Combined Atlas Mountains and Sahara tours, 4 to 6 days

How much walking you do before the desert. The four-day express gives you one day on foot, a 12km walk over two passes into Imlil. The five-day tour trekks the Azzaden valley over two days with a night in a village gite. The six-day tour climbs Toubkal itself, sleeping at the refuge and standing on the 4,167m summit the next morning.

The desert half is much the same on all three. The six-day also takes the longer way home, through Ait Benhaddou and Telouet, so no single drive is as punishing as the ten-hour final day on the shorter trips.

Not for the four-day, which asks for one moderate day on mule tracks. The five-day wants you comfortable with two consecutive days of five or six hours. The six-day is a real ascent: long, steep days and a 4,167m summit, so you should be a regular hill walker.

Every tour is private, so we can adjust the walking to your group. Tell us what you are used to when you enquire.

Yes, all of them. In the mountains you have a Berber, English-speaking guide, a cook and mules for the luggage; for the desert, a private 4x4 or minibus and driver. We collect you from your Marrakech accommodation and return you there.

If you would rather end in Essaouira or Fes, say so when you enquire and we will route it that way.

Mountains first, then the desert. You walk out of Imlil at 1,740m, drop back to the village, get into the vehicle and cross the range south over the Tizi n’Tichka pass. From there the route runs east past Ouarzazate to a night in the Dades gorges, on through the Todra gorge to Merzouga, and by camel into the Erg Chebbi dunes for sunset.

It is one booking and one team looking after you, rather than a trek and a tour bought separately.

It changes every night, which is part of the appeal: a guesthouse in Imlil or the Toubkal Refuge in the mountains, a hotel in the Dades gorges, and a Berber camp on the dunes. The six-day adds a hotel near Ait Benhaddou. Bedding is provided throughout; at the refuge you will want a sleeping bag liner and earplugs.

You ride out by camel at sunset and sleep in a Berber camp among the dunes, with dinner and music. You are up early for sunrise from the sand, ride back to the village, and have breakfast and a shower at a lodge before the road again.

Prices are per person and come down as the group grows. The four-day express is €420 per person for a group of two or three, €365 for four to seven and €305 for eight to twelve. The five-day is €470, €395 and €330. The six-day Toubkal and Sahara tour is €595, €435 and €395. Each tour page carries its full price table.

That covers guide, cook, mules and driver, all your accommodation, and the meals listed on each page. Lunches on the desert days, entrance fees, drinks and tips are extra, so bring cash in dirhams.

Spring and autumn suit both halves. April to June and September to November give comfortable walking in the mountains and warm rather than fierce desert days. Winter works well in the desert but brings snow to the high passes, and a winter Toubkal ascent needs crampons and an ice axe. Tell us your dates and we will say what the conditions call for.