb Mount Toubkal (4167m) and Sleep in the Sahara

Absolutely! We recognize that you may want to leave some of the gear you bring to Morocco somewhere safe before you start your ascent of Toubkal. When you reach Imlil, you will be able to leave any non-essential items you don’t want to take up on the hike with you at your local guides base there.

Your host works with muleteers who collaborate with the local charity Spana (The Society for the Protection of Animals and Nature) on the AMI program (Aid to the Mules of Imlil). The charity provides training, guidance, and incentives to mule owners to encourage and support good care for their animals in all aspects of their working lives. The program also runs a monthly clinic, offering free veterinary care for the animals and distributing humane tack.

Ramadan is an Islamic festival where the religious do not eat or drink during daylight hours. While this is a really interesting time to travel, especially to witness celebrations where the fast is broken in the evenings, you can expect some business hours will be shortened, alcohol is not permitted during daylight hours, and some restaurants will be closed during this festival period. Activities for local people tend to be limited during the day, and the nights are very active in cities with lots of different foods being sold and consumed. Ramadan will not affect the inclusions on your trip, although you should be aware that dinners will be served after locals break their fast in the evenings.

As Ramadan follows the lunar calendar, the dates change from year to year. We recommend checking whether your chosen trip dates fall during this period.

At Much Better Adventures, we work hard to accommodate dietary requirements and allergies so your trip is safe, inclusive and enjoyable. That said, options can vary by country, location and accommodation, and in some places options may be limited or unavailable. The information below has been provided by your host so you’re fully informed about what will be possible on your trip depending on your individual requirements. This information should be read carefully prior to your trip to ensure that you are adequately prepared for the situation ‘on the ground’.

Once you have booked on your trip, please fill out your passenger information form asap with any dietary requirements. Once you complete your passenger information, your dietary needs and any allergies are automatically shared with your host and, in turn, your guide. Please submit this as early as possible so they can plan accordingly and deliver the best experience. Please also remind your guide about your dietary requirements upon arrival, as mentioning these in person allows your guide to comprehend individual preferences and limitations as soon as you arrive.

BACKGROUND Food in Morocco’s Atlas Mountains is shaped by Amazigh (Berber) traditions and historic trade routes, giving it a distinctive mix of sweet and savoury flavours, with staples like tagines, couscous and pastilles, often spiced with cumin, turmeric and ginger. While on the trek, your meals will be cooked by the Berber muleteers. The food is fresh and healthy, and will consist of things like bread, jam, cookies, fruit, juice, and coffee for breakfast; salad, tomatoes, carrots, lentils, beans, rice or pasta, and fish for lunch; soup, classic Moroccan tagine, couscous, olives, nuts, and seasonal fruit for dinner. Vegetarian and vegan eating is often possible with vegetable tagines and bean dishes, and dairy-free can be managed by avoiding yoghurt, milk and butter. Coeliac disease and allergy needs can be trickier because bread and couscous are staples and kitchens may share utensils, so it helps to plan ahead with your guide and carry translation cards or safe snacks.

SPECIAL DIETS

Vegetarian Vegetarian diets can be catered for on this trip, provided that your host is made aware in advance. Moroccan cuisine features plenty of delicious vegetarian-friendly options such as vegetable tagines (often with olives and preserved lemon), couscous topped with seasonal vegetables, lentil or chickpea soups, loubia (white beans in tomato sauce), bissara (fava bean soup/purée), and cooked salads like zaalouk (aubergine and tomato) or taktouka (pepper and tomato), usually served with bread and olives.

Vegan Vegan diets can be catered for on this trip, provided that your host is made aware in advance. Vegan-friendly options include vegetable tagines cooked with olive oil, lentil and bean dishes (such as loubia or bissara), roasted seasonal vegetables, simple tomato-and-cucumber salads, and mezze-style plates of olives, salads and dips such as zaalouk and taktouka made without butter. It’s worth noting that bread, pastries and couscous can sometimes include butter, milk or eggs, so it helps to flag this clearly to your guide and host.

Kosher Fully certified kosher options are limited in Morocco and are mainly found in larger cities such as Casablanca and Marrakech. On this trip in the Atlas Mountains, kosher-supervised kitchens and ingredients may not be available, so vegetarian or vegan meals can be the most reliable alternative if this is acceptable to you. Please read the related sections above, and plan ahead with your guide.

Halal Halal diets can be catered for on this trip, provided your host is made aware in advance. As Morocco is a predominantly Muslim country, most local restaurants, hotels and suppliers prepare food in line with halal norms.

