Guide

All group trips are accompanied by one of our group leader or local representative. The aim of the group leader or local representative is to take the hassle out of your travels and to help you have the best trip possible. Intrepid endeavours to provide the services of an experienced group leader or local representative however, due to the seasonality of travel, rare situations may arise where your group leader or local representative is new to a particular region or training other group leader or local representative. Your group leader or local representative will provide information on the places you are travelling through, offer suggestions for things to do and see, recommend great local eating venues and introduce you to our local friends. While not being guides in the traditional sense, you can expect them to have a broad general knowledge of the places visited on the trip, including historical, cultural, religious, and social aspects. At Intrepid we aim to support local guides who have specialised knowledge of the regions we visit. If you are interested in delving deeper into the local culture at a specific site or location then your group leader or local representative can recommend a local guide service in most of the main destinations of your trip.

Meals

14 breakfasts, 1 lunch, 3 dinners

Others

Rabat - Leader-led orientation walk Volubilis - Entrance and guided tour Fes - Medina walking tour Fes - Medersa El Attarine Fes - Funduq al-Najjarin Fes - Tannery visit Midelt - walking tour Berrem village Midelt - Local family visit with tea & pastry Sahara Desert - Sunset Camel Ride El Khorbat – Oasis Museum El Khorbat – Kasbah village visit Sahara - Sunrise Ait Benhaddou - Leader-led ksar walk Atlas Mountains - Half-day hike Atlas Mountains – Local lunch with mountain view Essaouira - Guided walking tour Essaouira – Local fisherman visit Marrakech - Medina walking tour Marrakech - Tasting Trail

Transport

There are some long travel days and some rough travelling in areas away from the main tourist routes. High passes, windy roads, and rough surfaces make for some challenging travel experiences. On some long travel days, we depart early in the morning to ensure we optimise our time at our next destination. If you experience travel sickness we recommend you consider medication to help ease the discomfort. The best part about all of these long drives is the spectacular views and fun stops en route such as mountain passes, kasbahs, palmeries, sand dunes, goats up trees, etc. We also use public transport on some of our trips around Morocco. Be it a train or a public bus, remember that the best part of it is the possibility to interact with local people traveling along with you. Camel , Private Bus , Public bus , Taxi , Train

Accommodation

The style of accommodation indicated in the day-to-day itinerary is a guideline only and may change. On some occasions, alternative arrangements may need to be made due to the lack of availability of rooms in our preferred accommodation. In these cases, we will use a similar standard of accommodation. Throughout the trip, we request that our properties prepare rooms in time for our arrival, especially if we’re arriving prior to normal check-in time. However, this isn’t always possible which means we won’t be able to check-in immediately on arrival at some hotels. Instead, we can store our luggage and explore our new destination or on some trips, have use of shared day rooms until all rooms are available. We’ve sourced our accommodation very carefully and picked the best possible hotels in line with the Intrepid style of travel, but please note that service and accommodation in Morocco may be different from standards you are used to at home. OCCASIONAL ALTERNATIVE ACCOMMODATION: The style of accommodation indicated in the day-to-day itinerary is a guideline. On rare occasions, alternative arrangements may need to be made due to the lack of availability of rooms in our usual accommodation. A similar standard of accommodation will be used in these instances. TWIN SHARE / MULTI SHARE BASIS: Accommodation on this trip is on a twin/multi-share basis. We pair up solo travellers with another traveller of the same gender as per the gender marker on each of their passports. Please note there may be times where facilities will be shared rather than ensuite (even if you paid for single room supplement) and rare occasions when you share a room with passengers travelling on different Intrepid trips than your own. HEATING: Some of our guesthouses/hotels are unable to supply heating as this would be a major financial and environmental strain. It’s also a case of energy supply and timing provisions, which is limited in some places. Please be prepared for cold showers, which are a pleasure for most of the year. Air-conditioning systems (if available) don’t always function. CHECK-IN TIME: Throughout the trip, we request that our hotels prepare rooms in time for our arrival, especially if we’re arriving prior to normal check-in time. However, this isn’t always possible which means we won’t be able to check-in immediately on arrival at some hotels. Instead, we can store our luggage and explore our new destination. PRE/POST TRIP ACCOMMODATION: If you’ve purchased pre-trip or post-trip accommodation (if available), you may be required to change rooms from your trip accommodation for these extra nights. Camp site (1 night), Gite homestay (1 night), Guesthouse (2 nights), Hotel (10 nights)

Not included:

Others

Other activities and services are not included.

