Casablanca Trip Overview
Spend eight days exploring Morocco with a dedicated guide on this comprehensive tour. Planning an excursion like this may be difficult and time consuming, but booking this tour means that everything is arranged for you and you can focus on enjoying yourself. After hotel pickup in Casablanca, head out to visit the famous Chefchaouen, Fes, Merzouga desert and kasbahs, and other important points of interest.
Additional Info
* Duration: 8 days
* Starts: Casablanca, Morocco
* Trip Category: Cultural & Theme Tours >> Cultural Tours
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What to Expect When Visiting Casablanca, Casablanca-Settat, Morocco
Spend eight days exploring Morocco with a dedicated guide on this comprehensive tour. Planning an excursion like this may be difficult and time consuming, but booking this tour means that everything is arranged for you and you can focus on enjoying yourself. After hotel pickup in Casablanca, head out to visit the famous Chefchaouen, Fes, Merzouga desert and kasbahs, and other important points of interest.
Itinerary
Day 1: Casablanca airport transfer
Pass By: Casablanca, Casablanca, Casablanca-Settat
Pick up from the airport in Casablanca – Check in your hotel and relaxation.
No meals included on this day.
Accommodation included: Overnight stay in Casablanca: Hôtel Club Val d’Anfa or similar
Day 2: Casablanca – Rabat – Chefchaouen
Stop At: Casablanca, Casablanca, Casablanca-Settat
The journey starts with an excursion of Casablanca. The visit includes Mohammad V square, an Airy square built-in 1916 amid French Colonial buildings, with a statue & pigeon-covered fountain. And Hassan II mosque was completed in 1993, designed by Michel Pinseau and built by Bouygues.
The mosque is considered the second-largest in Africa after the Algiers grand mosque, and 7th in the world. The mosque also has the world’s second tallest minaret at 210 meters.
Duration: 2 hours
Stop At: Rabat, Rabat, Rabat-Sale-Kenitra
The journey continues to Rabat to visit the UNESCO World Heritage Site Oudaya. Hassan tower, a minaret of an incomplete mosque which built by the third Caliph of the Almohad Caliphate in 1195, along with Mohammed V mausoleum that has the tombs of three kings (Mohammad V, Hassan II, and Prince Abdallah)
Duration: 30 minutes
Stop At: Chefchaouen, Chefchaouen, Tanger-Tetouan-Al Hoceima
driving via the highway then via the free road through the charming towns and villages of the Rif Mountains—reaching Chefchaoune, a blue-washed building of its old town—well known with its shady main square of Place Outa el Hammam that is the red-walled Kasbah, a 15th-century fortress and dungeon, Ethnographic Museum, and the octagonal minaret nearby. Free time and overnight stay in Chefchaouen.
Duration: 12 hours
Meals included:
• Breakfast
Accommodation included: Overnight stay in Chefchaouen: Dar Echchaouen or similar
Day 3: From Chefchaouen to Fes via Volubilis – Molay Idriss – Meknes
Stop At: Volubilis, Morocco
After breakfast, we travel to Fes visiting Volubilis.
The city is the best-preserved archaeological site in Morocco & was declared a UNESCO World Heritage site in 1997. Its most amazing features are its many beautiful mosaics preserved in situ. The site was originally settled by Carthaginian traders in the 3rd century BC. One of the Roman Empire’s most remote outposts, Volubilis was annexed in about AD 40. According to some historians, Rome imposed strict controls on what could sand could not be produced in its North African possessions, according to the needs of the empire. One result was massive deforestation & the large-scale planting of wheat around Volubilis. As the neighboring Berber tribes began to reassert themselves, so the Romans abandoned Volubilis around 280. Nevertheless, the city’s populations of Berbers, Greeks, Jews, & Syrians continued to speak Latin till the arrival of Islam. The building felled by the Lisbon Earthquake of 1755.
Duration: 30 minutes
Stop At: Moulay Idriss Zerhoun, Meknes 50353 Morocco
After the visit of Volubilis, we drive to the picturesque whitewashed town of Moulay Idriss sits astride two green hills in a cradle of mountains slightly less than 5km from Volubilis and is one of the country’s most important pilgrimage sites. It is named for Moulay Idriss, a great-grandson of the prophet Mohammed, the founder of the country’s first real dynasty, and morocco’s most revered saint. His tomb is at the heart of the town. We head to a terrace that provides a vantage point high above the mausoleum and most of the town for pictures.
Duration: 10 minutes
Pass By: Meknes, Meknes, Fes-Meknes
We reach Meknes to visit three major landmarks.
Meknes is the fourth imperial city, quieter and smaller than its grand neighbor, it is also more laid-back with less hassle, yet still has all the winding narrow medina streets and grand buildings that it warrants as a one-time home of the Moroccan sultanate. Meknes is blessed with a hinterland abundant with cereals, olives, wine, citrus fruit, and other agricultural products that remain the city’s backbone.
