10-Day Morocco Tour From Tangier: Imperial Cities & Sahara
Cross four imperial cities and ride camels into the Sahara's golden dunes
A 10-day guided tour starting in Tangier and ending in Marrakech, moving through Morocco's northern mountains and southern desert with nine nights in riads and hotels. The itinerary covers Chefchaouen's blue-painted streets, the Roman ruins of Volubilis, Fes's maze-like medina, a camel ride and night under stars at Erg Chebbi, the UNESCO kasbah of Aït Benhaddou, and Marrakech's Majorelle Gardens and souks. A licensed guide leads you through each city's medina and arranges all transport and accommodation.
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Step-by-step itinerary
Day 1: Arrival and Tangier exploration
- Meet driver at Tangier airport or port
- Drive to hotel and check in
- Explore Tangier medina and fortress
- Visit Zoco Chico square for café
- Walk along seafront promenade at sunset
Day 2: Tangier sightseeing and travel to Chefchaouen
- Tour Tangier kasbah with guide
- Visit Caves of Hercules and Cape Spartel lighthouse
- Drive to Chefchaouen via Rif Mountains
- Optional hike to Cascades d'Akchour waterfalls
- Explore Chefchaouen medina and Plaza Outa el Hammam
- Visit kasbah garden and museum
- Climb to rooftop view at Hotel Atlas
- Ascend to abandoned Spanish Mosque at sunset
Day 3: Chefchaouen to Fes via Volubilis and Meknes
- Morning walk in Chefchaouen streets
- Drive to Volubilis Roman ruins and explore
- Visit Meknes Imperial City and medina
- See Bab al-Mansour gate and Mausoleum of Moulay Ismail
- Explore Bou Inania Madrasa and Dar Jamaï Museum
- Drive to Fes and visit Merenid Tombs viewpoint
- Check in to riad and relax
Day 4: Full day Fes sightseeing
- Half-day guided tour of Fes el Bali medina
- Visit Chouara Tannery and leather shop rooftop
- See Al-Qarawiyyin University exterior
- Visit Al Attarine and Bou Inania Madrasas
- Enter Bab Boujeloud gate and explore Talâa Kebira
- Visit Musée Batha and Andalusian gardens
- Explore Fes el Jedid and Mellah quarter
Day 5: Fes to Sahara Desert via Middle Atlas
- Drive south from Fes through Ifran and cedar forests
- Spot Barbary monkeys in cedar forest
- Lunch stop in Midelt
- Drive through Ziz Valley and see ksars
- Visit Erfoud artisan fossil collective
- Arrive at Erg Chebbi dunes near Merzouga
- Camel ride to desert camp at sunset
- Dinner and Berber music at camp
Day 6: Sahara Desert activities and village visit
- Watch sunrise over Sahara dunes
- Choose sandboarding, quad ATV, or relax
- Visit Khemliya village for drumming and dancing
- Walk around Khemliya settlement
Day 7: Merzouga to Dades Valley via Todra Gorges
- Leave Merzouga and visit Rissani market
- Explore livestock auction and donkey parking
- Drive through villages to Todra Gorges
- Lunch in Todra Valley town
- See Todra Gorges cliffs and climbing spots
- Drive to Dades Valley and see rock formations
- Overnight in hotel overlooking valley
Day 8: Dades Valley to Marrakech via Ait Benhaddou
- Drive to Ouarzazate and visit movie studios option
- Stop at Musée du Cinema
- Visit UNESCO site Aït Benhaddou kasbah
- Lunch in Aït Benhaddou village
- Drive over High Atlas Mountains to Marrakech
- Evening visit to Jemaa el-Fna square
Day 9: Marrakech full day sightseeing
- Guided tour of Marrakech medina and souks
- Explore Medina, Souk, and Mellah neighborhoods
- Visit Bahia and El Badii Palaces
- See Saadian Tombs
- Visit Majorelle Gardens
Day 10: Departure and transfer to airport
- Optional last-minute sightseeing or shopping
- Transfer to Marrakech airport
The experience
You start in Tangier (either picked up from the airport, ferry port, or your hotel), and spend your first evening exploring the medina's narrow alleys and the seafront corniche. The next day takes you to the Caves of Hercules, 20 minutes outside the city, where the cave opening faces the sea and mirrors the shape of Africa. From there, the route climbs into the Rif Mountains to Chefchaouen, where blue-washed buildings line every street. You can hike to the Ras el-Maa waterfall or climb to an abandoned Spanish mosque for sunset views over the city.
