HIGHLIGHTS
- Locally guided city tour of Essaouira
- In Marrakech traditional horse and carriage ride.
- City touring of Marrakesh including visiting the souk
- Visit Ait Ben Haddou, UNESCO World Heritage listed village
- See Dades Canyon - an astounding landscape
- Sahara desert adventure and a camel trek
- An overnight luxury desert camp stay
- Ascend to the Middle Atlas Mountains
- Full day tour of the UNESO World Heritage city of Fes.
- A day’s excursion visiting Moulay Idriss, and Volubilis a UNESCO World Heritage listed
- Tour the imperial city of Meknes
- Go deep into the Rif Mountains
- A 2 night stay in the enchanting sky blue city of Chefchaouen.
- High Speed train Tangier to Casablanca
- 3 highlight dinners; Marrakech, Fes and Casablanca
- Best of small group touring, for solo travellers
PRE TOUR STAY
Consider arriving a day before the tour starting date, or enjoy a stopover. You can relax and refresh after your flight. The cost of the additional night/s of stay applies. Ask our travel team about this option, and the additional costs.
DAY 1
Casablanca
Arrive to Casablanca, the starting point for your discovery of Morocco. This evening meet with your trip leader and fellow travellers for a welcome mint tea, and tour briefing.
Meals: none included
DAY 2
Casablanca – Essaouira
After breakfast, depart for the port and resort town of Essaouira. Along the way we make a stop to visit the pretty Portuguese fortified city originally known in Berber as ‘Mazagan’, now part of the city of El Jadida. Closer to Essaouira we stop at Safi, an Atlantic coastal port city known for its industry of pottery. Visit Safi – walking tour around the pottery industry. Continue to Essaouira to check into our hotel by the end of the day with an evening at leisure.
Meals: Breakfast
SNAPSHOT – WHAT’S INCLUDED
- Transfer to Essaouira
- Lunch stop (on charge of clients)
- Mazagan, El Jadida City
- Safi
DAY 3
Essaouira
After breakfast at the hotel, set out for our locally guided city tour of Essaouira. Today, we also visit a Moroccan Oil house; learn first-hand how ‘Moroccan Gold’, is made and the chance to make a purchase of any number of Moroccan oil products. There will be some free time before we meet up for a local Moroccan meal this evening.
Meals: Breakfast, Dinner
SNAPSHOT – WHAT’S INCLUDED
- Morning city walking tour of town
- Visit a Moroccan Oil House
DAY 4
Essaouira - Marrakech
This morning, we set off early to travel to Marrakech.
Arriving to Marrakech we take a traditional horse and carriage ride. Visits include the Koutoubia Mosque, the Saadian tombs and the Bahia Palace. We end at Djemaa el-Fna Square with time to explore the market ‘Souk’, with smells of spice, and the chance to shop for some souvenirs.
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch
SNAPSHOT – WHAT’S INCLUDED:
- Travel Essaouria to Marrakech, about 3 hours travel time
- A tour of Marrakech by traditional horse and carriage
- Lunch together with typical menu of the region
- Free time to explore the ‘Souk’
DAY 5
Marrakech
A visit first up to the museums located together; Berber Museum, Jardins Majorelle & Yves Saint Laurent Museum. There’s some time at leisure this afternoon for a spot of shopping
Meals: Breakfast, Highlight Dinner
SNAPSHOT – WHAT’S INCLUDED:
- Berber Museum & Jardins Majorelle
- Yves Saint Laurent Museum
- Roof top highlight dinner
DAY 6
Marrakech - Boumalne Dades
We will have an early breakfast and head south to Ait Ben Haddou village, crossing the Tizi n’Tichka pass (2260 metres above sea level), from the semi-arid regions of the south-east of the High Atlas to the more fertile plains of the Atlantic. It’s a longer day of travel but a visit to the ancient fortified city of Ait Benhaddou will distract you from the time on the road. In Ait Benhaddou, explore the narrow alleyways of the clay Kasbahs. Three hundred Berber families used to live here, but now it’s only home to half a dozen. Ait Ben Haddou was built in the 11th century and is UNESCO World Heritage listing, and the Ksar Ait Benhaddou is one of the most extraordinary Kasbahs in Morocco. Located near the foothills of the Atlas Mountains, Ait Benhaddou is both dramatic and picturesque. The site has been a popular setting for films including Lawrence of Arabia and Gladiator.
