10-Day Morocco Tour from Casablanca: Imperial Cities & Sahara

Ten days crossing Morocco's imperial cities, gorges, and Sahara dunes

A 10-day guided tour of Morocco departing from Casablanca that moves through imperial cities, mountain passes, and the Sahara Desert. You visit Hassan II Mosque and Rabat's monuments, explore the blue city of Chefchaouen and Fez's medina with a local guide, ride camels into Merzouga's Erg Chebbi dunes for a night at a desert camp, trek through Todra and Dades gorges, and spend a day in the High Atlas Mountains with a Berber guide learning to make olive oil and sharing a traditional meal in her home.

Step-by-step itinerary

Day 1: Arrival and transfer to Casablanca hotel

• Meet driver at Casablanca airport
• Transfer to hotel in Casablanca
• Overnight at Casablanca hotel

Day 2: Casablanca, Rabat and Chefchaouen

• Visit Hassan II Mosque in Casablanca
• Travel to Rabat
• Visit Hassan Tower, Mausoleum of Mohammed V, Oudaya Kasbah
• Overnight at hotel in Chefchaouen

Day 3: Chefchaouen, Volubilis, Meknes and Fes

• Morning leisure in Chefchaouen
• Visit Roman ruins of Volubilis
• Visit Bab Mansour gate, Sehrij Essouani, Granaries in Meknes
• Drive to Fes
• Overnight at riad in Fes

Day 4: Full day guided tour of Fes

• Visit Royal Palace gate and Jewish quarter
• Explore Al Qaraouine University and historical monuments
• Visit local markets and tanneries
• Enjoy panoramic view of Fes medina
• Overnight at riad in Fes

Day 5: Travel from Fes to Merzouga Sahara Desert

• Depart Fes towards Merzouga via Ifrane and Midelt
• Lunch stop in Midelt (not included)
• Travel through Tizi Ntalghamt pass and Ziz Gorge
• Stop for panoramic views in Ziz Valley
• Arrive Merzouga and camel ride to desert camp
• Overnight at luxury desert camp with Berber music

Day 6: Sahara sunrise and travel to Dades Valley

• Early camel trek to watch sunrise
• Breakfast at desert camp
• Camel trek back to Merzouga village
• Drive to Todra Gorges
• Lunch in Todra Gorges
• Drive through Dades Valley
• Overnight at hotel or riad in Dades Valley

Day 7: Dades Valley to Marrakech via Ouarzazate

• Travel through Dades Valley towards Ouarzazate
• Stop at Kalaat M'Gouna rose cooperative
• Visit Kasbah of Taourirt and Cinema Museum in Ouarzazate
• Visit fortified village of Ait Ben Hadou
• Drive to Marrakech via Tizi N’tichka pass
• Overnight at hotel or riad in Marrakech

Day 8: Free day to explore Marrakech

• Breakfast at hotel or riad
• Explore Majorelle Gardens, Koutoubia mosque, Saadian tombs
• Visit Bahia Palace and Jemaa el Fna square
• Shop in Marrakech souks
• Overnight at hotel or riad in Marrakech

Day 9: Authentic Berber day in High Atlas Mountains

• Breakfast at hotel or riad
• Travel to High Atlas Mountains with local guide Saida
• Walk in Berber village and learn local history
• Visit ancient olive millstone and prepare olive oil
• Lunch in traditional Berber house
• Return to Marrakech by late afternoon
• Overnight at hotel or riad in Marrakech

Day 10: Airport transfer

• Breakfast at hotel or riad
• Transfer to Casablanca or Marrakech airport

The experience

The route strings together Morocco's most-visited landmarks but spaces them across ten days, so you're not rushing between them. You start in Casablanca with Hassan II Mosque, move north to Rabat's royal monuments, then west into the Rif Mountains to Chefchaouen's blue-washed streets. The itinerary then swings inland through Volubilis (an 18-hectare Roman site with white marble columns and a triumphal arch), and into Fez, where a local guide walks you through the medina's tanneries, souks, and Al Qaraouine University (the oldest in the world) from 10am to 3pm. That's the northern loop.

