New Year's Eve Wellness Retreat in Agafay Desert 2027

Start 2027 From a Place of Stillness

Most New Year's Eve programmes are built around noise: loud music, crowded tables, rushed countdowns, and a morning-after headache. This one is built around the opposite.

Our Wellness NYE Retreat in the Agafay Desert combines a mindful celebration of the new year — proper gourmet dinner, live music, midnight moment — with the practices that actually set you up for January: sunset yoga, breathwork, stargazing meditation, and a January 1st sunrise session with the Atlas Mountains on the horizon.

You celebrate. You sleep well. You wake up in the desert for the first sunrise of 2027 with your body and mind already pointing in the direction you want to go.

This is not a retreat that avoids celebration. It is a celebration that includes wellness — not as an afterthought, but as the frame for the entire experience.

Who This Is For

• Yoga practitioners (all levels, from beginner to advanced) who want their practice woven into their NYE
• People who want to celebrate but not drink — or drink minimally
• Solo travellers who want a meaningful, communal NYE with like-minded people
• Couples who want a romantic, unhurried alternative to crowded gala dinners
• Anyone who has felt depleted by New Year's past and wants 2027 to begin differently

The Setting

Agafay is one of the best places in North Africa for movement and meditation. The plateau sits at 700 metres above sea level. The air is clean and dry. Sunrise comes slowly over the Atlas Mountains from the east. December mornings are cool and clear. The silence is the kind most people in cities have never heard.

The yoga sessions are held on a large wooden platform built specifically for practice — not a hotel meeting room, not a patch of grass. You practice facing the mountains or the open desert, depending on the session. Mats, blocks, straps, and blankets are all provided.

Programme — December 31, 2026

Afternoon

| Time | Programme | |------|-----------| | 2:30 PM | Departure from Marrakech (private vehicle) | | 3:15 PM | Arrival at camp — welcome with fresh mint tea and seasonal fruit | | 3:45 PM | Check-in to tent, settle in, short walk | | 4:15 PM | Sunset Yoga (75 min) — Vinyasa flow facing the Atlas Mountains as the sun drops | | 5:30 PM | Guided breathwork and intention-setting for 2027 | | 6:00 PM | Atlas Mountains golden hour — free time, photography |

Evening

| Time | Programme | |------|-----------| | 6:45 PM | Herbal welcome drink — Moroccan verbena, rose, and ginger | | 7:15 PM | Gourmet healthy dinner under the stars (see menu below) | | 8:30 PM | Live Gnawa music — gentle fire-side session | | 9:30 PM | Stargazing meditation (30 min) — guided by instructor, lying on desert mats under the Milky Way | | 10:15 PM | Free time — fire, conversation, optional stargazing | | 11:30 PM | Gather for midnight — drum circle builds slowly | | 11:50 PM | Group breathing exercise — arrive at midnight consciously | | 00:00 | Midnight — quiet celebration, sparkling toast, gentle fireworks | | 00:30 AM | Acoustic music and tea around the fire | | 1:00 AM | Retire — sleep is part of the programme |

January 1, 2027

| Time | Programme | |------|-----------| | 7:00 AM | Fajr light — soft wake call | | 7:30 AM | Sunrise Yoga (60 min) — slow morning flow as the sun rises over the Atlas | | 8:45 AM | Hammam session (traditional Moroccan steam bath with kessa scrub) | | 10:00 AM | Nourishing January 1st breakfast | | 11:00 AM | Guided breathwork: setting intentions for 2027 | | 12:00 PM | Departure for Marrakech |

The Yoga Sessions

Session 1 — Sunset Flow (December 31, 4:15 PM) A 75-minute Vinyasa flow designed to release tension from travel and prepare your body for the evening. The session faces west — you practice into the setting sun with the Agafay plateau stretching in front of you. Suitable for all levels. Modifications offered throughout.

Session 2 — Stargazing Meditation (December 31, 9:30 PM) Not a yoga session but a guided body scan and open-awareness meditation done lying on mats in the open desert. Your instructor guides you through a 30-minute practice of releasing 2026 and opening to 2027. No experience required.

Session 3 — Sunrise Flow (January 1, 7:30 AM) A 60-minute slow morning practice: Sun Salutations facing the Atlas Mountains as the first light of 2027 arrives. Slower pace than the evening session. Breathing-focused. Ends with a 10-minute Savasana as the desert warms.

All sessions are led by a certified yoga instructor with experience in retreat settings.

Hammam Session (January 1st)

The traditional Moroccan hammam is the single best recovery tool available the morning after New Year's Eve. Steam opens the skin, the kessa (exfoliating mitt) removes dead cells, and a full body ghassoul clay mask leaves you feeling entirely renewed.

Our January 1st hammam session is a proper traditional Moroccan hammam, not a spa treatment modelled on it. Conducted in a dedicated hammam tent with hot and cool water, it runs for approximately 45 minutes per person. Single-gender sessions by default, couples can book private sessions.

