📖 About This Tour
The 7-day Horse Bivouac in Tozeur takes you through the most spectacular mountain oases and canyons of southern Tunisia. You will ride from Chebika, where a waterfall emerges from red cliffs, through the narrow gorges of Oued El Khanga, to the abandoned ghost village of Tamerza perched 600 meters above sea level. Then you will cross the dramatic canyons of Seddoud (Sagdoud), a forgotten geological wonder compared to the American West, before descending to the eucalyptus grove of Bir Lahnek, where the Atlas Mountains meet the desert.
7-Day Horse Bivouac in Tozeur : sleep under the stars, ride like a nomad
You will sleep one night in a hotel in Tamerza (comfort after a long day), then two nights in standard canvas tents. Everyone participates: collecting wood, pitching tents, cooking dinner, and learning to bake sand bread. You must bring your own helmet, riding boots, chaps, gloves, and sleeping bag. The saddle provided is an English saddle.
✦ Tour Highlights
- ✓Ride through the canyons and hanging oases of Chebika
- ✓Cross the ghost village of Sidi Mansour and the Atlas passes
- ✓Discover the ancient well of Bir Lahnek with horse watering
- ✓Magical sunsets over the Chekmou dunes
- ✓Sleep under the stars by the wild Lake Ibn Chabbat
- ✓Gallop on the Chott El Jemel salt lake (movie-set scenery)
- ✓Lunch with a Berber family in an authentic village
- ✓Bake bread in the sand over a wood fire
- ✓Join bivouac life (wood, tent, cooking)
- ✓English saddle provided (helmet, boots, gaiters, gloves, sleeping bag not included)
💡 Good to Know
- You must bring your own sleeping bag.
- You must also bring your own riding equipmnt.
- The saddle provided is an English saddle.
- No showers during the bivouac (Days 4, 5, 6).
- Everyone participates: collecting wood, setting up tents, helping with cooking.
- Nights in the desert are cold: bring fleece, a hat, warm clothing.
- Required level: Beginner to intermediate rider.
- Average riding distance: 4 to 6 hours per day with breaks.
- Minimum: 2 participants.
- The horses are hardy Tunisian Barbs, accustomed to canyons, oueds (dry rivers), and rocky trails.
🗺️ Day-by-Day Programme
Click any day to expand the full details.
Transfer to Tozeur • Free evening
On arrival, our team greets you for your transfer to Tozeur, crossing the first palm groves and feeling the dry air of the south. Depending on your arrival time, you head either straight to the bivouac or to a hotel for your first night. Enjoy a free evening among the scents of dates and jasmine — a last comfortable night under a roof before the adventure begins.
4-star hotel, Tozeur
Chebika • Oued el Khanga • Tamerza
At Chebika you meet your horse — a gentle, enduring Barb that will carry you through this odyssey across the suspended mountain oasis. Ride on to Oued el Khanga for a shaded picnic lunch by the water, then spend the afternoon weaving between palms, canals and troglodyte hamlets towards Tamerza, the village of canyons and waterfalls. Pause at the great waterfall to cool off before reaching your residence for dinner and the night.
Residence in Tamerza
Redaief • Sidi Mansour • Saddoud
After a peaceful wake-up, ride towards Redaief and reach the ghost village of Sidi Mansour by midday — blond-stone ruins overlooking the gorges, where you lunch amid the silence. In the afternoon, cross the Atlas mountains by a broad ridge trail with breathtaking panoramas, arriving at sunset in Saddoud, an ancient Berber house, for dinner and the night.
Berber house, Saddoud
Bir Lahnek • Oued Gouifla • Chekmou
Ride to Bir Lahnek, an ancient well where water still flows, and help water the horses in a timeless nomadic gesture. After lunch under a stone shelter, cross the ochre-and-white banks of the Oued Gouifla to reach Chekmou by day's end. Pitch the Berber tents facing the distant dunes and watch the sun sink into a mantle of purple and gold — dinner under the stars, and your first night in a bivouac.
