10-Day Morocco Tour from Casablanca: Fez & the Sahara

The historical day. We come down out of the Rif to the Roman city at Volubilis, then on to Meknes and its imperial gates, arriving in Fez in the evening. Around five hours of driving across a full day of stops.

• Morning departure from Chefchaouen
• Descent through the Rif to the Sais plain
• Volubilis, the Roman provincial capital, with its mosaics still in place
• Moulay Idriss, the hill town above the ruins
• Lunch in Meknes
• Bab Mansour and the imperial walls
• Arrival in Fez in the evening

Overnight in Fez.

Fez el Bali is the largest car-free urban area in the world and the oldest of the imperial capitals. A full day is the least it takes to get any sense of it, and most of that day is on foot.

• Morning in Fez el Bali, entering by Bab Boujloud
• The Chouara tanneries, seen from the terraces above
• Al Quaraouiyine, founded in 859 and still in use
• The Bou Inania medersa and its carved cedar screens
• Lunch in the medina
• The souks by trade: coppersmiths, dyers, weavers
• Afternoon at the Merenid tombs for the view over the city

Overnight in Fez.

A long day that crosses three landscapes in one run: cedar forest, high plateau, and the Ziz valley cutting south toward the desert. Around eight hours on the road with stops, timed so the camels leave before sunset.

• Ifrane, the Middle Atlas hill town built in Alpine style
• Cedar forest at Azrou, where Barbary macaques come down to the roadside
• Lunch at Midelt, between the Middle and High Atlas
• The Ziz gorges and the long palm oasis below Er Rachidia
• Erfoud and the road out to Merzouga
• Camel trek into Erg Chebbi in the late afternoon
• Dinner and drumming at camp

Overnight in a desert camp at Erg Chebbi.

The day the itinerary makes room for. With no transfer to drive, the desert opens up past the dune crest: nomad families still working the hamada, the Gnawa village at Khamlia, and the dry lake north of the erg.

• Sunrise over the dunes, then breakfast at camp
• Camel trek back to Merzouga
• 4x4 circuit around the erg
• Khamlia, the Gnawa village, for a session of their music
• Visit to a nomad family living out on the hamada
• Dayet Srji, the dry lake where flamingos gather after rain
• Afternoon at leisure, or sunset from the dune crest

Overnight in Merzouga.

A moderate day west along the edge of the pre-Sahara, ending where the Todgha river cuts through the High Atlas. Around four hours of driving with a long stop at the gorge.

• Morning departure from Merzouga
• Rissani and its souk, on the site of Sijilmassa
• West across the hamada by Tinejdad
• The Todgha Gorges, where the cliffs close to a few hundred metres apart
• Lunch in Tinghir
• The palm oasis strung along the valley floor
• Afternoon into the Dades gorge and its switchback road

Overnight in the Dades Valley.

West along the old kasbah road, running it in reverse of the way most itineraries do, with the afternoon at Ait Ben Haddou. Around three hours of driving.

• Morning walk in the Dades gorge
• Kelaat M'Gouna and the Valley of Roses
• The Skoura palm oasis and the Amridil Kasbah
• Lunch en route
• Ouarzazate and the Taourirt Kasbah
• Ait Ben Haddou, the UNESCO-listed ksar
• Time to walk up through the kasbahs to the granary at the summit

Overnight in Ouarzazate.

The return crossing of the High Atlas, which looks entirely different travelling north in morning light. Around four hours with stops on the switchbacks.

• Morning departure from Ouarzazate
• Ait Ben Haddou, if you have not already stopped there
• Ascent of the Tizi n'Tichka pass, around 2,260 metres
• Photo stops on the northern switchbacks
• Stop in an Amazigh village on the mountain road
• Lunch en route
• Descent through terraced valleys to the Haouz plain
• Afternoon arrival in Marrakech

Overnight in Marrakech.

A day off the road. The medina rewards slow walking, and the gardens on the edge of the new town are where the city goes to escape it.

• Morning in the souks north of Jemaa el-Fna
• The Koutoubia minaret and its gardens
• The Bahia Palace and its painted cedar ceilings
• The Saadian Tombs, sealed up until 1917
• Lunch on a medina terrace
• The Jardin Majorelle or the Menara gardens
• Evening on Jemaa el-Fna as the food stalls open

Overnight in Marrakech.

A short final day north across the plain, with the afternoon in Casablanca itself. Around two and a half hours of driving.

• Morning departure from Marrakech
• North across the Haouz and the Rehamna plain
• Settat and the phosphate country
• Arrival in Casablanca around midday
• The Hassan II Mosque, built out over the Atlantic
• Lunch on the corniche
• The Habous quarter and its arcaded streets

Drop-off in Casablanca, or transfer to the airport.