Stop At: Bab Mansour Gate, 17, Rue Ain El Anboub et Rue Lalla Aicha Adouia Quartier HAMMAM JDID, Meknes 52000 Morocco
The focus of the Place el-Hedim is the huge gate of Bab el-Mansour, the grandest of all imperial Moroccan gateways. The gate is well preserved with lavish Zellij and inscriptions across the top. It was completed by Moulay Ismail’s son, Moulay Abdallah, in 1732.
Duration: 10 minutes
Stop At: Heri es Souani, Meknes Morocco
We visit in Meknes Heri es Souani. It is Moulay Ismail’s immense granaries and stables, Heries Souani, that were ingeniously designed. Tiny windows, massive walls, and a system of underfloor water channels kept the temperatures cool and air circulating. The building provided stabling and food for an incredible 12000 horses, and Moulay Ismail regarded it as one of his finest architectural projects.
Duration: 20 minutes
Stop At: Sahrij Swani, Meknes Morocco
Immediately north of the granaries and stables lies an enormous stone-lined lake, the Agdal Basin. Fes by a complex system of irrigation channels some 25km long, it served as both a reservoir for the sultan’s gardens and a pleasant lake. There are plenty of benches to break our stroll around the water, and a giant Giacometti-like statue of a traditional water seller.
Duration: 10 minutes
Stop At: Fes, Fes, Fes-Meknes
We reach Fes by early evening. Free time & overnight stay in Fes
Duration: 10 hours
Meals included:
• Breakfast
Accommodation included: Overnight stay in Fes: Riad Ahlam or similar
Day 4: Fes sightseeing
Pass By: Fes, Fes, Fes-Meknes
Following breakfast at the hotel, our accredited local guide will accompany you on a walking tour of Fes to learn more about our culture and history. We visit rich historical landmarks like The royal palace, The Jewish quarter, Borj Nord, Madrasa Bou Inania, Chaouwara Tanneries, and much more
Stop At: Royal Palace of Fez, Avenue Omar Ibnou Khattab, Fes 30004 Morocco
We start our visit with the Royal Palace. The entrance to the palace is stunning, an example of modern restoration, but the 80 hectares of palace grounds are not open to the public. We must suffice with viewing its imposing brass doors, surrounded by fine zellij and carved cedarwood.
After breakfast, a licensed guide takes you on a journey to visit Fes starting with the royale palace. The entrance to the palace is stunning, an example of modern restoration, but the 80 hectares of palace grounds are not open to the public. We must suffice with viewing its imposing brass doors, surrounded by fine zellij and carved cedarwood.
We walk through the Jewish quarter (Mellah). In the 14th century, Fes became a refuge for Jews, thus creating a Mellah (Jewish quarter). Their old houses remain, with their open balconies looking onto the streets a marked contrast to Muslim styles.
Duration: 30 minutes
Stop At: Borj Nord, Avenue des Merinides, Fes 30030 Morocco
Our next stop is Borj Nord, we head up here for one of the best panoramas of the city. Like its counterpart on the southern hills (Borj Sud). Borj Nord was built by Sultan Ahmed al-Mansour in the late 16th century to monitor the potentially disloyal populace of Fes.
Duration: 10 minutes
Stop At: Bou Inania Medersa, Rue Talaa Sghira, Fes 30110 Morocco
wandering in the vast old Medina of Fes, we visit one of famous landmarks. It is the finest of Fes theological colleges. It was built by the Marinid sultan Bouinan between 1350 & 1357. The madrasa underwent extensive restoration a few years ago, and the results are amazing: elaborate zellij and carved plaster, beautiful cedar, and massive brass doors.
Duration: 20 minutes
Stop At: Chouara Tannery, Hay Lablida Chouara, Fes 30030 Morocco
We finish our day by visiting the famous Tannery of Fes. One of the three tanneries in the city of Fez, Morocco. It is the largest tannery in the city and one of the oldest. The tanning industry in the city is considered one of the main tourist attractions. The tanneries are packed with round stone vessels filled with dye or white liquids for softening the hides. The leather goods produced in the tanneries are exported around the world.
Free time & overnight stay in Fes.
Duration: 20 minutes
Meals included:
• Breakfast
Accommodation included: Overnight stay in Fes: Riad Ahlam or similar
Day 5: Fes – Ifran – Midelt – Errachidia – Erfoud – Merzouga
Pass By: Fes, Fes, Fes-Meknes
After breakfast, early departure to Merzouga desert through Ifran Midelt, Errachidia & Erfoud.
Stop At: Ifrane, Ifrane, Fes-Meknes
We stop in Ifrane, tidy, & modern, it feels more like Switzerland relocated to the Middle Atlas than North Africa. the French-built Ifrane in the 1930s, deliberately trying to recreate an alpine-style resort. It has neat red-roofed houses, blooming flower beds, and lake-studded parks, all kept impeccably tidy.