Optional

Casablanca - The Medina and Beyond Urban Adventure - MAD700 Casablanca - Jewish Museum (entrance fee) - MAD50 Casablanca - Villa des Arts Gallery & Museum (entrance fee) - Free Casablanca - Hassan II Mosque - MAD130 Midelt - Folklore Musical Performance - MAD600 Todra Gorge - Half day hike - MAD250 Todra Gorge - Lunch in a mudbrick kasbah - MAD100 Todra Gorge - Henna Tattooing - MAD50 Todra Gorge - Hamam (Public Baths) - MAD100 Ouarazate - Atlas Movie Studios - MAD80 Ouarzazate - Kasbah Taourirt - MAD20 Essaouira - Hamam (public baths) - MAD200 Essaouira - Amazigh Massage - MAD400 Essaouira - Horse Riding - MAD300 Essaouira - Seafood Market Lunch - MAD100 Marrakech - Marjorelle Gardens - MAD165 Marrakech - Palais Bahia - MAD70 Marrakech - Palais Badi - MAD70 Marrakech - Saadian Tombs - MAD70 Marrakech - Medersa Ben Youssef - MAD40 Marrakech - Museum of Marrakech - MAD40 Marrakech - Tajine Cookery Class Urban Adventure. - MAD640 Marrakech - Luxury Spa Hammam & Massage - MAD750 Marrakech - Heart of the Atlas Mountains cycling day trip with lunch - MAD2000 Marrakech - Magical Marrakech City Cycling Tour - MAD438 Marrakech - Quad Biking Barrage Lalla Takerkoust - MAD1650 Marrakech - Palmery Cycling Tour - MAD540 Marrakech - Hot Air Balloon Ride - MAD2090 Marrakech - Cascades d’Ouzoud Day Tour - MAD2207 Marrakech - Quad Biking the Rock Desert & Palmgrove - MAD715 Marrakech - Medina, Palaces & Tombs Urban Adventure - MAD650

Flights

Flights are not included.

Insurance

Insurance is not included.

Start planning your experience

Day 1 Day 1: Casablanca
12:00 am - 11:59 pm

Day 1: Casablanca

Salaam Aleikum! Welcome to Morocco. Your adventure begins today with a welcome meeting at 6 pm in the famed city of Casablanca. If you would like to explore the city and all it has to offer, it’s recommended that you arrive a day or two early. Modelled after Marseille in France, this city is famous for its art deco buildings and the modern Hassan II Mosque. If you have time, wander the old medina and the city walls, then jump in a taxi to visit the Quartiers des Habous – the new medina. Finish the day with a walk along the Corniche, watching the locals play football on the beach, or take it easy with a glass of sweet mint tea in one of the many great cafes.
Day 2 Day 2: Rabat/Meknes
12:00 am - 11:59 pm

Day 2: Rabat/Meknes

Today, you’ll take an early morning train to the historical town of Rabat. Rabat’s history is long and colourful, having been host to Roman settlements, pirates and more recently, the Moroccan parliament. It contains many fine Arab monuments, some from the 10th to 15th century Almohad and Merenid dynasties, and others far older. The earliest known settlement is Sala, occupying an area now known as the Chellah. Store your luggage and follow your leader on a short orientation walk. Then spend a few hours of free time strolling through the city’s old quarter, walk up to Kasbah des Oudaias and enjoy views over the Atlantic Ocean. After, continue to Meknes by train. The imperial city of Meknes was built when Sultan Moulay Ismail (a contemporary of Louis XIV) set out to create his own version of Versailles, using over 25,000 slaves to construct walls, gates and over 50 palaces. Tonight, you’re free to relax or explore.
Day 3 Day 3: Meknes/Volubilis/Fes
12:00 am - 11:59 pm