INTOLERANCES

Gluten Free (for Coeliac, please see Allergies section below) Gluten-Free diets can be catered for on this trip, provided that your host is made aware in advance. However, options may be more limited compared to those without dietary requirements. While your local hosts will do their best, it’s worth knowing that gluten-free supplies are generally only available in the major cities. In more remote areas, it's harder to source specialist products, so meals will be based on naturally gluten-free dishes rather than substitutes. That said, most standard meals already include several options without gluten, even without special preparation. Please do consider bringing your favourite snacks or food supplements from home to ensure that you always have enough fuel for your adventure.

Lactose Free Lactose-Free diets can be catered for on this trip, provided that your host is made aware in advance. Many traditional dishes are naturally lactose-free or can easily be prepared without dairy, such as vegetable dishes, couscous, legumes, salads, and mezze based on olive oil rather than yogurt or cheese.

ALLERGIES

Our host has confirmed that they are able to accommodate mild allergies to the 14 allergens identified by the UK Food Standards Agency, where these are disclosed in advance. However, if you have a severe or life-threatening food allergy (including Coeliac disease), please get in touch with our CX team prior to booking to discuss whether your requirements can be accommodated safely on this trip. This will allow us to carefully consider the sensitivity and severity of your allergy, the available provision on the trip and the accessibility of medical care should a reaction occur. Your safety is always our top priority.

*Please note that when travelling overseas, local ingredients, food preparation methods and labelling standards may vary, particularly in remote areas. It is also worth noting that any allergies may result in more limited options and repetitive provision in some areas. Whilst your guide will help communicate dietary requirements where possible, customers remain responsible for managing their own allergies during the trip.

Sure can! Over 70% of our travellers travel solo, it’s a great way to meet like-minded people.

Our team of Adventure Hunters co-create exclusive adventures which are run by highly vetted, specialist hosts. The trip is run by our trusted host partner in the destination. We only work with independent, local, in-destination experts who know the very best places to explore and how to stay safe. Read more information about the local teams we partner with. You’ll be introduced to the host straight after making a booking via the Much Better Adventures platform.

Much Better Adventures refer to the UK Government’s official travel advice when designing trips and monitoring trip operations. We recommend that all customers review the practical information available on the UK Government’s FCDO website, where you can find up-to-date advice by searching for your destination(s).

If you are based in the United States, you can also check the latest travel advisories from the U.S. Department of State.

For customers joining from other international locations, we recommend checking the official travel advice issued by your country of residence, as guidance may vary.

We recommend checking out the country-specific information and also talking to a travel nurse.

We automatically convert prices from the local currency that a host receives to your chosen currency. We update our exchange rates daily, so prices displayed on the site are subject to currency fluctuations, which is why you may see them change over time.

If you wish to change the currency you pay in, head to the bottom of the page.

All of our group adventures are specially designed for adults to enjoy as we want these adventures to bring together outdoorsy people who are truly like-minded. You must be over 18 to join one of our trips.

You're always in good company on one of our adventures.

Our trips typically consist of a mix of solo travelers and small groups of 2 or 3 friends, with most in their 30s-50s.

Our sociable adventures are solo-friendly by design and naturally attract outdoorsy people with a shared mindset; a love for adventure, a desire to push themselves, and meet awesome, like-minded people along the way.

It’s this camaraderie that has so often turned a great adventure into a life-changing one.

Don't just take our word for it:

• 95% of people rate the group dynamics on our trips 5/5
• 90% of people recommend joining a trip to make new friends
• 75% of people have met people on our trips that they would now consider friends

See here for more info about the Much Better Adventures tribe.

From April to October, daytime temperatures in the Atlas Mountains are typically warm (77 - 86°F) but cool off considerably at night, and the higher you go, the cooler it gets (you may even need gloves on a summit day in August!) In the winter, daytime temperatures are still warm (50 - 68°F), but nighttime temperatures can drop below freezing. Afternoon storms are always possible, but the amounts are small and generally don’t prevent anyone from enjoying the trek.

View detailed weather for the climb here on Mountain Forecast

The desert is considerably hotter than the mountains, though nighttime temperatures drop significantly and can even approach freezing in the winter.

In the summer (June, July, August), daytime temperatures have been known to approach 113°F in the desert and in Marrakech so please ensure that you come prepared with sun protection, light and airy clothing and electrolytes/rehydration solutions if traveling at this time of year. If it becomes unsafe to camp in the desert due to extreme summer temperatures, your host will accommodate you in a nearby hotel instead.