12 Days: Imperial Cities, Sahara & Chefchaouen

Overview

In short: Private tour · 12 days / 11 nights, starting and ending in Casablanca airport — about 2,560 km and 26 places, including 2 nights in the desert.

Duration

12 days / 11 nights

Starts

Casablanca airport

Ends

Casablanca airport

Tour type

Private tour

Group size

Up to 50 travellers

Language

Flexible, on request

Distance

≈ 2,560 km in total

Stops

26 places

A 12-day private circuit that adds the Atlantic to the classic north-and-desert route: Chefchaouen, Volubilis, Meknes and Fes, two nights in the Erg Chebbi desert with a 4×4 and quad outing, a long crossing to Marrakech via Ait Ben Haddou, a day in the Ourika Valley, and a finale in Essaouira with a surf lesson and a free day.

Local guides are included in Casablanca, Chefchaouen, Fes, Marrakech and Essaouira.

Highlights

• Chefchaouen, the Blue City
• Fes
• Meknes
• Volubilis
• Ifrane
• Desert glamping
• Camel ride
• Nomads and Amazigh villages
• Ouarzazate, 'Hollywood of Morocco'
• Kasbah Ait Ben Haddou
• Marrakech and its medina
• Ourika Valley
• Essaouira and a surf session

Route

• Day 1
• Day 3
• Day 5
• Day 6
• Day 7
• Day 9
• Day 10
• Day 12

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 1Arrival in Casablanca – Hassan II Mosque – Chefchaouen

   Casablanca Airport › Casablanca › Chefchaouen

   Airport pick-up and breakfast at an oceanfront restaurant, then a stop on the Corniche for the sea view.

   With a local guide: Hassan II Mosque, then the Morocco Mall, and a direct drive to Chefchaouen.

   ≈ 390 kmOvernight: Riad in Chefchaouen
2. Day 2Chefchaouen with a local guide

   Blue walls, doors and shops of the medina; the new town with its Andalusian architecture and the park at the end of Avenue Mohammed V.

   Overnight: ChefchaouenMeals: Breakfast
3. Day 3Chefchaouen – Volubilis – Meknes – Fes

   Chefchaouen › Volubilis › Meknes › Fes

   Across the farmland of the Rif foothills to the Roman ruins of Volubilis.

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

   ≈ 255 kmOvernight: FesMeals: Breakfast
4. Day 4A full day in the Fes medina

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

   Overnight: Riad in FesMeals: Breakfast
5. Day 5Fes – Ifrane – Midelt – Ziz Gorges – Merzouga (luxury camp)

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

   Ifrane and Azrou (Barbary macaques), the Tizi n'Talghemt pass, Midelt and the Ziz Gorges; lunch near Errachidia.

   Mint tea in Merzouga, then a camel ride of about 1h30 to a luxury camp with beds, shower and private toilet.

   ≈ 475 kmOvernight: Luxury desert campMeals: Breakfast + dinner
6. Day 6Erg Chebbi – Khamlia – Merzouga lake – Rissani

   Merzouga › Khamlia › Rissani › Merzouga

   Sunrise over the dunes, breakfast, then an ATV ride back to Riad Café du Sud.

   4×4 exploration: Khamlia and its Gnawa music (a community with sub-Saharan roots), Merzouga's seasonal lake with birds and sometimes flamingos, and a nomad home.

   Rissani, birthplace of Moulay Ali Cherif, founder of the Alaouite dynasty. Lunch: 'Berber pizza' (madfouna), stuffed bread baked in the embers.

   ≈ 100 kmOvernight: Desert campMeals: Breakfast + dinner
7. Day 7Tinghir – Todra – Dades – Valley of Roses – Ouarzazate – Ait Ben Haddou – Marrakech

   Merzouga › Erfoud › Tinghir › Todra Gorge › Boumalne Dades › Kelaat M'Gouna › Ouarzazate › Ait Ben Haddou › Tizi n'Tichka › Marrakech

   Sunrise, breakfast, then a long drive: the Todra valley, the Dades Gorge and its 'monkey fingers' rocks, and a rose cooperative.

   Ouarzazate's Cinema Museum and Atlas Studios, then two hours at Ait Ben Haddou with a local guide.

   Over Tizi n'Tichka to Marrakech and a free evening at Jemaa el-Fna.

   ≈ 595 kmOvernight: MarrakechMeals: Breakfast
8. Day 8Marrakech with a local guide

   Palaces, the Jewish quarter, Bahia Palace, Menara gardens, the Saadian Tombs, the Koutoubia, Ben Youssef Madrasa and museum, the ramparts, Majorelle Garden and Jemaa el-Fna.

   Optional evening: dinner-show at Chez Ali (music and horse show).

   Overnight: Riad/hotel in the Marrakech medinaMeals: Breakfast
9. Day 9Day trip to the Ourika Valley

   Marrakech › Ourika / Setti Fatma › Marrakech

   Leave at 9:00 across the Haouz plain: a pottery workshop and a women's argan-oil cooperative.

   Tnine Ourika, one of the region's largest weekly Amazigh souks, then Setti Fatma along the river. Optional hike to the waterfalls with local guides, and lunch at a riverside café.

   Return to Marrakech in the late afternoon.

   ≈ 140 kmOvernight: MarrakechMeals: Breakfast
10. Day 10Marrakech – argan forest – Essaouira (guided visit + surf)

    Marrakech › Argan forest › Essaouira

    Leave at 8:00 via Sidi Mokhtar and the argan forest, where goats climb the trees; an argan cooperative and optionally the Val d'Argan vineyard.

    With a local guide: the medina, the Mellah, the Kasbah (sqala) and the fishing port. Lunch at a local eatery.

    Afternoon surf session of about 3–4 hours with an instructor; evening on Place Moulay Hassan with Gnawa music.

    ≈ 230 kmOvernight: Riad in EssaouiraMeals: Breakfast
11. Day 11Free day in Essaouira

    Free day to enjoy the beach, the medina and the port.

    Overnight: EssaouiraMeals: Breakfast
12. Day 12Transfer to Casablanca airport

    Essaouira › Casablanca Airport

    Check-out and transfer to Casablanca airport (≈ 5 hours by road), arriving two hours before your flight.

    ≈ 375 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.
• Essaouira is windy most of the year — bring a windproof layer; the Atlantic is cool even in summer.

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.

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