Morocco at a slower pace: Fes, the Sahara, the kasbahs and Marrakech

1. Day 1: Arrive in Fes, a quiet first evening

   Fes airport (FEZ) to your hotel, about 25 minutes (15 km)

   • Drive about 30 min
   • Welcome dinner
   • Stay in Fes
   Day 1 details

   We meet you at Fes Saiss Airport (FEZ) and drive about 25 minutes to your hotel at the edge of the old city, where we ask for a vehicle drop at the door and a lift to every guest floor. There is nothing to do today except rest after the flight. Your room is yours from mid-afternoon, and if you land early your guide holds your bags and finds you a shaded courtyard and a mint tea while you wait. At about 6 pm the group meets in the hotel for a short briefing: how the days run, when the early mornings are and why, what to wear in the medina, and how the luggage moves at every change so you never lift a case. Then we walk a few steps, or drive if it is far, to a welcome dinner of Moroccan dishes. With three nights in Fes, nobody has to repack tomorrow.

   Included

   • Pick-up at Fes Saiss Airport (FEZ)
   • Group briefing at the hotel
   • Welcome dinner

   Free time: Afternoon free to rest

   Activity: Almost no walking today

2. Day 2: Fes el-Bali, downhill all the way

   A guided morning in the old medina, then a free afternoon

   • Breakfast and lunch
   • Stay in Fes
   Day 2 details

   Fes el-Bali, the old medina, is a UNESCO World Heritage Site and a maze of lanes too narrow for cars, built on a slope that falls toward the river. So we plan the walk downhill. The van drops you at Bab Bou Jeloud, the blue-tiled gate at the top, at about 9 am, and a licensed local guide leads you through at a slow pace, with tea stops on the way. You see the Bou Inania madrasa, with carved cedar and zellige tilework from the 1350s, the Al-Attarine madrasa, and the outside of the University of al-Qarawiyyin, founded in 859. Mid-morning, when the sun reaches the dye pits, those who wish climb a shop staircase to look down on the Chouara tannery. Lunch is at a restaurant near Place R'cif, where the van waits at the bottom of the hill to take you back. The afternoon is free.

   Included

   • Guided walk of Fes el-Bali with a licensed local guide
   • Bou Inania and Al-Attarine madrasas
   • Chouara tannery viewing terraces
   • Lunch near Place R'cif

   Easier option: Skip the tannery stairs and wait with a tea in Place Seffarine, the coppersmiths' square, while the others go up.

   Free time: Afternoon free

   Activity: About 3 km on foot, mostly downhill on uneven stone, with stops every 20 to 30 minutes. Leave the hotel about 9 am.

   

3. Day 3: Volubilis in the morning, a cooking class at night

   About 1 hour 15 minutes each way (80 km) to Volubilis

   • Drive about 2.5 h
   • Breakfast, lunch and dinner
   • Stay in Fes
   Day 3 details

   A later start, about 9 am, for the drive west through olive groves to Volubilis, the best-preserved Roman city in Morocco and a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1997. We go in the morning because the site has almost no shade. A local guide follows the main paved street rather than the whole site: the basilica, the capitol, the Arch of Caracalla, put up in 217, and the floor mosaics still lying where they were laid in the houses beside it. Benches at the entrance and in the shade of the museum pavilion give you a rest halfway, and you can stop there and watch the others walk on. Across the valley sits Moulay Idriss Zerhoun, the white hilltop town that is one of the holiest places in Morocco. Lunch is in a garden restaurant near the site, and you are back in Fes by mid-afternoon. In the evening, a cooking class with dinner.

   Included

   • Guided visit to Volubilis with a local guide
   • Lunch near Volubilis
   • Moroccan cooking class with dinner

   Easier option: Walk only the first part, to the basilica and the capitol, about 1 km, and wait on a bench at the entrance.

   Free time: Late afternoon free before the cooking class

   Activity: About 2 km on foot at Volubilis on uneven Roman paving, in the sun; the cooking class is seated.

