Sahara Experience

Day 1

Djerba

• ≈ 580 km from Tunis to Djerba

Our meeting point will be Djerba, the island where the Mediterranean meets North African culture.

We will stay at the El Mouradi hotel, a 4-star property. After the initial introductions, we will prepare the tour and attend the briefing with Alex Zanotti. The day will end with dinner together.

Where we sleepEl Mouradi Hotel · 4 stars

Day 2

Matmata

• ≈ 160–200 km
• Rocky stretches and compact tracks

On the second day we will leave Djerba along the coast, among white sandy beaches, scenic roads, Amazigh villages and plateaus. We will ride a route of about 160–200 kilometres, alternating rocky stretches and compact tracks, through ever-changing landscapes.

On arrival in Matmata the landscape looks barren and almost lunar. From above you can make out large circular cavities: they are the courtyards of the region's famous troglodyte dwellings.

We will spend the night in a truly special place: the Hôtel Les Berbères, where we will sleep in rooms carved into the rock. An immersive experience that lets you live from the inside the ancient Amazigh architecture of southern Tunisia, surrounded by the silence of the Dahar mountains.

Where we sleepHôtel Les Berbères · rooms carved into the rock

Day 3

Douz

• ≈ 160 km
• Tracks, sand and desert landscapes
• Chott el-Jérid and Zraoua

On the third day we will enter the heart of the Sahara. We will leave Matmata and ride about 160 kilometres along tracks, sand and desert landscapes, stopping at the Chott el-Jérid and the ancient abandoned village of Zraoua.

The Chott el-Jérid is an immense salt depression, with salt crusts, reflections and mirages that turn the landscape into an almost unreal scene. Zraoua is instead an ancient, now uninhabited Amazigh village, where doors, arches and stone houses still tell of the life of the communities who lived there for centuries.

We will then continue across the Grand Erg Oriental until we reach Douz, known as the gateway to the Sahara. The special thing about this town is that the dunes begin almost immediately outside the built-up area, a short distance from our hotel.

Where we sleepEl Mouradi Hotel or Sun Palm Hotel · both 4-star

Day 4

Tembaine

• 120–150 km
• Entirely on sand

On day four, waking up in Douz, we will immediately enter the heart of the Sahara desert to tackle a 120–150 km stretch entirely on sand. After hours spent in a landscape made almost only of dunes, the dark table-top mountains will appear on the horizon like a vision, and we will slowly watch the landscape change, taking on redder and more orange tones.

The place where we will sleep will amplify the sense of magic these places hold. Camp Abdelmoula is a remote tented camp, yet equipped with comforts and bathrooms, completely surrounded by dunes, far from cities and from the ordinary road network.

We will dine together at the camp, drink tea prepared by the locals and taste the traditional bread baked in the sand. The evening will continue with live music in front of a big bonfire. At night, in the desert, the night sky will reveal itself in all its vastness, offering a view of the stars that is hard to find in Italy.

During our stay it will be possible to join quad or camel excursions.

Where we sleepCamp Abdelmoula · tented camp with comforts and bathrooms

Day 5

Ksar Ghilane

• ≈ 140 km
• Dunes and tracks

On the fifth day we will mainly cross dunes and tracks: a breathtaking route of about 140 km will lead us to spot a group of palm trees on the horizon, at the centre of which a natural hot spring flows, where you can bathe.

At the oasis of Ksar Ghilane we can relax, buy souvenirs and traditional clothing in the little craft shops, rent quads, take a camel ride and visit the nearby, majestic Roman fort of Tisavar.

A breathtaking sunset awaits us, a typical dinner at the camp, local tea, an evening fire, bread baked in the sand, a starry sky and a night's rest in the hotel inside the oasis.

Where we sleepHotel inside the Ksar Ghilane oasis

Day 6

Djerba

• Tracks of Chenini and Tataouine
• Coastline

On the sixth day we will set off from Ksar Ghilane towards Djerba, along the tracks of Chenini and Tataouine, traditional villages and rocky landscapes among the most characteristic of southern Tunisia. Approaching the coast again, we will ride along the shoreline and stop on white sandy beaches.

We will then return to the El Mouradi Hotel, where we will prepare the motorcycles for the return and enjoy our last dinner together, officially concluding our journey.

Where we sleepEl Mouradi Hotel

Day 7

The return

The seventh day is devoted to the journey back to Italy. We will say goodbye, taking with us the memories of a week lived among tracks, dunes, oases and authentic places of southern Tunisia.

We will await the official photo and video material made by the official 2WRI photographer, to relive the tour together through the images, until the next adventure.