Day 3: Meknes/Volubilis/Fes

This morning is free for you to explore Meknes. Maybe explore the crumbling imperial monuments on foot and if the mood strikes, try a camel burger for lunch at a local restaurant in the medina. Later, take a private transfer and travel through rolling hills and olive groves to the archaeological site of Volubilis. This was once a provincial Roman capital, and the remains make an undeniably impressive sight. Take a tour around the ruins with a local guide, which look spectacular in the sunlight. Don’t forget to take your camera today, as the town is filled with fantastic mosaics along the Decumanus Maximus, many of which remain fully intact. Drive onwards to Fes, where you’ll spend the next two nights. Fes is the spiritual and cultural heart of Morocco – vibrant, noisy and fascinating – it really is a feast for the senses. The evening is your to spend.
Day 4 Day 4: Fes
12:00 am - 11:59 pm

Day 4: Fes

Take a guided group walking tour of the Old City this morning, known locally as Fes el Bali. Step back into the Middle Ages in the labyrinth of the medina, which is alive with craftsmen, markets, tanneries and mosques. Pass donkeys piled high with goods (this is one of the largest car-free urban zones in the world) and explore the specialty sections that divide the souk. Look out for the Medersa Bou Inania – one of the city’s most beautiful buildings, recently restored and now open to tourists. Visit Medresse el Attarine and the splendid Funduk Nejjarine – a beautifully restored 18th-century inn. You’ll also see the famous tannery, known for the iconic view overlooking its dye pits, and a ceramics factory where you can see potters working traditionally. In the evening, why not join your group and try some Moroccan specialities like harira (chickpea soup) and chicken-stuffed pastillas with couscous?
Day 5 Day 5: Midelt
12:00 am - 11:59 pm

Day 5: Midelt

This morning after breakfast, take a private transfer and leave the intensity of the pulsing city behind for the simplicity of the scenic Middle Atlas Mountains. Drive south and inland through spectacular scenery – fertile valleys and forests contrasted with barren, rocky landscapes. The area is populated with wandering nomadic shepherds attending to their flocks of goats and sheep. Pass through cedar forests and look out Barbary apes – North Africa’s only monkey. Nestled in a valley, Midelt is a market town that was originally built as a base for mining – now surrounded by farmland and orchards. Stretch your legs as you explore the nearby village of Berrem and take a closer look at local farming life. You’ll be invited into a local family’s home in the village to sit down and enjoy some mint tea (or several) and a few yummy Moroccan pastries while learning about their life and traditions. This supports the local community, providing income to local families. Tonight, stay at Ksar Timnay, inspired by a traditional kasbah (type of medina or fortress). This is the perfect base for your tour through the mountains – especially since it boasts a large pool to cool off in after your days wandering under the sun.
Day 6 Day 6: Sahara Desert
12:00 am - 11:59 pm

Day 6: Sahara Desert

Today, you’ll travel towards the mighty Sahara. It is a long drive, but there will be many opportunities to stop and admire views of local kasbahs and palmeries (valleys lush with date palms, fields and orchards). You may also have the chance to pass by nomads along their journey – these free-spirited people are born to move with their animal flocks under the open sky and they never stay settled in one place for long. Continue through barren mountainsides and fertile valleys, pausing in frontier towns like Erfoud and Rissani before reaching the end of the road at the small Saharan settlement of Merzouga. With a backdrop of the orange-coloured Erg Chebbi sand dunes, the charming Saharan village of Merzouga feels wonderfully isolated, like the modern world has left it behind. Store your main baggage in your overnight camp on the edge of the desert and mount a camel to watch the breathtaking sunset from a unique perspective, among the rolling dunes of the expansive desert. Spend the night in a desert camp under the North African stars and enjoy a homecooked feast by the fire.
Day 7 Day 7: Todra Gorge
12:00 am - 11:59 pm