Ifran’s famous landmark is the stone lion that sits on a patch of grass. It was carved by a German soldier during WWII when Ifrane was briefly as a prisoner-of-war camp and commemorates the last wild lion, which was shot near here in the early 1920s.
Duration: 15 minutes
Stop At: Azrou Cedar Forest, Azrou Morocco
Just few kilometers from Ifran, we stop at the Cedar forests of Azrou that are notable as a habitat for a sub-population of Barbary macaques, we might be lucky to spot a troupe foraging in the woods.
Duration: 10 minutes
Pass By: Midelt, Midelt, Meknes-Tafilalet Region
The drive take you through Midelt. It sits in apple country between the Middle and the High Atlas. The landscape offers some breathtaking views, especially of the eastern High Atlas, which seem to rise out of nowhere. Midelt consists of little more than one main street (Ave Mohammed V in the north, which becomes Ave Hassan II to the south), and a modest souq.
Pass By: Errachidia, Errachidia, Meknes-Tafilalet Region
We drive also through Errachidia. Garrison towns are not generally known for their hospitality or culture, but Errachidia is trying to change that with the hospitality of its people. Besides Errachidia is home to a sizable military population stationed here to keep an eye on the nearby border with Algeria, it is also home to the enormous theatre that hosts performers from throughout the Sahara at the festival du Desert.
Pass By: Erfoud, Erfoud, Meknes-Tafilalet Region
The last town to reach the desert is Erfoud. A Fossilized bathtubs and moist, sweet dates are Erfoud’s current claims to fame, though it was once the end of the road. In September or October Erfoud has an increasingly well-attended date festival, with dancing and music. The market at the southern end of town sells local dates alongside fresh produce.
Stop At: Erg Chebbi, Erg Chebbi, Meknes-Tafilalet Region
As we reach Merzouga desert, we will mount our camels and trek into the pink sands of the Moroccan Sahara; here, we will have ample free time for you to explore and take in the beauty and vastness of the desert dunes. Once the sun sets, a Moroccan dinner will be served alongside live music around the campfire, after which you are free to explore again – this time in the company of a million stars exploding against the pitch-black sky, and the all-encompassing silence of the Sahara at night.
Duration: 10 hours
Meals included:
• Breakfast
• Dinner
Accommodation included: Overnight at Tiziri luxurious desert camp
Day 6: Merzouga – Skoura
Pass By: Rissani, Rissani, Meknes-Tafilalet Region
Early wake up to watch the magical colors before it, breakfast then traveling to Skoura. The drive takes you through Errissani, the ancient capital of Tafilalet (historically Sijilmasa, is a region and the largest oasis in Morocco)
Stop At: Todgha Gorge, R 703 near the town of Tinerhir, Tinerhir 45520 Morocco
We drive to the charming city Tinghir is known for its magnificent palm-grove and visiting its famous series of limestone river canyons in the eastern part of the High Atlas Mountains, where every scene could easily inspire an artistic masterpiece that is also known with Todgha gorge.
Duration: 15 minutes
Stop At: Skoura, Skoura, Beni Mellal-Khenifra
The trip continues through the valley of the roses that attracts the romantic at heart who likely to faint at the opportunity to visit it, especially in the spring, taking the road known as the one thousand kasbahs road visiting Amridil kasbah that holds a unique historical treasure, initially built in the 17th century and appears on the 50Dh note, a living museum showcases traditional kasbah life over the centuries. Finally, reaching your accommodation for the overnight stay.
Duration: 10 hours
Meals included:
• Breakfast
• Dinner
Accommodation included: Overnight at L’ma Lodge or similar
Day 7: Skoura – Marrakech
Stop At: Cinema Studio Atlas, Km 5, BP 28 Route de Marrakech, Ouarzazate 45000, Morocco
After breakfast, drive to Marrakech through Ouarzazate visiting Atlas Studio, where imagination runs free, discovering the hidden stories of the movie-making world.
Duration: 20 minutes
Stop At: Ait Ben Haddou, Ait Ben Haddou, Souss-Massa
We also visit the 17th-century kasbah Ait Ben Haddou that is considered a great example of Moroccan earthen clay architecture and a UNESCO world heritage site since 1987.
Ait Ben Haddou is a historical site along the former caravan route between the desert and Marrakech.
Duration: 30 minutes
Stop At: Marrakech, Marrakech, Marrakech-Safi
The drive continues via Tishka pass, reaching an altitude of 2260m. Overnight stay in Marrakech.
Duration: 10 hours
Meals included:
• Breakfast
Accommodation included: Overnight at Riad Anya or similar
Day 8: Casablanca airport transfer
Pass By: Casablanca, Casablanca, Casablanca-Settat
Transfer to Casablanca Airport
Meals included:
• Breakfast
No accommodation included on this day.