Bivouac, Chekmou
Neflayat oasis • Lake Ibn Chabbat
Ride to the hidden oasis of Neflayat — clear water, ancient palms and absolute silence — and break for lunch beneath a grove of eucalyptus, with hammocks for a midday rest. In the afternoon, discover Lake Ibn Chabbat, a sheet of fresh water in the sands and a refuge for migratory ducks. Pitch the tents facing the lake for dinner and nomadic tales around the fire.
Bivouac tent by Lake Ibn Chabbat
Ong El Jemel • Mos Espa (Star Wars) • Chott el Gharsa
Ride out at first light towards Ong El Jemel, the white mirage of Chott el Gharsa stretching to the horizon. Lunch on the edge of the salt crust, then explore this surreal expanse — a favourite of desert filmmakers — before heading to the Mos Espa Star Wars set and the high dunes for a breathtaking sunset, when the salt turns pink and the sky blazes. Pitch camp on a dune for an exceptional starry night, far from any light.
Bivouac tent on a dune
Lake Ibn Chabbat • Return to Tozeur
One last morning on horseback: cross to the far shore of Lake Ibn Chabbat for lunch in an authentic Berber village. The quiet return to Tozeur and the handover of the horses mark the end of your journey — you leave with sand in your boots and a nomadic soul. Return transfer arranged as you wish (airport, hotel or onward destination).
Included & Not Included
✅ Price Includes
- ✓Pick-up and drop-off at your hotel / airport / train station in Tozeur
- ✓Private transfer in an air-conditioned vehicle
- ✓English saddle per horse
- ✓All meals according to the program
- ✓Picnics & lunches
- ✓Dinners under the stars
- ✓Local instructor + groom
- ✓Support vehicle (water, food, medical kit, luggage)
- ✓Unlimited drinking water (excluding other drinks)
❌ Not Included
- ✕Your personal riding equipment (helmet, boots, chaps, gloves, sleeping bag)
- ✕Travel insurance
- ✕Personal expenses
- ✕Tips and gratuities
- ✕Drinks (except water)
- ✕Accommodation in Tozeur (night before – can be arranged on request)
- ✕Dinner on Day 1
Solo travellers welcome, contact us for individual rates.
📍 Tour Route Map
🖼️ Tour in Photos
❓ Frequently Asked Questions
No. This is not technical horseback riding. It is a gentle walk on horseback. You must bring your own helmet, riding boots, chaps, gloves, and sleeping bag. We provide the English saddle.
Yes, completely. This is not technical riding. It is a calm walk on a trained horse. Anyone can do it. No prior experience is needed.
You will sleep in a standard canvas tent (3 nights). No luxury. No shower. No toilet tent – nature is your bathroom. Everyone participates: collecting wood, pitching tents, and preparing dinner. This is a free cooking class. You will learn to bake sand bread.
It depends. Some rides go along dry lake beds. You may walk through shallow salt flats. Please ask when booking.
The person accompanying you is not a tour guide but a qualified instructor. His primary role is to lead the route and ensure your safety. He will make himself understood using simple words and gestures. However, please do not expect a language expert or a historian.
Yes, we will pick you up from your hotel in Tozeur. At the end of the trek, we will drop you back there or at your starting point upon request and for an extra fee.
The ride requires a minimum of 2 participants. Please contact us for solo booking options.
Yes. We organize our rides with deep respect for animal welfare. Our horses are well-fed, rested between rides, and never overworked.
Helmet, riding boots, chaps, gloves, sleeping bag, warm layers, headlamp, sunscreen, sunglasses, hat, reusable water bottle (minimum 1.5L), personal toiletries, wet wipes, lip balm, camera.
Yes. A 4x4 vehicle follows the caravan. It carries water, food, medical kit, spare tack, and luggage. If a rider is exhausted or injured, they can ride in the 4x4 for a section.
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