   

4. Day 4: Over the Middle Atlas to Midelt

   About 4 hours (230 km) in three stretches, by Ifrane and Azrou

   • Drive about 4 h
   • Breakfast and lunch
   • Stay in Midelt
   Day 4 details

   This is one of the trip's longer days, because Fes and the Sahara are far apart and there is no airport between them. We break it into three short stretches, none over about 2 hours. After a 9 am start, about 1 hour brings you up to Ifrane, a town laid out in the late 1920s with steep roofs and parks that look Alpine, for a coffee and a short level walk by the lion statue. Another 30 minutes takes you into the cedar forest near Azrou, where Barbary macaques, an endangered monkey, live; you can watch them from beside the van. Lunch is in Azrou. The last 2 hours cross high open plateaus to Midelt, about 1,500 m up between the Middle and High Atlas. You arrive mid-afternoon with nothing left to do, and you stay two nights, so you unpack only once.

   Included

   • Ifrane
   • Cedar forest near Azrou
   • Lunch in Azrou

   Free time: Late afternoon free

   Activity: Short level walks only, under 1 km in all

5. Day 5: A day off in the apple country

   A free morning, then an easy afternoon around Midelt

   • Breakfast and dinner
   • Stay in Midelt
   Day 5 details

   Today is a pause before the desert, and the long drive is behind you. Sleep in, take a slow breakfast, and enjoy the clear mountain air: Midelt is known for its apple orchards, and on a clear day the peak of Jbel Ayachi, often still white in spring, closes the view to the south. Nothing is scheduled before lunch. In the afternoon your guide offers a gentle outing by van to the edge of town, with a short level walk through orchards and the lanes of an old earth-walled ksar, the fortified villages of the region, and a visit to a family home for tea if one is arranged for your date. It lasts about 2 hours and is easy to skip if you would rather read on the terrace. Dinner is at the hotel, early, with a quiet evening, because tomorrow you go down to the Sahara.

   Included

   • Afternoon outing to the orchards and an old ksar near Midelt

   Free time: Morning free

   Activity: About 1.5 km of level walking in the afternoon, optional

6. Day 6: Down the Ziz valley to a camp in the dunes

   About 4.5 hours (275 km) in three stretches, then 30 minutes by 4x4

   • Drive about 4.5 h
   • Breakfast, lunch and dinner
   • Stay in Merzouga
   Day 6 details

   The second long day, broken like the first. About 1.5 hours south of Midelt the road crosses the eastern High Atlas and drops into the Ziz Gorges through the Legionnaire's Tunnel, built in the late 1920s; we stop at a viewpoint over the long ribbon of date palms below. Lunch is in Errachidia or Erfoud, and the last stretch of about 1.5 hours runs to Merzouga, on the edge of Erg Chebbi, a sea of dunes that rise to about 150 m. There, 4x4 vehicles take you and your bags about 30 minutes across the sand to the desert camp, chosen for tents with beds, a private bathroom and a flat path to the dining tent. You stay two nights, so there is no early start tomorrow. Sunset you can watch from a chair at the camp. Dinner is in the camp, then the stars.

   Included

   • Ziz Gorges and the Legionnaire's Tunnel
   • Lunch on the way
   • 4x4 transfer to the desert camp
   • Dinner in the desert camp

   Optional experiences

   • Short camel ride at sunset, about 30 minutes, with a handler leading each camel

   Easier option: Watch the sunset from the camp's chairs rather than the dune behind it.

   More active option: Walk 15 to 20 minutes up the nearest dune for sunset, at your own pace.

   Free time: Late afternoon free at camp

   Activity: Under 1 km on foot; soft sand around the camp

7. Day 7: A whole day in the Sahara

   A free morning, Gnawa music in Khamlia, a second desert night

   • Breakfast, lunch and dinner
   • Stay in Merzouga
   Day 7 details

   If you want to see the sun come up over the dunes, it only means stepping out of your tent with a blanket; nobody is woken for it. Breakfast is late, and the morning is yours to rest, read in the shade or watch the light shift on the sand. Late morning the 4x4s take you about 20 minutes to Khamlia, a village whose Gnawa families trace their roots across the Sahara to West Africa. You sit in a courtyard to hear their music, played on drums and the iron castanets called qraqeb, with tea. Lunch is back at camp, then the afternoon heat is for resting. In the late afternoon your guide offers a short walk to a dune top for those who want it, or you can stay put. Dinner is in the camp under the stars, often with music around the fire.

   Included

   • Gnawa music in Khamlia
   • Lunch and dinner in the desert camp

   Optional experiences

   • Camel ride at sunset, about 30 minutes to 1 hour

   Easier option: Stay at camp all day; Khamlia is optional.

   More active option: A dune walk at sunrise or sunset, about 30 minutes of climbing in soft sand.