After lunch, we leave Ait Ben Haddou for an overnight stay in Boumalne Dades
Meals: Breakfast, Dinner
SNAPSHOT – WHAT’S INCLUDED:
- Early start
- Travel by road to Boumalne Dades via Ait Ben Haddou, 7 hours travel time
- A visit of the ancient fortified city of Ait Benhaddou - UNESCO World Heritage listed
DAY 7
Boumalne Dades
After breakfast, depart for Boumalne Dades Gorges, we take the route to the Dadès Canyon – a highlight of this region. It’s here you will get the full impression of the astounding rock arrangement and Kasbahs landscape along the Dades River. There’s a visit to take in this immense landscape and the canyon.
Meals: Breakfast, Dinner
SNAPSHOT – WHAT’S INCLUDED:
- Viewing the Dades Canyon and Leisure
DAY 8
Boumalne Dades - Merzouga
From Boumalne Dades our Sahara adventure will start with a drive along the road of 1001 Kasbahs to Tinghir, the gateway to the Todra Gorge. Tinghir is a little desert spring town, well known for its ravines and stream and is a stunning oasis, with beautiful green palms. There is some free time to explore the desert spring and the gulches, and find a local bistro for lunch. By the end of the day our camel caravan is waiting for us for a camel trek experience across the sand dunes for a terrific view of sunset, watching the changing shades of light over the dunes. Just at sunset, we should be arriving to our Sahara desert luxury camp. Tonight, under the glory of the stars, enjoy a Moroccan dinner.
Meals: Breakfast, Dinner
SNAPSHOT – WHAT’S INCLUDED:
- Travel by road to Merzouga, 4 hours travel time
- A stop at the oasis, Tinghir with free time
- Camel trek to the overnight desert camp
- Moroccan dinner under the stars
SPECIAL NOTE:
If you prefer not to join the camel ride there is the alternative to reach camp by vehicle.
DAY 9
Merzouga - Azrou
Leaving Merzouga and the Sahara Desert in our wake, we begin our climb up the Middle Atlas Mountains. By lunch we arrive to Midelt, a town in the high plains of Morocco between the Middle Atlas and High Atlas mountain ranges. Midelt is a bustling Berber market town with tangine restaurants dotted along the main street. The town is about the half way point to Fez and is where we enjoy a local tangine lunch together and take an afternoon walk and meet with a local Berber family for a cooking class and learn how to make a Tagine and a demonstration of how to make a mint tea. Later today enjoy lodgings in the heart of the Middle Atlas mountains.
Meals : Breakfast,
SNAPSHOT – WHAT’S INCLUDED:
- Travel by road to Azrou with a visit to Midelt along the way (6 hours travel time)
- Photo stop for view across the Ziz Valley
- Typical Tagine lunch, Midelt
- Local walk, meet with a local berber family, cooking class & afternoon tea
DAY 10
Azrou - Fes
Set off early for Fes. Reaching Fez, visit New Fez (Al Jdid) which is considered the most colourful part of the city and bustles with life and take time for some lunch before checking into our hotel. This afternoon make your own discoveries including time for a traditional bathhouse experience (a unique experience, and recommended), otherwise known as a ‘Hammam’. Dinner tonight in a local restaurant.
Meals: Breakfast, Dinner
SNAPSHOT – WHAT’S INCLUDED:
- Travel to Fez
- New Fez
- Highlight group dinner
FREE TIME EXTRAS:
- Time for a traditional bath house experience (Royal Medina Spa Ben Abad) on option
DAY 11
Fes
A fabulous full day tour of the UNESO World Heritage city of Fez. We see the famous tanneries and Andalusian and El Quaraoiyin Mosques. We visit Najjarine Square where you can sit and watch the world go by in a café, or visit the Souks. Enjoy a local dinner.
