8-Day Cultural Tour: Imperial Cities and the Desert from Marrakech

Day 1 – Marrakech – Welcome and meeting with the escort guide at the airport – Hotel or riad transfer – Free time for a first contact with the city and its medina

Welcome at Marrakech Menara Airport and meeting with the escort guide.

Prepare to be amazed and inspired!

Transfer to the Hotel or Riad.

Free visit at your own pace of Jemaa el Fna Square and the medina, the heart of the city. A unique experience where all the nightlife and activity is concentrated: dancers, storytellers, jugglers, artisans, merchants, and snake charmers. From the terraces of some cafes, you can get a wide panoramic view of the city: mosques and minarets, palaces and gardens, souks and bazaars.

JEMAA EL-FNASQUARE
This square is the city’s main square and throughout the day it attracts tourists and locals alike, who visit the stalls selling orange juice and water during daylight hours, as well as snake charmers, women dedicated to painting with henna, or boys with monkeys.

At night the atmosphere changes and you can see dancers, musicians, and entertainers filling it entirely, providing an atmosphere of drums and fun.

We recommend sitting in one of the surrounding cafes to enjoy the atmosphere or going to dinner at one of the more than 100 stalls set up at this time featuring different types of Moroccan food.

Day 2 – Marrakech – Casablanca – Rabat

After breakfast, departure to Casablanca.

Free visit of the exterior of the Hassan II Mosque; those who wish can take an optional tour of the interior.

Next, we will head to Rabat, the political and administrative capital of Morocco, to visit the Mausoleum of Mohammed V, the Hassan Tower, and the Kasbah of the Udayas.

Day 3 – Rabat – Meknes – Roman Ruins of Volubilis – Fes

Breakfast.

Departure to Meknes, visit at your own pace of the city linked to the name of Moulay Ismail, the great sultan of the Alawite dynasty.

Free visit of the walled Medina of the city, the Bab Mansour gate, and El Hedim Square.

Next, visit Volubilis, the capital of Roman Morocco declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1997. Arrival in Fes, the cultural and religious capital of the country.

Free time for a first contact with the city and its medina.

Day 4 – Fes – Guided tour with a local guide

In the morning, at the indicated time, departure for the tour with a local guide of Fes, the oldest of the country’s Imperial Cities, approaching the gates of the Royal Palace and walking through the Jewish quarter, the impressive Medina with its typical shops and artisan quarters, the tanners’ quarter, the exterior of the Mosque, the Al-Attarine or Bou Inania Koranic School, and the Al Quaraouiyne University.

Free time in the afternoon to continue enjoying the city.

Day 5 – Fes – Ifrane “Moroccan Switzerland” – Cedar forests and monkeys of Azrou – Middle Atlas Mountains – Midelt – Errachidia – Ziz Valley – Merzouga – Camel excursion – Magical night in a Berber camp (khaimas)

After breakfast, we resume the route to the desert passing through the university city of Ifrane, better known as the “Moroccan Switzerland” and for being one of the favorite cities of the King of Morocco, the cedar forest and monkeys of Azrou, and the landscapes of the Atlas Mountains, until reaching the Ziz Valley, an extensive palm grove.

We will arrive in Merzouga and change our vehicle for camels to take a ride to the heart of the dunes, contemplate an unforgettable sunset, and spend the night in a Berber camp. Typical dinner to the rhythm of drums.

This will undoubtedly be a magical night!

Day 6 – Merzouga – Todra Gorges – Dades Valley

Those who wish can wake up early to contemplate the sunrise from the dunes, a spectacle of nature that is enjoyed in few places like this one.

We will say goodbye to the dunes and head toward Erfoud, from where we will set out on the route toward Tinghir and Todra. We will make a stop to visit its impressive gorges perched at an altitude of 1,350 m and surrounded by a palm grove, to then reach the town of Boumalne, where the other gorges called Dades were formed.

A beautiful journey through valleys, Berber villages, kasbahs, and a landscape of contrasts between palm trees and vegetation. Today we will spend the night surrounded by mountains and valleys.

Day 7 – Dades Valley – Roses Valley – Skoura Palm Grove – Ouarzazate – Ait Ben Haddou – Tichka Pass (2260m) – Marrakech

After breakfast, and once past the Roses Valley and the city of Ouarzazate, located on a large plateau, we will go in to visit one of the best—if not the best—preserved ksurs in Morocco: Ait Ben Haddou, a fortress village built of adobe, the setting for a multitude of movies and declared a World Heritage Site by UNESCO.

Continuation of the route through the High Atlas, crossing the Tichka Pass (2260 m) surrounded by impressive mountains. Arrival in Marrakech and transfer to the hotel or Riad.

Free time to continue enjoying the magical atmosphere of the city.

Day 8 – Marrakech – Free time or if the scheduled flight departure time permits, optional tour with a local guide – At the agreed time, airport transfer

Depending on the scheduled flight departure time, free time for last-minute visits and shopping or an optional tour with a local guide.

At the agreed time, transfer to the airport.

END OF OUR SERVICES.

We wish you a happy return home, and see you again soon in Morocco, Inshallah