THE REPTILES OF MOROCCO TOUR

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01 August 2024

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NEW 2025 Date! Price: £1250/person

Date: 26th September - 4th October 2025

Your Herpetologist Guide: Max Benito Smeele

Chance to see 40+ reptiles & Amphibians

Herping in the Sahara Desert

Looking for Cerastes vipera, Cerastes cerastes, Daboia mauritanica, Naja haje and Bitis arietans

Rescue reptiles from the old water cisterns

Explore the hidden gems of South Morocco

Great Nature & Macro Photography Opportunities

Day 1: Arrive in Agadir

Arrive anytime, if time permits we go out seeking for reptiles in the desert in the evening.

Overnight in Agadir.

Meals included: None

Cerastes cerastes in Morocco

Day 2: Travel to Guelmim

After breakfast, we leave Agadir. For the next three days we will move towards the inland, deeper in the desert looking for some really unique reptiles. Our base for the next 3 nights will be near Guelmim. Our targets will be Uromastyx nigriventris, Chamaeleo chamaeleon, Spalerosophis dolichospilus, M. monspessulanus saharatlanticus, Myriopholis algeriensis etc. It should also be a great pace to find Egyptian cobras.

Overnight in Guelmim.

Meals Included: Breakfast

Worm lizard from Morocco

Day 3: A day trip to Assa

Today we travel further to spend the day deep inside the Sahara Desert looking for another desired snake species, the White-bellied carpet viper (Echis leucogaster) and get our first chance for Varanus griseus and Cerastes cerastes.

Overnight in Guelmim.

Meals Included: Breakfast

Carpet viper from Assa

Day 4: Herping around Guelmim

After a long day in Assa, we will have a more relaxed day around Guelmim where we continue with exploring the desert and rescue reptiles from the wells.

Overnight near Guelmim.

Meals Included: Breakfast

Egyptian Cobra from Morocco

Day 5: Travel to the Atlantic Coast

After breakfast, we start our journey towards the Atlantic coast, to El Outia. We will spend most of the day along the rural roads between Guelmim and TanTan. The area is home to scorpions, skinks, whipsnakes and the Egyptian cobra.

Overnight in TanTan Plage.

Meals Included: Breakfast

Algerian whipsnake from Guelmim

Day 6: Herping in Western Sahara

We travel South today (3-4h) to visit the Western Sahara region. It is an arid region where we can find some very unique retiles. We will be looking for geckos, vipers, and a large lizard, the desert monitor. There will be also chance to see the Sudanese dob (Uromastyx dispar flavifasciata) in their habitat. And at night geckos will take over the place. (Tarentola annularis, Tarentola hoggarensis, Stenodactylus petrii). Seeing the inland morph of Cerastes vipera and Cerastes cerastes will be possible too with some luck. We will drive back at night to Tantan.

Overnight in TanTan Plage.

Meals included: Breakfast

Desert Monitor from Smara

Day 7 : Herping near the Atlantic coast

After a long day in Western Sahara, we will start slowly and focus in the Tantan region.

If time permits we will get back to the humid Atlantic Coast and spend our last full day at and around Khenifiss National Park. We will take a walk on the sand dunes to look for the coastal morph of the Sahara sand viper (Cerastes vipera). We will also look for the beautiful Tarentola chazaliae with the unicolor pattern typical of this area.

Overnight in TanTan Plage.

Meals included: Breakfast

Cerastes vipera from Morocco

Day 8: Travel to Sidi Ifni

After breakfast, we leave El Outia and will head towards the coastal town of Sidi Ifni. We will spend the day in the area, looking for an impressive snake, the mighty Puff adder (Bitis arietans). We will also be searching for trapped animals in the water cisterns and wells, focusing on the Egyptian cobra and the Moorish viper. At night, during road cruising we will have a good chance seeing Tarentola chazaliae, Stenodactylus mauritanicus and Boaedon fuliginosus.

Overnight in Sidi Ifni.

Meals Included: Breakfast

Helmethead gecko from Morocco

Day 9: Departure day

Today we head back North again, towards the Souss Valley, to spend the majority of the day to look for reptiles and birds in the area. We will be back to Agadir at around 17:00 where you can fly out from. Overnight in Agadir is possible at a small extra surcharge.

Meals included: Breakfast

Skin from Morocco

Throughout the holiday we will be staying at simple hotels and Berber guesthouses. All accommodation will be en-suite.

 

The overnights:

1 Night in/near Agadir

3 nights near Guelmim

3 nights in El Ouatia (TanTan Plage)

1 night in Sidi Ifni

Prices & Inclusions

26th September – 4th October 2025

Holiday Price:

£1250/person

Single Supplement £150/person

Inclusions

  • Accommodation at mentioned hotels or similar for 8 nights on a twin share basis
  • Daily breakfasts
  • Transportation as per the itinerary
  • Local Herpetologist expert throughout the holiday
  • Guided daily walks as per the itinerary
  • Full financial protection by Protected Trust Services

 

Exclusions

  • International flights
  • Airport transfers
  • Meals (lunches and dinners)
  • Drinks
  • Tips
  • Travel Insurance

TOUR SUMMARY

On this holiday we will discover South Morocco and the northern part of Western Sahara. It is a small group tour with a maximum of 6 guests, led by biologist Max Benito Smeele. The main activates will be looking for reptiles in the desert, rescuing reptiles and amphibians from wells and water cisterns and we will be road cruising at night looking for nocturnal reptiles.

 

A typical day will start around 9am with breakfast, we will then visit different locations in the desert. During the day the main focus will be rescuing reptiles. Lunch is usually spent on the field. We return to our accommodation around 7pm for dinner, and go out around 8pm for field walks and road cruising. The day usually ends around midnight- 2am. We will walk around 5-7 miles a day.

THE GALLERY

Your
Next Holiday

Morocco: Morocco is one of the closest exotic destination to Europe. It offers great hospitality, historic towns and beautiful landscapes. The country is also an excellent destination for herpetology-lovers as it has a very unique and diverse herpetofauna. Most of the species have perfectly adapted for the arid landscape and the endless sand dunes of the Sahara Desert.

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