The southern half pivots toward the desert. You travel south through Ifrane and the Ziz Valley, arriving in Merzouga in the afternoon for a camel ride into the Erg Chebbi dunes and an overnight at a Berber camp with a live music show around the fire. The next morning you watch the sunrise from the dunes, then camel-trek back to meet your driver for the drive through Todra Gorge (Morocco's highest and narrowest), and into Dades Valley, where the rock formations called "monkey toes" rise above clay kasbahs. The road through Dades is called the Way of the Thousand Kasbahs for the fortified villages stacked along it.

From Dades you drive west through Ouarzazate and Ait Ben Haddou (an 11th-century earthen ksar with tower-houses built of raw brick) and over the Tizi N'tichka pass at 2,260 meters, Morocco's highest, into Marrakech. You get a free day there to wander the Jemaa el Fna square and souks on your own, then a full day with a Berber guide named Saida in the High Atlas, where she shows you her village, an ancient olive mill, and how to press oil before serving you lunch in her traditional house. The tour ends with a transfer to either Casablanca or Marrakech airport depending on your flight.

What’s included

• English or French-speaking driver for the full ten days.
• air-conditioned comfortable car.
• camel ride in the Sahara.
• eight nights in 4-star hotels or riads (hotel alternative available).
• Berber music show at the desert camp.
• breakfast and dinner at the desert camp and Dades Valley accommodation.
• pickup from Casablanca or Marrakech airport and return transfer at the end.

Before you book

Days and timesEvery day

GroupUp to 6

Live guideEnglish, French and Arabic

Meeting point and pickupHotel pickup included.You can choose from 3 pickup points.

Cancellation and refundsFree cancellation up to 24 h before the start. After that, no refund.It may be canceled if the minimum number of travelers isn't reached. If that happens, you're offered another date or a refund.

ConfirmationConfirmation within 48 h

Paid on siteUS$ 44

Prices and times updated 6 days ago

Good to know

Low physical effortStroller-friendlyInfant seats availablePets welcome

Operated by Morocco Friends Travel

Is this one for you?Book this if you want a structured ten-day loop through Morocco's main sights (from Fez's souks to Sahara camps to High Atlas villages) traveling with other guests and a local guide rather than setting your own pace.

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Top questions

What languages is the tour guided in?

Live guide in English, French and Arabic.

What is Hassan II Mosque and why is it the first stop?

Hassan II Mosque in Casablanca is one of the largest mosques in the world, built on the Atlantic coast with a minaret that overlooks the water. It's the opening landmark of the tour and sets the scale of what you'll see across the ten days: Morocco's most significant religious and architectural sites.

How does the camel safari in Merzouga work?

You arrive in Merzouga in the afternoon and ride a camel into the Erg Chebbi dunes to reach a Berber camp, where you spend the night. The next morning a camel guide wakes you early to watch the sunrise from the dunes, then you camel-trek back to the village to rejoin your driver. The camp includes a live Berber music show around the fire.

What happens on the day with the Berber guide in the High Atlas?

After breakfast in Marrakech, you travel to the High Atlas Mountains to spend the day with Saida, a local Berber guide. She walks you through her village, shows you a traditional olive mill and teaches you how to press oil, then invites you to lunch and a Moroccan Berber meal in her home before returning you to Marrakech around 5pm.

Is Fez explored on your own or with a guide?

Fez is explored with a local guide for five hours, from 10am to 3pm. The guide takes you through the medina's Royal Palace gate, the Jewish quarter (the first Mellah built in Morocco in the 14th century), Al Qaraouine University, the tanneries, and the souks, ending with a panoramic view over the whole medina.

What is Ait Ben Haddou?

Ait Ben Haddou is a fortified earthen city built on a hillside, with houses grouped inside defensive walls and corner towers. Some dwellings resemble small castles with high towers decorated in raw brick designs. The oldest buildings date to the 11th century, and the site shows traditional pre-Saharan architecture that appears in several films.