The middle stretch moves you south through the Atlas Mountains toward the Sahara. You'll stop at Volubilis to walk among Roman temples and merchant homes with intact mosaics, then pass through Meknes before reaching Fes, where a half-day guide takes you through the medina's souks, the Chouara Tannery (still using centuries-old leather techniques), and the 14th-century madrasas with their intricate tilework. From Fes, the road climbs through cedar forests where Barbary monkeys live, crosses passes above 7,000 feet, and descends into the Ziz Valley's hidden oases. You'll see ksars, fortified houses built by merchants, and stop in Erfoud to learn how fossils are mined and crafted. By late afternoon, the sand dunes of Erg Chebbi appear: 13.5 square miles of massive dunes that shift with the wind. A camel carries you across them to a bedouin-style camp where you watch the sunset, eat dinner by the campfire, and sleep under stars in a private tent with a toilet and shower.
The next morning brings a desert sunrise, then time to explore the dunes by sandboard, quad ATV, or on foot, and to visit Khemliya, a Saharan village where you hear traditional drumming and dancing. The route then turns west through Todra Gorges (a narrow passage with 300-meter cliffs rising on both sides), and into Dades Valley, where mud kasbahs and rock formations called "monkey fingers" line the landscape. The final stretch crosses the High Atlas to Aït Benhaddou, an 11th-century kasbah and UNESCO site that once anchored the trans-Saharan trade route, then continues to Marrakech. Your last full day includes a guided tour of Marrakech's medina, the Bahia and El Badii Palaces, the Saadian Tombs, and the Majorelle Gardens: a retreat built by French painter Jacques Majorelle and later home to designer Yves Saint Laurent. On the final day, your driver takes you to the airport with time to spare.
What’s included
- Nine nights in traditional riads and hotels.
- a private bedouin-style tent with toilet and shower at the desert camp.
- a camel ride through Erg Chebbi's dunes.
- a half-day guided tour of Fes's medina with a licensed local guide.
- a full-day guided tour of Marrakech's medina, palaces, and gardens.
- airport or hotel pickup and drop-off.
- all vehicle fuel.
- and fresh bottled mineral water on board throughout the tour.
Options for this experience
3 optionsYou pick the guide language when booking.
Before you book
Prices and times updated 2 days ago
Operated by DesertTrips
Is this one for you?Choose the accommodation level at checkout (standard riads and hotels, or upgraded luxury properties) to match your comfort preference, since the route and activities stay the same across all three options. The 10-day length fits travelers who want to see both the northern imperial cities and the southern desert without rushing. If you have fewer days, shorter versions of this route exist.
Traveler reviews
Top questions
What languages is the guide in?
Live guide in English, Spanish, French, Italian, Portuguese and Arabic.
Can children come?
Yes. Ticket types: Child (3 to 5 years); Infant (under 3).
What is Erg Chebbi and why do people visit it?
Erg Chebbi is an extensive sea of sand dunes covering 13.5 square miles in the Sahara near Merzouga. The massive dunes shift constantly with the wind, and visitors ride camels across them at sunset, explore by sandboard or quad ATV in the morning, and sleep in a bedouin-style camp under the stars.
Can I visit the medinas in Fes and Marrakech with a guide, or do I navigate them alone?
A licensed local guide leads a half-day tour through Fes's medina, taking you through the souks, the Chouara Tannery, and the 14th-century madrasas. In Marrakech, your guide walks you through the medina, the Souk neighborhoods, the Bahia and El Badii Palaces, and the Saadian Tombs.
What happens on the night in the Sahara desert?
After your camel ride to the camp at sunset, you climb a nearby dune to watch the sun go down, return for a prepared dinner, and relax by the campfire with Berber music. You sleep in a private bedouin-style tent with a toilet and shower, under an open sky full of stars. If you prefer modern comfort, a hotel in Merzouga is available instead.
Does the tour include meals?
Breakfast is included at your accommodation each morning. Lunches and six dinners are not included in the tour price, though dinner is provided on the night you spend at the desert camp. You'll find restaurants and cafés in each city's medina and town center.
What are the Roman ruins at Volubilis?
Volubilis is Morocco's best-preserved Roman site, a UNESCO-protected complex where you can walk through large merchant homes with still-intact heating systems, temples, and colorful mosaics still in place. It sits along the route between Chefchaouen and Fes.
Is pickup from the airport included?
Yes, your driver picks you up from Tangier Ibn Battouta Airport, the ferry port, or your hotel on arrival and drops you at your chosen airport on departure.
10-Day Morocco Tour From Tangier: Imperial Cities & Sahara
10d · EN · ES · FR · IT · PT +1 · at your hotel
from US$ 1,439.99 per person
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