   Free time: Morning and afternoon free

   Activity: Seated visit in Khamlia; walking at camp is on soft sand

   

8. Day 8: From the dunes to the Todra oasis

   About 3.5 hours (220 km) in three stretches to Tinghir

   • Drive about 3.5 h
   • Breakfast, lunch and dinner
   • Stay in Tinghir
   Day 8 details

   The 4x4s bring you back to Merzouga after breakfast at about 9 am, where the van and your bags are waiting. The drive west is broken into three stretches of about an hour each. The first runs through Rissani and Erfoud; the second crosses stony desert by Tinejdad, where you stop to see a line of khettara, old hand-dug channels that carry water underground to the palm groves, from a short level path. The third brings you to Tinghir, a town of earth-walled villages above a long green oasis below the Todra Gorge. Lunch is at your hotel or near it, and the afternoon is free. There are two nights here, so you can leave the larger bags packed and still spend tomorrow at the gorge in the best light. Dinner is at the hotel.

   Included

   • Khettara channels near Tinejdad
   • Lunch in Tinghir

   Free time: Afternoon free

   Activity: Under 1 km on foot, level ground

9. Day 9: The Todra Gorge at midday

   About 30 minutes (15 km) each way, then a free afternoon

   • Drive about 1 h
   • Breakfast
   • Stay in Tinghir
   Day 9 details

   A slow morning, then about 30 minutes by van up the Todra valley, past the palm groves of the oasis, to the gorge itself. We time it for late morning, when the sun reaches the floor between the sheer rock walls, about 300 m high at the narrowest point. The road runs flat beside a shallow river, so the walk through the narrows is level and short, about 1 km, and the van waits at both ends. There are cafes with chairs in the shade at the entrance. On the way back you stop at a viewpoint over the oasis and the old villages of Tinghir. Lunch is in the valley, and you are back at the hotel by about 2 pm. The afternoon is free. If you have energy left, your guide can walk you through the lanes of the old quarter before sunset.

   Included

   • Todra Gorge with your guide
   • Viewpoint over the Tinghir oasis

   More active option: A longer walk of about 2 hours on a path through the oasis gardens with your guide.

   Free time: Afternoon free

   Activity: About 1 km of level walking in the gorge

10. Day 10: The Road of a Thousand Kasbahs to Ait Benhaddou

    About 3.5 hours (200 km) in three stretches, by Skoura and Ouarzazate

    • Drive about 3.5 h
    • Breakfast, lunch and dinner
    • Stay in Ait Benhaddou
    Day 10 details

    Three stretches today, each under about 1.5 hours. After a 9 am start you drive west past Boumalne Dades and Kelaat M'Gouna, the valley of roses, where in spring the hedges of Damask roses are picked for rose water. The second stretch brings you to the Skoura oasis and Kasbah Amridil, a 17th-century family fortress of earth and palm wood. The ground floor courtyard and rooms are level; the upper floors are reached by steep, narrow stairs, so you can stop at the bottom. Lunch is in Ouarzazate, and about 30 minutes more brings you to Ait Benhaddou, where you sleep beside the ksar for two nights. Late afternoon, sit on a terrace across the river and watch the light turn the earth walls red. Dinner is at the hotel.

    Included

    • Kasbah Amridil in Skoura
    • Lunch in Ouarzazate
    • Sunset view of the ksar from across the river

    Easier option: See Kasbah Amridil's ground floor and courtyard only.

    Free time: Evening free

    Activity: About 1 km on foot; steep stairs at the kasbah are optional

11. Day 11: Ait Benhaddou in the late light

    A free morning, then the ksar after the day coaches leave

    • Breakfast and dinner
    • Stay in Ait Benhaddou
    Day 11 details

    A free morning, with nowhere to be. The ksar of Ait Benhaddou is a fortified village on the old caravan route between the Sahara and Marrakech, a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1987, and a film set for Lawrence of Arabia and Gladiator. Day coaches arrive from Marrakech from late morning, so we wait. At about 4 pm your guide walks you across the footbridge into the lower lanes, which are fairly gentle, to see the houses, the courtyards and the gate. The lanes then turn into steep earth steps up to the old granary at the top, which only some will want to climb; there is a cafe with seats at the foot of the climb, and the view of the walls from below is the classic one. Back across the river for sunset and a quiet dinner.

