MOUNTAIN BIKING MOROCCOMountain Biking Atlas Mountains
The Introduction
Difficulty
Medium
Min Age
12 +
Duration
2 Days
You only need this Mountain Biking Atlas Mountains Introdction to understand why people fall for the High Atlas. This Mountain Biking Atlas route packs a full-size adventure into 48 hours: riding out from Toubkal’s snow-capped shadow, over the Tizi n’Tamatert pass at 2.280 meters, and down through Berber villages that cling to the hillside like beehives.
Less than ninety minutes from Marrakech, Imlil is the last stretch of pavement before the real riding starts, singletrack, dirt roads, and passes that most visitors only see from a trekking trail. You’ll sleep one night in a Berber lodge in Imsker before finishing the second day back through the Ait Mizane valley. It’s the same terrain our longer expeditions cover, just condensed into a weekend this Mountain Biking Atlas Mountains trip actually fits into a normal life.
Includes & Excludes
✔️ Private Transport from and back to Marrakech
✔️ English and french speaking local guide
✔️ Fun suspension Mountain Bikes & helmets
✔️ Accommodation Guest house
✔️ All your Food during the tour
✔️ Mineral water
❌ Soft drinks
❌ Travel Insurance
Essential Equipment
We recommend packing the following items:
– Normal daily clothes
– Gloves
– Sunglasses/eye protection
– Stiff-soled shoes suitable for cycling
– Waterproofs and long cycling trousers
– For the earlier departures you may need some warmer layers
– Sun cream
– Water bottle or Camelback
PER PERSON
250 €
Tour
Itinerary
Departure
Day 1
Marrakech – Imlil – Tacheddirt – Imsker
After breakfast, you are picked up from your hotel at 8:30 am, and a short transfer takes us to the foot of Toubkal (4,167 m). Situated in the heart of the Toubkal National Park, the village of Imlil is the principal trailhead village for treks up the highest peaks in North Africa. The village offers good infrastructure for people wanting a pleasant mountain base for a few days, but it is also an excellent place to start and/or finish longer, more linear hikes. Its accessibility from Marrakech (under an hour and a half by road) makes it an excellent choice to get a good feel for how rural Moroccans live their lives, and much of the surrounding area is home to a landscape of snow-capped mountains. Once we get to Imlil, we get our bikes and ride towards the pass of Tizi n’Tamatert (2,280 m). The first warm-up is on a good rolling road overlooking the deep valley below, with cultivated terraces contrasting with the arid flanks. We reach the track on the right-hand side and find a succession of superb Berber villages, clinging like beehives to the sides of the mountains, with the majestic, often snow-covered summits of the High Atlas in the background. After a superb descent, our mountain biking ends at Imsker, where you spend the night in a Berber lodge.
Day 2
Imsker – Imi Oughlad – Tizi n’Tacht – Asni – Marrakech
After breakfast, we leave Imsker on a dirt road that climbs steadily in zigzags, allowing us to enjoy a very nice view over the Ait Mizane Valley, the neighbouring valleys and all the small passes. We continue to the Tacht pass, where we stop for drinks and some nuts and enjoy the view from the pass. Then we ride back along the rocky singletrack of the day or on dirt roads to Imi Oughlad and on to Asni, where your bike adventure ends and we drive back to Marrakech.
TREKKING
BIKING
LOCATION & HOURS
Douar Aroumd, Imlil, Asni, Al Haouz, Marrakech
Biking in Morocco is a locally owned tour company offering authentic cycling and trekking adventures across Morocco. Led by experienced local guides Abderrahim and Lahcen Idmansour, we share our knowledge, culture, and passion for Morocco to create memorable experiences for travelers from around the world.