Meals: Breakfast, Dinner
SNAPSHOT – WHAT’S INCLUDED:
- Tour Fes ¾ day experience.
- Local highlight dinner
DAY 12
Fes
From Fes, we take an excursion to visit Moulay Idriss, Volubilis and Meknes. First stop, Moulay Idriss Zerhoun, a small hilltop town that stands at the base of Mount Zerhoun with a labyrinthine of the medinas. Then not far away we visit Volubilis, the most impressive of the Roman sites in the country. Volubilis contains essentially Roman ruins of an ancient city built in a commanding site. Today, it is a UNESCO world heritage site. Finally, we continue to reach the imperial city of Meknes by early afternoon and tour its focal monuments, such as El Hedim Square and Bab Mansour. Meknes prides itself on its friendly and relaxed atmosphere. By late afternoon we have returned to Fes.
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch
SNAPSHOT – WHAT’S INCLUDED:
- Full guided visits to towns of Moulay Idriss, Volubilis and Meknes
- Local lunch
DAY 13
Fes - Chefchaouen
We depart Fes early to reach Chefchaouen before lunch. Our route takes us north, deep into the Rif Mountains. Much calmer and cosier than Fes, Chefchaouen’s most striking feature is, without a doubt, is the old city’s picturesque sky-blue painted walls and streets built on a mountainside. Tourists just can’t get enough of Chefchaouen’s innumerable charms. Among the major sights in Chefchaouen are the Kasbah, the Ras El Maa river valley, and the hillside Spanish Mosque (a 30 minute hike from town).
Enjoy the charm of this unique city; it’s a photographer’s dream and ideal to wander about, shop and discover at your own pace.
Meals: Breakfast, Dinner
SNAPSHOT – WHAT’S INCLUDED:
- Travel by road Fes – Chefchaouen, 3.5 to 4 hours travel time
- Explore Chefchaouen at leisure
DAY 14
Chefchaouen
Today we head to Akchour cascades, with a few hours walking to discover the beauty around the Rif Mountains. We’ll drive to Akchour to begin our hike to the Cascades d’Akchour. These consist of a lower and much higher upper waterfall, punctuated with a handful of smaller waterfalls and cascades. We’ll start from a dam and hike up to the Bridge of God (Le Pont de Dieu), an impressively tall natural rock bridge, then on to small Cascade, the lower waterfall - this will take about 1.5 to 2 hours and is our turn around point. We’ll either carry our own picnic lunch, or stop at one of the small tea shops dotted along the whole trail.
Meals : Breakfast
SNAPSHOT – WHAT’S INCLUDED:
- Explore Akshour Cascade
- Picnic lunch and walks
SPECIAL NOTES:
The walk is an option. If you wish to opt out, stay in town and enjoy at leisure. Chefchaouen is a very inviting town - a great place to relax, walk about, enjoy the local shops and restaurants.
DAY 15
Chefchaouen - Tangier
Depart for Tangier arriving before lunch. Lunch together and guided tour the old city enjoying the city, Kasbah, and Medina.
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch
SNAPSHOT – WHAT’S INCLUDED:
- Travel by road Tangier
- Lunch together today while touring
- Guided afternoon tour of old city, Tangier
DAY 16
Tangier - Casablanca
This morning in Tangier, visit the famous Hercules Caves. Depart for Casablanca on the high-speed train; take in the spectacular views of the Mediterranean Sea on one side and mountains on the other. Arrive in the afternoon and transfer to our hotel for our final night of stay. We celebrate our discoveries with a farewell sunset dinner.
High Speed Train Tangier to Casablanca
Meals: Breakfast, Highlight Dinner
SNAPSHOT – WHAT’S INCLUDED:
- Tangier morning, visit the famous Hercules' caves
- Fast train to Casablanca Voyageurs (2hrs10min)
- Afternoon Casablanca Hotel Check In
- Out for sunset dinner
DAY 17
Casablanca
After breakfast, your Morocco trip comes to a close.
Meals: Breakfast
