Morocco

Morocco's High Atlas holds two of the great mountain crossings of North Africa. The Tizi n'Tichka links Marrakech to the Sahara's edge over a long, engineered pass lined with kasbahs and almond terraces, while the older Tizi n'Test route is narrower, steeper and considerably wilder, with drops that concentrate the mind on every hairpin.

South of the mountains, the road through the Dades Gorge and onward past a thousand kasbahs threads a valley of red rock and palm groves that feels like nowhere else on the continent. It is a landscape built for a slow, deliberate driving pace rather than outright speed.

Roads are generally well surfaced on the main passes, though weather can close the higher sections in winter, and a support vehicle or careful planning is worthwhile before heading toward the more remote southern routes.