Day 7: Todra Gorge

Walk up the nearest dune for a spectacular sunrise over the Sahara, break your fast with traditional food, and begin the drive to Todra Gorge. On the way visit the oasis museum of El Khorbat, before continuing on to the beautiful Todra Valley, dotted with mud-brick villages perched on hillsides. The remarkable scenery – sprawling green valleys and rocks sculpted into stunning formations by the wind – will be your home for the next two nights. This area is best discovered on foot, so you’ll take a short walk through the surrounding farmland.
Day 8 Day 8: Todra Gorge
12:00 am - 11:59 pm

Day 8: Todra Gorge

Today, enjoy free time to explore the Todra Valley. A guided hike through the gorge and over a nearby mountain pass is highly recommended. There are a couple of circuits to choose from, but the most popular choice is a 10 km circuit that will take around 4 hours. Accompanied by a local guide, you’ll walk a trail that isn’t too challenging if you have a moderate fitness level. Pass Amazigh villages, meeting locals along the way. The surrounding mountains and the famous Rose Valley in the distance make a sensational setting for a day of discovery on foot. For lunch, you can join some local ladies in their mudbrick kasbah – a fantastic opportunity to see how people live in this largely unchanged culture. If you’d rather relax, then you can simply lounge by the hotel pool and enjoy the views over the lush palmeries and soaring cliff faces.
Day 9 Day 9: Ouarzazate/Ait Benhaddou
12:00 am - 11:59 pm

Day 9: Ouarzazate/Ait Benhaddou

Today, travel south to Ait Benhaddou. The scenic drive takes you past ancient kasbah ruins, former colonial military outposts, austere mountains and valleys of palm trees. Stop for lunch in Ouarzazate, where movies such as Lawrence of Arabia, The Sheltering Sky and Black Hawk Down were filmed. If there’s time, you might like to take a tour of the Atlas Movie Studios. Arrive at Ait Benhaddou – once an important stop for caravans carrying salt across the Sahara. Visit the grand kasbah with your trip leader – an impressive example of clay architecture that has been listed as a World Heritage site. In the late afternoon, enjoy Morocco’s most famous cuisine with your group – couscous and tagine cooked by your host at the guesthouse where you’ll spend the night.
Day 10 Day 10: Aroumd
12:00 am - 11:59 pm

Day 10: Aroumd

This morning, journey over the spectacular Tizi n’Tichka Pass (2260 metres above sea level) to Toubkal National Park, home to the highest mountain in North Africa. Pass snow-capped mountains and valleys in full flower along the way. At the end of the road, you’ll reach the rural village of Imlil, where you can store your main luggage and load a daypack onto a pack mule. Immerse yourself in traditional mountain village life with a short trek up to the peaceful village of Aroumd. Far from the reach of the modern world and sitting on a rocky outcrop, this town is a gorgeous place for an I’m-so-far-from-home moment. With stunning views across the High Atlas Mountains, you’ll have a unique opportunity to experience traditional Amazigh culture and spend the night in a family-run mountain home (or gite) at the foot of Mount Toubkal. Surrounded by the smell of woodstoves and bread, meet the host family and enjoy some traditional Amazigh hospitality and mouth-watering home-cooked food.
Day 11 Day 11: High Atlas Mountain/Essaouira
12:00 am - 11:59 pm

Day 11: High Atlas Mountain/Essaouira

Wake up early this morning for a refreshing hike through Imlil’s outlying villages – to Sidi Chamharouch. Explore rural Amazigh villages, twisting mule tracks and breathtaking mountain landscapes. Stop for breaks among imposing cliff faces and eventually reach Sidi Chamharouch – a pilgrimage site with a waterfall, a stream and a few simple houses. Enjoy a slow-cooked tagine made by a local for lunch, while enjoying incredible views of the Atlas Mountains. Take the opportunity to rest for a while and swap stories with the locals, before hiking back to Aroumd. Later, head towards the Atlantic Coast to the old fishing town of Essaouira. Sandstone walkways contrast whitewashed houses, bright blue sky and the surrounding beaches and dunes. This artists’ town was once home to sizeable British and Jewish populations, and its charm has seduced people like Orson Welles and Jimi Hendrix, who (according to local legend) spent much of his time here in the 1960s. Your tour leader will guide you through some options for the rest of the day – the seafood auctions are always a fun thing to see. Maybe you’d like to visit one of the small local cafes and do a spot of people-watching. Tonight, you’re free to indulge in a fresh seafood dinner or stroll by the beach in the evening light.
Day 12 Day 12: Essaouira
12:00 am - 11:59 pm

