12-Day Morrocan Desert Tour from Tangier to Asilah
Highlights
Aït Benhaddou, Atlas Mountains, Dadès Gorges, Marrakech, Merzouga, Ouarzazate, Asilah
Locations Covered
Aït Benhaddou, Atlas Mountains, Dadès Gorges, Marrakech, Merzouga, Ouarzazate, Asilah
cultural, camping, Desert
Group Tour
12 Days
Easy
English
Description
Embark on a journey from Tangier through Chefchaouen, Fes, Sahara Desert, Marrakech, and more on this 12-day tour from Tangier that end in Asilah! This tour will introduce you to the Berber culture and offer exciting experiences like camel rides in the desert, a Berber dinner party with local music, a hike through Todgha canyons etc.
Itinerary
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DAY 1 : TANGIER
- Your driver will pick you up from the port or airport and transfer you to a riad or hotel. Have free time for the day plus dinner and the overnight stay.
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DAY 2: TANGIER – CHEFCHAOUEN
- After breakfast, begin the drive through the Rif mountains and Tetoun city before arriving at the blue city of Chefchaouan.
- Enjoy visiting the beautiful blue medina and unique shops.
- See street performers in the evening.
Dinner and overnight in a riad.
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DAY 3 : CHEFCHAOUEN – VOLUBILIS – MEKNES – FES
- After breakfast in the riad, begin the trip to Fes.
- Discover the Roman ruins in Volubilis and learn about this archaeological site.
- Drive to Meknes to stop for lunch and visit the 17th-century medina, Bab el Mansour, and Moulay Ismail shrine.
- In the late afternoon, drive to Fes where you will enjoy dinner and spend the night in a local riad.
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DAY 4 : FEZ
- After breakfast, a knowledgeable guide will meet you at your riad in the morning for an incredible cultural and historical tour of Fes.
- Visit the Medina (the old city), and it’s a labyrinth of alleys. Also, go to the Jewish Quarter and the Royal Palace Gate in the morning before enjoying lunch.
- In the afternoon, go to the famous tanneries and the Quaraouine mosque — the first university in the world — before driving to the top of the city for a beautiful panoramic view. If you wish, you can also go to the pottery cooperative.
Have free time in the evening, enjoy dinner, and stay overnight in the same riad.
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DAY 5 : FEZ – IFRANE – AZROU – MIDELT – ERFOUD – MERZOUGA
- Get picked up by your guide from your hotel in Fes after breakfast and depart for the south of Morocco.
- Stop in Ifrane, known as the Switzerland of Morocco, before reaching Azrou to see the playful monkeys in the cedar forest.
- Continue to Midelt and stop for lunch.
- In the afternoon, cross the pass of Tizi n Tighamt to reach Errachidia while admiring Ziz Gorge's views.
- Stop for a panoramic view of Ziz Valley, pass through Erfoud (the Moroccan capital city of fossils), and then arrive in Merzouga for dinner and overnight stay.
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DAY 6 : MERZOUGA – ERG CHEBBI CAMEL TREK
- In the morning, start around the dunes of Erg Chebbi. Visit a Berber house and listen to some Gnawa music originally from Ghana and Sudan.
- Travel to deserted mines, Berber nomads, and an oasis of palm trees. For lunch, head back to Merzouga.
- After relaxing, go to the camels for an adventure on the dunes. Before we leave for the desert, the camels will be packed with water, food, blankets, and everything needed for the trip. Each person will have their camel, and the ride will take 1.5 hours to reach the inside the dunes.
- Arrive at your private tent, and then can walk on the dunes to watch the beautiful sunset and try sandboarding. After seeing the sunset, you will go down to the camp to enjoy mint tea (what we call Moroccan Berber Whiskey!).
- Then, have your meal of delicious Moroccan Berber tagine in the camp. After dinner, the party will start. Local Berber nomad musicians will play traditional music and dancers will perform. Afterwards, watch the magical sky full of stars and enjoy the peaceful desert—dinner and overnight in a nomad camp.
