MOROCCO 14 DAY TOUR

Day 1: Arrive Casablanca

Welcome to Morocco! You will arrive midmorning after your 7-8 hour overnight flight from the US. To start off your trip will eat lunch at the legendary Rick’s Cafe. Then set out to see some of the main attractions of Casablanca.
First off you will visit the Hassan II Mosque and have a special guided tour inside, which is a unique opportunity as non Muslims are generally not allowed inside Mosques. You will then tour the city seeing its modern architectural highlights and get a feel for Casablanca’s modern dynamism. At the end of the afternoon you will go to Casablanca’s ocean front and relax at a cafe to see the sunset. Dinner will be a lovely Ocean front restaurant.

Day 2: Casablanca - Chefchaouen

In the morning you will drive north to the picturesque town of Chefchaouen know as the “blue city.” You will arrive in the afternoon and begin to wander it’s central medina of tiny streets with vibrant blue painted buildings. You will visit a local traditional weaving or wool workshop and two well known squares. For sunset you will go up to the Spanish Mosque for its wonderful view overlooking the city. For dinner you will have a traditional regional Rif Mountains style tagine. Typical of the region this is usually a chicken rubbed with cumin, cooked with prunes and almonds in a local traditional Moroccan vessel called a tagine.

Included Breakfast

Day 3: Chefchaouen -Volubillis - Fes

Today you will head east towards Fes, considered the spiritual and cultural capitol of Morocco. En route you will stop in Volubillis whose Roman settlement ruins date to the 3rd century BC. You will see the remains of their occupation dating 40-285 AD and learn about some of Morocco’s earliest history. From there you will drive onto Fes and check into your riad and explore a bit before dinner and see a private Sufi ceremonial dance.

Included Breakfast.

Day 4: Fes

Fes is a city rich with history and cultural traditions. You will start the day exploring Fes’s old town or Medina. An expert local guide will take you to some of the best artisans of metal, carpets, leather, silver, wood and more. To learn about leather working traditions you will visit Fez’s tannery, learn about the process and see the colorful and picturesque panorama of the large dying vats. Lunch will be in a delicious local restaurant in the midst of the medina.
After lunch you will visit some of the city’s architectural highlights, seeing exquisite examples of islamic architecture and tile work. At the end of the day you will relax wandering a special royal garden created in the 19th century.


Included Breakfast.

Day 5: Fes - Midelt

In the morning you will visit some yet unseen site in Fez and then head east to Midelt, a half way point en route to Merzouga, a town on the edge of the Sahara. In the morning you will stop at a Cedar Forest and be welcomed by some friendly monkeys. Then will drive through the picturesque Ziz Valley stopping to see the Tafilat oasis and palm grove.

Included: Breakfast.

Day 6: Midelt to Merzouga

Today you will drive on to Merzouga where the famous towering orange dunes of the Sahara rise up like a vision on the outer edge of the town.
After arriving you will visit the Afro-Moroccan Berber village of Khamlia known as the home of the Gnawa people, tribal black Africans brought in during the slave trade. You will visit an Gnawan home, see how they live have lunch and visit with the woman and listen to a Gnawan musician explain their culture and musical traditions.

In the late afternoon you will have a short ride out to your desert camp on 4 x 4s. No need to worry though you wont be roughing it and will be staying in luxury tents with AC /heat and private baths with showers. Before sunset those who wish can go for a short camel ride then you will have dinner at our desert camp and be entertained by Gnawan musicians around the campfire. You will be moved by the total silence of the desert and the big sky at night when all the stars come out.

Included: Breakfast.

Day 7: Merzouga - Skoura

Before breakfast those who wish may get up to see the sunrise up over the grand Sahara dunes. After breakfast we will ride back to Merzouga and then start driving back east. Arriving mid afternoon we will stop in the lovely town of Skoura known for its palm grove with an oasis of over 1,000 palms, 100 bird species and 20 varieties of date trees. You can wander the green canopied palm grove, and visit a date and pomegranate farm. Here you can also see traditional Moroccan bread making in an outdoor oven. After dinner a traditional regional folk music group will perform for you.

Included: Breakfast.

Day 8: Ait Benhaddou - Marrakech

In the morning our first stop will be at the famous Air Benhaddou Kasbah where numerous hollywood movies have been filmed. We will explore tha kasbah and enjoy the view from the top and wander its maze like streets. We will then drive back to Marrakech driving through the Atlas mountains and Berber towns. You will have lunch and then check into your riad, visit some sites relax a bit and then go to the central main square, Djemaa El Fna, for an evening to experience the magic of Marrakech. The square comes alive at night with entertainers performing and entrtaining the crowds and food stalls you can go explore and sample from.

Included: Breakfast.

Day 9: Marrakech

First thing in the morning you will begin by exploring the old Medina and specialty souk, meet a traditional herbalist and do things different from what you saw in Fez that are unique to Marrakechincluding a visit with a contemporary caligraphy artist.For lunch you you will visit an alley of the Medina where vendors specialize in slow roasted lamb,or Mechouis, a Moroccan speciality.

In the afternoon you will visit some of the city’s main sights including the Bahia palace, see from outside the Koutoubia mosque and then explore Merdersa Ben Yousef, an Islamic architecture treasure of the 12th to 16th centuries with exquisite tile work and carved cedar wood.

Ready to relax at the end of the day you will visit the famous Marjorelle Garden created by the French artist Jacques Marjorelle in the 20s to 50s. In the 80s it was purchased by designers Yves Saint-Laurent and Pierre Berge who restored and maintained it for many years. Dinner can prepared at your Riad with a special performance of Arabic traditonal storytelling or an evening out with music.

Included: Breakfast.

Day 10: Marrakech - Atlas Mountains Three Valleys

Today you will embark on a journey to three valleys of the nearby Atlas Mountains with its stunning scenery and just an hours drive from Marrakesh. You will stop en-route at a cooperative producing Argon oil and learn about their production process and have the opportunity to purchase it directly.

You will drive through Berber villages and see their lovely terraced gardens. You will stop and see the inside of a traditional Berber house, be served mint tea as you learn about their lifestyle and relax and enjoy the views. For the evening you will stay in a comfortable Berber riad where you will have a cooking class and women can have their hands hennaed. You will enjoy a dinner with the family and be entertained with music as you watch the sunset with a spectacular mountain view.

Included: Breakfast & Dinner.

Day 11: Essaouira

At breakfast you will enjoy the views again at sunrise. After breakfast you will head back west to the enchanting coastal town of Essaouira. Essaouira is all about relaxing. You will have lunch in one of its many cafes and spend the afternoon exploring its market streets,local galleries and the seaport with the fishermen coming in with their days haul. For dinner you will eat in a restaurant with live traditional music and an artistic vibe. You will be captivated by the charm of Essaouira, its laid back feel and warm friendly people.

Included: Breakfast.

Day 12: Essaouira

Today you will continue exploring Essaouira looking into its interesting laid back shops and galleries of Moroccan arts. You will also enjoy shopping here for end of trip purchases before you head home. You will visit it’s Jewish Berber neighborhood one of three in Morocco and learn about the history of Jewish Moroccans. In the late afternoon you can go down to the beach front and then enjoy a hammam, a traditional Moroccan bath and massage.

Included: Breakfast.

Day 13: Essaouira - Casablanca

In the morning you will head north to Casablanca and visit some neighborhoods and see the local side of the city.

Included: Breakfast.

Day 14: Depart for Home

This morning you will relax and revisit the sea front and have a tea at a cafe overlooking the sea before your journey home. Then you will have your last Moroccan meal and get to the airport about 1:00 to check in for your flight home.

Included: Breakfast.