Day 12: Essaouira

Today, join a local guide for a walking tour through the old medina, Jewish mellah, port and Skala (sea wall). Essaouira is one of the oldest port cities in the country, and fishing here is still quite traditional. You’ll have the chance to meet one of the expert fishermen in the port, who will tell the group all about their story and show you some of the tricks they use, what type of fish to catch and what seasons mean to them. After, enjoy some free time. These narrow streets, mostly free of cars, feel like the days of sea pirates are not too distant. Browse the little shops and art galleries that dot the town and discover the gorgeous scent of the burled Thuya wood – delicately formed and inlaid here, gaining a reputation as one of Essaouira’s specialities. The scent of the oils that are used to polish the coloured wood permeates the air, making walking through these streets incredibly pleasant. Why not order a freshly cooked plate of the day’s freshest catch for lunch? Later, maybe indulge in a hammam (Moroccan bathhouse and spa) or relax at your accommodation.
Day 13 Day 13: Marrakech
12:00 am - 11:59 pm

Day 13: Marrakech

This morning after breakfast, take a shared local bus to Marrakech – the ancient, exotic city wrapped in European modernity. Embark on a walking tour with your trip leader through the bustling medina to meet local shop owners and craftsmen and learn the secrets of navigating through the zigzagging lanes. Stop to try different snacks and local favourites, like Moroccan doughnuts and mint tea, traditional bread, olives, nuts, dates and orange juice, and harira (chickpea soup). Be enticed by the alluring scents and brilliant colours of the spice markets, the sounds of the musicians, the rich folds of carpets, and the beautifully perfumed gardens. Tonight, maybe join the pulsing crowds for dinner at the famous Djemaa el-Fna Square – one of the largest public spaces in the world and unique to Marrakech. When night falls on this square, it transforms into a hive of activity. Henna painters, performers and storytellers share the square with a street food bazaar packed with stalls loaded with Moroccan delicacies. For dinner tonight, you might like to try the local snail soup and finish your evening with a cup of tea in a rooftop restaurant overlooking the square.
Day 14 Day 14: Marrakech
12:00 am - 11:59 pm

Day 14: Marrakech

It’s time to explore Marrakech at your own pace, today. In the seemingly endless mosaic of souqs, each is devoted to a separate trade – pottery, woodwork, copper, leather, carpets or spices. Watch skilled artisans perfect their craft, practice your haggling skills or take a break from the hustle to share a tagine with your new friends. Maybe visit Koutoubia Mosque and its 12th-century minaret, which was the famous prototype for the Giralda tower in Seville. Wander through the tropical gardens of the French painter Jacques Majorelle (now owned by Yves Saint Laurent) or check out the Palais Bahia, a superb example of Muslim architecture. This evening, you’ll likely be drawn back to the Djemaa el-Fna and its surrounding medina for dinner at one of the many outdoor restaurants lining the square – a perfect spot for a farewell dinner.
Day 15 Day 15: Marrakech
12:00 am - 11:59 pm

Day 15: Marrakech

With no activities planned for today, you’re free to leave at any time. If you’d like to spend more time in Marrakech, just speak to your booking agent.

+12

15 days tour

Best Of Morocco

This tour includes:

Not included:

Start planning your experience

Itinerary of your trip Best Of Morocco

Day 1: Casablanca

Day 2: Rabat/Meknes

Day 3: Meknes/Volubilis/Fes

Day 4: Fes

Day 5: Midelt

Day 6: Sahara Desert

Day 7: Todra Gorge

Day 8: Todra Gorge

Day 9: Ouarzazate/Ait Benhaddou

Day 10: Aroumd

Day 11: High Atlas Mountain/Essaouira

Day 12: Essaouira

Day 13: Marrakech

Day 14: Marrakech

Day 15: Marrakech

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