Tents have various amenities depending on your selection including beds, electricity, a private bathroom with a shower, and air conditioning. Please let us know which amenities you would like for an accurate quote.
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DAY 7 : MERZOUGA – RISSANI – ALNIF – TODRA GORGES – DADES GORGES
- Wake up to see the sunrise over the dunes of the Sahara. Ride camels back from the desert to Merzouga for breakfast and showers.
- Leaving for Todra Gorge, drive off-road across the hamada (black desert) and arrive in Rissani to visit the animated local market.
- Continue to the impressive Todra canyons. Rock climbing (additional reservations may be required) and hiking are available in the canyons before heading to the hotel for dinner and an overnight stay in Dades Gorge.
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DAY 8 : DADES GORGES – AIT BEN HADDOU – MARRAKESH
- After breakfast in the hotel, travel along the Thousand Kasbahs road. Admire the enormous kasbahs on both sides of the road. Enjoy the impressive landscape of the Valley of the Roses before reaching Skoura palm grove.
- Visit Taourirt Kasbah before departing to the UNESCO World Heritage of Site of Ait Benhaddou, famous for films such as The Man Who Would Be King, Jewel of the Nile, Jesus of Nazareth, The Message, Lawrence of Arabia, The Mummy, and Gladiator.
- Reach the traditional High Atlas Berber village of Telouet and the Kasbah el Glaoui. Have lunch in a local restaurant in Telouet before descending the Tizi-n-Tichka to Marrakech.
- Arrive in Marrakech in the evening for dinner and your stay in a riad.
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DAY 9 : MARRAKESH CITY TOUR
- Enjoy a tour of Marrakech with a private guide. Our first half of the tour will include a visit to the famous Palais de Bahia, a beautifully decorated palace full of beautiful inner rooms and elaborate mosaic walls.
- Then, walk through the Jewish Quarter, with a distinctly different architecture from the rest of the medina, and discover the incredible Saadian tombs.
- Visit Medersa Ben Youssef, an old school of Quranic study with beautiful Arabian-Andalucían architecture, and see the Koutoubia Mosque, an icon of Marrakech and a point of orientation for tourists.
- Lastly, head to the world-famous Jemaah el Fna square with its countless orange juice stands, snake charmers, traditionally garbed water sellers and henna women. Enjoy a refreshing midday pause on one of the terraces with a panoramic view and take in the colourful crowds' sights below.
- Continue to the incredible Majorelle Gardens, and you will make your way through the oasis of calm in the midst of the bustling city at your leisure.
- Visit the Berber Museum housed in a bright blue villa, learn about Berber history and traditions, and see some beautiful traditional clothing.
- After breakfast, drive to Essaouira, a coastal city and a historically prestigious point in Morocco.
- After arrival, explore the ancient streets, museums and castles and bronze cannons.
- Get back to Marrakesh in the afternoon, and we stay here overnight in the same riad.
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DAY 10 : MARRAKESH – ESSAOUIRA
- After breakfast, leave Marrakech for Essaouira, an old Portuguese city. On the way, you may visit the Argan oil women’s cooperative and learn about the process of making Argan oil.
- Arriving in Essaouira in the early afternoon, explore the port of this beautiful coastal town. For lunch, you can enjoy fresh seafood in the medina. The afternoon is at your leisure for personal exploration –you can swim and relax on the beach or wander through the medina.
Dinner will be served at your riad.
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DAY 11 : ESSAOUIRA – CASABLANCA – RABAT – ASILAH
- After breakfast, drive through Casablanca and visit Hassan II Mosque, through Rabat, and arrive at Assilah — a stylish coastal town with beautiful shades of blue — in the evening.
Stay overnight in a hotel and enjoy dinner.
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DAY 12 : ASSILAH – TANGIER
- After breakfast, drive to Tangier and see highlights of the city before transferring to the port, airport, or another destination.
What's Included
What's Excluded
Meeting Point
Cancellation Policy
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For cancellations upto 2 days before the tour -
Refund of 80% of the tour price.
Price
Adult | |
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1 to 10 | /person |
Child | |
1 to 10 | /person |
This is a group tour |