Painting Holidays with Bettina Schroeder

This holiday, which is for the more adventurous painter, is packed with thrilling images of the kaleidoscopic Moroccan landscape. You'll see wide, lunar expanses; rich, jade-green valleys; and the massive, drifting Erg Chebbi dunes - so don't be surprised to find sand in your luggage on your arrival home!

Our base - the Nomad Palace - is right on the edge of the Sahara desert, east of the High Atlas mountains. It offers rooms with private toilets and showers, and delicious, home-cooked Moroccan cuisine which is served in the Salon and its exotic lounge area.

Situated in the nearby village of Merzouga is a stopping place for Berber caravans where we can paint camels and locals in colourful robes and a thickly palmaceous oasis. And with the expert guidance of our multi-lingual host Ali, we will visit an ancient souk where craftsmen ply their trades and treasures await.

Your stay includes a day in the astonishing Dades gorge, at the bottom of which the Dades river runs and almond trees blossom in the spring. There are delightful shady corners here, many ruined citadels - and some utterly amazing rock formations!

You will also have the opportunity of a portrait session with Berber (Bedouin) nomads in traditional dress, and an evening trip deeper into the desert to marvel at the landscape or to do some quick sketching.

To paint these stunning landscapes and hardy desert people, to wander through kasbahs and to sketch market places is...

...a truly unique experience.

Most painting holidays run every year, so ask Bettina about future dates if you need to.