    Included

    • Guided visit to the ksar of Ait Benhaddou in the late afternoon

    Optional experiences

    • Atlas Film Studios in Ouarzazate, about 30 minutes away by van

    Easier option: Visit the lower lanes only, about 30 minutes, then rest at the cafe at the foot of the climb.

    More active option: Climb the steep earth steps to the granary at the top, about 20 minutes up.

    Free time: Morning free

    Activity: About 1.5 km on uneven earth lanes; the climb to the top is optional

    

12. Day 12: Over the Tizi n'Tichka to Marrakech

    About 4 hours (190 km) in three stretches, over the High Atlas

    • Drive about 4 h
    • Breakfast and lunch
    • Stay in Marrakech
    Day 12 details

    The last long drive, and the road is the reason for it: the only way from the south to Marrakech is over the High Atlas. After a 9 am start the road climbs through Amazigh (Berber) villages and switchbacks to the Tizi n'Tichka pass at 2,260 m, about 1.5 hours away, where you stop for the view and a coffee. Lunch is on the north side in the valley, and the last stretch drops through walnut trees and red earth to the Marrakech plain. You reach your hotel by about 3 pm and the rest of the day is free. Your hotel is chosen with a lift and a vehicle drop at the door, so you are not walking bags through the souks. If you want the medina tonight, your guide can drop you by van at the Koutoubia and collect you later.

    Included

    • Tizi n'Tichka pass
    • Lunch in the High Atlas

    Free time: Afternoon and evening free

    Activity: Short stops only; mountain bends for much of the morning

13. Day 13: Majorelle at opening, the medina and a farewell

    Jardin Majorelle, the Bahia Palace and Jemaa el-Fna by van and on foot

    • Drive about 30 min
    • Breakfast, lunch and dinner
    • Stay in Marrakech
    Day 13 details

    One early morning in Marrakech, because the sight demands it: Jardin Majorelle, the cobalt-blue garden of cactus and bamboo later owned by Yves Saint Laurent, is calm only at opening, and tickets are timed, so we book yours. Then the van drops you by the Bahia Palace, where a licensed local guide shows you the carved and painted rooms of the 19th century, and the Koutoubia mosque, whose 12th-century minaret is the city's landmark. The souks come after in a short stretch with no shop stops, and lunch is in a riad restaurant. The afternoon is free, with the hammam as an option. At golden hour, a cafe terrace with seats above Jemaa el-Fna, the main square, shows the food stalls setting up below, a scene UNESCO lists as intangible heritage. Farewell dinner tonight.

    Included

    • Jardin Majorelle timed entry at opening
    • Guided visit of the Bahia Palace and the Koutoubia with a licensed local guide
    • Lunch in the medina
    • Golden hour on a terrace above Jemaa el-Fna
    • Farewell dinner

    Optional experiences

    • Traditional hammam with scrub

    Easier option: Skip the souks and rest at the hotel between lunch and the evening.

    Free time: Afternoon free

    Activity: About 3 km on foot over the day in short stretches, with the van between them; leave the hotel about 7:45 am

    

14. Day 14: Departure from Marrakech

    Hotel to Marrakech Menara Airport (RAK), about 20 minutes

    • Breakfast
    Day 14 details

    Your last morning is free, with breakfast at the hotel and no need to rush. If your flight leaves in the afternoon, there is time to sit in the hotel garden, go back by taxi for the lamp or rug you were still thinking about yesterday, or visit the small museums of the medina at your own pace; your guide can suggest which suit the time you have. Hotel check-out is usually late morning, and the hotel holds your bags until you leave. When it is time, we drive you to Marrakech Menara Airport (RAK), about 20 minutes from the city centre, in good time for your flight: plan on reaching the airport about three hours before an international departure. If you are flying home through Casablanca, leave plenty of room for the connection, and tell us your flight times when you book so the transfer is set.

    Included

    • Drop-off at Marrakech Menara Airport (RAK)

    Free time: Morning free

Wildlife and weather: Spring and autumn are mild, but the desert swings from warm days to cold nights, sometimes near freezing in March and November, so bring a warm layer for the camp. June to August is very hot inland, often above 38 °C (100 °F) in the Sahara, and is not offered for this version. Snow can close the Tizi n'Tichka pass for a few hours in winter and early spring. A sandstorm can hide a desert sunrise; with two nights you get a second chance.

• Fes3 nights
• Midelt2 nights
• Merzouga2 nights
• Tinghir2 nights
• Ait Benhaddou2 nights
• Marrakech2 nights