Hammam products used are all natural: argan oil soap, rhassoul clay, kessa mitt, and argan oil post-treatment.

Wellness Dinner Menu

The dinner on December 31st is built around nutritional density, seasonal Moroccan ingredients, and lightness — so you feel energised rather than heavy going into the midnight session.

Drinks (throughout evening)

• Moroccan verbena and ginger infusion
• Fresh-pressed orange juice
• Sparkling water with lemon and mint
• Mocktail bar (alcoholic options available on request at additional cost)

Starters

• Warm lentil-harira soup with cumin and fresh coriander
• Moroccan raw salad platter: carrot with orange blossom, beet with argan, cucumber with herbs
• Avocado hummus with sesame seeds and sumac
• Whole grain khobz bread with extra-virgin argan oil

Main Courses (choose one)

• Saffron and preserved lemon chicken tagine with apricots and almonds
• Roasted vegetable and chickpea tagine with harissa and ras el hanout (vegan)
• Oven-baked sea bass with charmoula, capers, and olives
• Quinoa-stuffed Moroccan peppers with chermoula sauce (vegan, gluten-free)

Dessert

• Orange-cinnamon salad with fresh mint
• Dates stuffed with walnut and honey
• Seasonal fruit selection
• Date and cacao energy balls

January 1st Breakfast

• Fresh orange juice pressed on arrival
• Assorted Moroccan breads: msemen, khobz, harcha
• Amlou (almond-argan butter), honey, olive oil
• Soft-boiled eggs and fresh vegetables
• Yogurt with honey and seasonal fruit
• Herbal teas and coffee

Package Options & Pricing 2026/2027

The Wellness Retreat is overnight only — the programme requires staying the night to include both the evening sessions and the January 1st sunrise and hammam.

Wellness Overnight Package

| Option | Price per person | |---|---| | Shared tent (2 people, same booking) | 3,200 MAD per person | | Private tent (single occupancy) | 4,800 MAD | | Couple's private tent (with private hammam) | 3,800 MAD per person |

Includes: private transfer from Marrakech, afternoon sunset yoga session, stargazing meditation, full wellness dinner, midnight celebration, sunrise yoga session, traditional hammam, January 1st breakfast, return transfer.

Add-ons available:

• Private 1:1 yoga session (additional 600 MAD)
• Sound healing session (Tibetan bowls, post-dinner, 400 MAD)
• Tarot/astrology reading for 2027 (300 MAD)
• Argan oil full-body massage on January 1st (700 MAD)

Practical Details

Group size: Maximum 20 participants. This is intentional — a small, quality experience, not a mass event.

What to bring:

• Yoga mat (we provide, but you may bring your own)
• Comfortable practice clothes that are also warm
• Layers for cool desert nights (8–14°C)
• A journal — the intention-setting sessions work better if you write

Alcohol: The programme is designed as a mindful experience and is low-alcohol by default. The mocktail bar and all listed drinks are non-alcoholic. Guests who wish to have wine or beer with dinner may do so for an additional charge, but we do not serve spirits or run a full bar at this event.

Physical requirements: All yoga sessions are suitable for complete beginners and are designed for mixed levels. There is nothing in the programme that requires previous yoga experience or high fitness.

Frequently Asked Questions

I have never done yoga. Can I join? Yes. All sessions are explicitly designed for all levels. The instructor gives modifications for every posture. No experience is required or expected.

Is this for solo travellers or couples? Both. A significant portion of our wellness retreat guests travel solo. The programme is structured so that you connect naturally with other participants — around the fire, at dinner, during the group meditation. Solo guests do not feel alone. Couples have enough private time to feel romantic.

Is alcohol available? A limited selection of wine and beer is available with dinner at additional cost. The programme is structured to not center alcohol, but we do not prohibit it entirely.

What time does the midnight celebration happen? Midnight. It is a genuine midnight celebration — not moved earlier for the wellness theme. We simply approach it more consciously: the drum circle builds slowly, the breathwork session at 11:50 PM is brief but powerful, and the midnight moment feels genuinely arrived at rather than waited for.

Is the hammam heated? Yes. The hammam tent is steam-heated. December temperatures in Agafay are cool but the hammam itself is properly hot.

How to Book

Email: hello@merzougaway.com WhatsApp: +212 675 203 319 / +212 668 534 981

Mention "Wellness NYE 2027" and the number of participants. Maximum 20 places available.

Deposit: 50% required to confirm (higher deposit due to limited capacity) Balance due: December 10, 2026 Cancellation: Full refund until November 30. 50% refund until December 10.

This is our most limited programme by design. It books earlier than any other NYE event.

Related Programmes

• Main Agafay NYE 2027 — luxury programme for groups and couples
• Family NYE Agafay 2027 — families with children
• Halal NYE Agafay 2027 — premium alcohol-free luxury