10-Day Tour from Casablanca: Desert & Imperial Cities

Overview

In short: Private tour · 10 days / 9 nights, starting and ending in Casablanca airport — about 2,030 km and 25 places, including 1 night in the desert.

Duration

10 days / 9 nights

Starts

Casablanca airport

Ends

Casablanca airport

Tour type

Private tour

Group size

Up to 50 travellers

Language

Flexible, on request

Distance

≈ 2,030 km in total

Stops

25 places

A complete loop that starts and ends in Casablanca: Rabat, a full guided day in Chefchaouen, Volubilis and Meknes, a guided day in Fes, a night in a luxury camp in Erg Chebbi, the Todra and Dades gorges, the Valley of Roses, Ait Ben Haddou, and two days in Marrakech.

It also has the most local guides: Marrakech, Fes, the Ourika Valley, Ait Ben Haddou and Chefchaouen.

Highlights

• Hassan II Mosque and Hassan Tower in Rabat
• Roman ruins of Volubilis
• Moroccan cooking class
• Souks for spices, leather and textiles
• Jewish heritage sites
• Blue streets of Chefchaouen
• A traditional Amazigh market
• Atlas Mountains scenery
• Ait Ben Haddou and Kasbah Amridil
• Dades and Ziz valleys and the Todra Gorge
• Camel ride and a night in the Sahara
• Old medinas of Marrakech and Fes
• Hot-air balloon ride and a traditional hammam

Route

• Day 1
• Day 2
• Day 4
• Day 6
• Day 7
• Day 8
• Day 10

Lines join the stops in order; they are not the exact roads. Distances are road estimates. Open the route in Google Maps

Day by day

1. Day 1Airport shuttle – Casablanca sightseeing

   Casablanca Airport › Casablanca

   Airport pick-up and drive to central Casablanca to see Hassan II Mosque.

   Then the old medina and its alleys, and the city's large shopping mall.

   ≈ 30 kmOvernight: Casablanca
2. Day 2Rabat monuments – Chefchaouen, the blue pearl

   Casablanca › Rabat › Chefchaouen

   Rabat: the Chellah, the Kasbah of the Udayas, the Royal Palace and Hassan Tower.

   Arrive in Chefchaouen around 6 pm, check in, and explore the town by night.

   ≈ 360 kmOvernight: Riad in ChefchaouenMeals: Breakfast
3. Day 3Chefchaouen with a local guide

   Blue walls, doors and shops of the medina, and daily Moroccan life at its most genuine.

   The new town with its Andalusian architecture and the park at the end of Avenue Mohammed V.

   Overnight: Riad in ChefchaouenMeals: Breakfast
4. Day 4Volubilis – Meknes – Fes

   Chefchaouen › Volubilis › Meknes › Fes

   A scenic drive across the farmland of the Rif foothills to Volubilis, an open-air museum of Roman Morocco.

   Meknes, the 17th-century imperial city: lunch, the massive medina walls, Bab el-Mansour and the shrine of Moulay Ismail. Then on to Fes.

   ≈ 255 kmOvernight: FesMeals: Breakfast
5. Day 5Fes sightseeing

   A full day in Fes (founded around 790 AD), one of the most intact medieval cities in the world.

   The medina, Al-Qarawiyyin, Al-Attarine madrasa, the Blue Gate, the Chouara tannery and the souks; after lunch, a panoramic view over the whole medina.

   Overnight: Riad in FesMeals: Breakfast
6. Day 6Ifrane – Azrou – Midelt – Ziz Gorges – Merzouga (camel ride, luxury camp)

   Fes › Ifrane › Azrou › Midelt › Ziz Gorges › Errachidia / Ziz › Erfoud › Rissani › Merzouga

   Ifrane and Azrou with a stop for the Barbary macaques, then the Tizi n'Talghemt pass to Midelt and the Ziz Gorges.

   After lunch via the Ziz Valley, Erfoud and Rissani to Merzouga. Mint tea, then a camel ride of about 1h30 to the camp.

   Erg Chebbi stretches about 20 km long and 5 km wide. The luxury camp has beds, blankets, a shower and a private toilet, plus dinner and breakfast.

   ≈ 475 kmOvernight: Luxury Sahara campMeals: Breakfast + dinner
7. Day 7Erfoud – Tinghir – Todra Gorge – Dades – Valley of Roses – Ouarzazate

   Merzouga › Erfoud › Tinjdad › Tinghir › Todra Gorge › Boumalne Dades › Kelaat M'Gouna › Skoura › Ouarzazate › Ait Ben Haddou

   A 30-minute walk along the Todra river among palms and olive groves, a visit to Amazigh communities, and lunch in the gorge.

   Afternoon along the 'Road of 1,000 Kasbahs' through the Dades Valley, a rose cooperative in Kelaat M'Gouna and the Skoura palm grove.

   Ait Ben Haddou: explore the kasbah, its film history and the rooftop café view; studio visit in Ouarzazate before the hotel.

   ≈ 460 kmOvernight: OuarzazateMeals: Breakfast
8. Day 8Tizi n'Tichka – Marrakech sightseeing

   Ait Ben Haddou › Ouarzazate › Tizi n'Tichka › Marrakech

   Departure at 8:00 with a stop at the top of Tichka, then meet your local guide in Marrakech.

   The Koutoubia, Majorelle Garden, the Saadian Tombs, then the souks (babouches, carpenters, spices, leather) and Jemaa el-Fna.

   ≈ 195 kmOvernight: MarrakechMeals: Breakfast
9. Day 9Marrakech guided tour

   The Koutoubia gardens, Bahia Palace (19th-century court of honour and harem quarters), Jemaa el-Fna, the souks and the Ben Youssef Madrasa.

   Majorelle Garden, created by Jacques Majorelle in the 1920s–30s. Dinner at a restaurant recommended by the team.

   Overnight: MarrakechMeals: Breakfast
10. Day 10Transfer to Casablanca airport

    Marrakech › Casablanca Airport

    Check-out and transfer to Casablanca airport, arriving two hours before your flight.

    ≈ 255 kmMeals: Breakfast

What’s included

Good to know

• Best season for the desert: October to April. In summer daytime heat often exceeds 40°C; in winter nights at camp can drop close to freezing.
• The Tizi n'Tichka pass (about 2,260 m) can get snow or brief closures in winter; the driver adjusts timings to road conditions.
• Pack a small daypack for the camp night (water, charger, warm layer, toiletries). Large luggage stays in the vehicle or hotel.
• Essentials: sunscreen, sunglasses, a scarf/cheche against sand, comfortable shoes and a warm jacket for the evening.
• In the old medinas (Marrakech, Fes, Chefchaouen) wear comfortable shoes; alleys are narrow and unsuitable for wheeled suitcases — riads usually arrange porters.
• Use only official licensed guides and ignore unofficial 'guides' at the medina gates.
• Dress modestly (shoulders and knees covered) near religious sites; Hassan II Mosque is the only mosque open to non-Muslims, on guided visits.

Guided visits on this route

Our local guides also lead these walks and day trips in towns this tour passes through. Ask us to add one.

Read before you go

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