Unique Morocco Experience
ES
A traveler at the entrance of a madrasa with a zellige floor
← All journeysTAILOR-MADE JOURNEY · 10 DAYS

Imperial Cities & the Desert

Tangier → Marrakech

See it day by day
Length10 days · 9 nights
RouteTangier → Marrakech
FormatPrivate, no groups
DatesWhenever you choose

It can be done in either direction, starting in Tangier or in Marrakech, and adjusted in length and accommodation. It is private: no groups and no fixed dates.

THE ROUTE

The route on the map

10 days · 9 nights · from Tangier to Marrakech

  1. 01 Chefchaouen
  2. 02 Volubilis
  3. 03 Fez el Bali
  4. 04 Erg Chebbi
  5. 05 Merzouga
  6. 06 Todra Gorges
  7. 07 Valley of Roses
  8. 08 Aït Ben Haddou
  9. 09 Marrakech
  10. 10 Departure
LaâyouneDakhlaAtlantic Ocean 122112TangierChefchaouenFezMerzougaOuarzazateMarrakechTetouanVolubilisIfraneAzrouRissaniTodra N 100 km Imperial Cities & the Desert10 days · 9 nights · numbers show nights
THE JOURNEY, DAY BY DAY

Ten days, one by one

A traveler on a terrace overlooking the Tangier medina and bay
Day01

Tangier · Chefchaouen

Tangier → Tetouan → Chefchaouen

Pickup at Tangier airport at your flight's arrival time, with a sign bearing the agency's name, and departure for Chaouen. The town was founded as a secret base from which to attack the Portuguese settled on the northern coast, and Europeans were barred from entering until 1920. Today it is a holy city clinging to the mountainside, inside a biosphere reserve, with its streets painted white and blue. Arrival and free afternoon.

Overnight: riad in the medina · Chefchaouen

The triumphal arch of Volubilis above green fields
Day02

Chefchaouen · Volubilis · Fez

Chaouen → Volubilis · Meknes → Fez

After breakfast there is time to explore the medina at an easy pace before heading south. A stop at Volubilis, the best-preserved Roman city in the country, with its mosaics still in the open air, and then in Meknes to see the imperial walls. Arrival in Fez in the late afternoon.

Overnight: riad in the medina · Fez, 2 nights

Dye pits at a Fez tannery
Day03

Fez, the whole city

Fez → full day → local guide

A full day devoted to Fez with a local guide, starting with Fez el Bali, the medieval medina and one of the oldest in the Arab world. You'll walk through the tanneries, the guild souks and the madrasas, and visit the University of al-Qarawiyyin, founded in 859. The afternoon is free to go back on your own to whatever you liked most.

Overnight: the same riad · Fez

Camels arriving at a tented camp in the dunes at sunset
Day04

Fez · Ifrane · Merzouga

Fez → Ifrane · Azrou · Erfoud → Merzouga

An early start across the Middle Atlas. You'll pass through Ifrane, the mountain resort with pitched roofs, and Azrou, with a stop in the cedar forest where colonies of Barbary macaques live. The descent follows the Ziz Valley, between palm groves and adobe kasbahs, down to Erfoud. Arrival in Merzouga at sunset and a camel ride into the dunes.

Overnight: camp in the dunes · Erg Chebbi

A colorful fruit stall in a Moroccan market
Day05

Merzouga · Khamlia · Rissani

Erg Chebbi → Khamlia · Rissani → desert

A full day around the dunes. Khamlia, the village of the Gnawa, descendants of enslaved people brought from the Sahel, and their music. A visit to a nomadic family in their tent, with tea. Rissani and its souk, one of the most authentic in the south, the kohl mines and the dry lake of Dayet Srji. Back to the dunes for sunset and dinner under the stars.

Overnight: private camp · with private bathroom

The winding road of the Dades Gorges at sunset
Day06

Erg Chebbi · Todra · Dades

Merzouga → Erfoud · Todra → Dades Valley

If you like, you can get up early to watch the sunrise from the top of a dune and ride back to the hotel by camel. Then Erfoud, known for its fossil quarries more than 380 million years old, and the Todra Gorges, a favorite spot for climbers, with time to walk between the rock walls. The road continues to the Dades Valley along the Route of a Thousand Kasbahs.

Overnight: mountain hotel · by the Dades River

The ksar of Aït Ben Haddou, its mud-brick kasbahs climbing the hill
Day07

Dades · Roses · Ouarzazate

Dades → Boutaghrar · Skoura → Ouarzazate

The Dades Gorges, following the course of the river, among strange rock formations, abandoned kasbahs and Berber villages. You'll take the little-traveled Boutaghrar track and enter the Valley of Roses, where the locals make creams, soaps and the famous rose water. Then the Skoura palm grove and its kasbah.

Overnight: hotel in Ouarzazate · 1 night

A whitewashed house among palm trees
Day08

Ouarzazate · Aït Ben Haddou · Marrakech

Ouarzazate → Telouet · Tizi n'Tichka → Marrakech

A visit to Aït Ben Haddou, the fortified kasbah listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site, and to Telouet with the Glaoui palace, which lies off the main road. Crossing of the High Atlas over the Tizi n'Tichka pass, at 2,260 m (7,415 ft), and descent toward the Haouz plain.

Overnight: riad in the medina · Marrakech, 2 nights

Jemaa el-Fna square at dusk with the Koutoubia minaret behind
Day09

Marrakech, the red city

Marrakech → full day → local guide

A tour of Marrakech with a local guide: the monuments, the gardens and the medina. The afternoon is free for Djemaa el Fna square and the souks, which is when the city really comes alive.

Overnight: the same riad · Marrakech

Jemaa el-Fna food stalls lit up at night, with the Koutoubia behind
Day10

Marrakech · airport

Marrakech → airport

Free time depending on your flight schedule and transfer to Marrakech airport at whatever time you need. End of our services.

Transfer included · any time

A small camel caravan crossing the Erg Chebbi dunes

Can you picture this trip?

We’ll adapt it to your dates, your pace and the style of accommodation you prefer.

Plan this tripMessage us on WhatsApp
MORE TAILOR-MADE JOURNEYS

More ways to discover Morocco

Blue-painted steps and flowerpots in the Chefchaouen medina7 days

Paths of Legends and Landscapes

Tangier → Marrakech
Chefchaouen's blue houses on the mountainside at sunset4 days

Northern Morocco

Tangier → Tangier
Panoramic view over the rooftops of the Fez medina6 days

Imperial Cities Circuit

Tangier → Tangier
The Ouzoud waterfalls in the Middle Atlas12 days

Route of Natural Wonders

Tangier → Tangier
A traveler walking across the desert8 days

Coastal Escape to Morocco

Tangier → Casablanca
A couple overlooking Chefchaouen6 days

Chefchaouen, Fez & Nomadic Desert

Tangier → Tangier