Motorcycle Tour Morocco: Marrakech to Dakar Trip

After landing in Marrakesh, you will be picked up at the airport and receive your motorcycles. You can spend the rest of the day exploring the streets of Marrakesh, packing your motorcycles, and preparing for the upcoming tour.

We meet the participants of the Legendary Paris 2 Dakar in Asni at the foot of Jbel Toubkal, the highest mountain in North Africa. Together we continue to the pass height of Tizi n'Test. Even though the kilometers are not too many, it takes almost a day to reach Taroudant on the other side. On the single-lane road, you can encounter everything from donkeys to 40-ton trucks.

We go through a beautiful valley full of almond trees towards Tafraoute. The road winds continuously along the valley wall and makes the motorcyclist's heart beat faster. The first dromedaries will be seen, and slowly the desert begins. Upon arrival in Tafraoute, we can stock up on supplies for the next days and admire the gigantic monoliths that look as if they were created by human hands.

Your first big off-road stage starts here. You ride two days through the west Sahara. The goal is Smara. The border with old Spanish Sahara is on your way. Fuel stops are rare. You will hear Spanish, not French. It feels like a new land.

You ride a dusty track by the Saguia el Hamra River. The river has water most of the year. Your stop is El Aaiún. It is close by. You get free time to walk or swim in the sea.

Two days on the N1 highway — 500 km to Dakhla. The Atlantic shines on your right; endless Sahara stretches left. Stop often, ride off-road on the beach, or chill in surf-town Dakhla. This is one of the most scenic stages of the Morocco motorcycle trip.

Morocco is familiar — Mauritania is not. From Dakhla, the tour crosses no-man's-land into Mauritania. Border formalities take most of the day. "Europeans invented the clock; we invented time," locals say. Camp that night in the dunes.

The motorcycle route follows the iron-ore train tracks off-road to Atar. The terrain is tough — two riding days to reach the oasis. Atar was once the heart of Moorish high culture and gave Mauritania its name.

Back to the Atlantic. The tour runs half on-road, half off-road through the last Sahara stretch before the Sahel. Camp on the beach. Mauritania's coast ranks among the world's richest fishing grounds — cast a line if you want.

Before the 2006 road, the beach was the official route to Nouakchott. Low tide makes the sand fast and smooth. The motorcycle trip ends the day in Nouakchott, home to half of Mauritania's population.

Today you meet Fech Fech — fine desert powder that swallows wheels. The route follows the Senegal River to the border. Trees and wildlife return. The tour crosses a bird sanctuary where European species winter. Saint-Louis — a beautiful colonial town on a river island — is your stop.

Leave Saint-Louis in the morning; reach Dakar by noon. Like the original Paris-Dakar Rally, this motorcycle trip ends at Lac Rose — the pink salt lake outside Dakar. Celebrate the expedition with a group dinner.

The Morocco to Dakar motorcycle tour officially ends today. Hand over the bikes at customs for shipping and fly home sand-free. Riders with extra time can extend the trip through Senegal and Gambia.