10-day North & South Morocco private tour: Sahara to coast from Casablanca

Ten days crossing Morocco's desert, mountains and medinas with one guide

A 10-day private guided tour of Morocco starting in Casablanca and moving through Marrakech, the Sahara, Fez, and Chefchaouen, with an English-speaking driver-guide throughout, nine nights in 4-star hotels or riads, and air-conditioned transport included. The itinerary pairs the southern desert and Atlas passes with the northern mountains and coast, so you see the country's full range in one trip. Children from age 3 are welcome. Tips for the guide are optional at checkout.

Step-by-step itinerary

Day 1: Arrival and transfer to Marrakech

• Arrive at Casablanca or Menara Airport
• Meet your guide
• Transfer to hotel for check-in

Day 2: Marrakech city sightseeing

• Visit Saadian tombs
• Tour Dar Si Said Museum
• Explore Majorel Gardens
• See Koutoubia Minaret
• Visit souks and Djemaa El Fna Square

Day 3: Travel to Ouarzazate via Ait Ben Haddou

• Depart to Ouarzazate via Tizi-N-Tichka pass
• Stop for lunch at Ait Ben Haddou
• Visit Kasbah of Ait Ben Haddou
• Visit Atlas Studios and Taourirt Kasbah
• Dinner and overnight in Ouarzazate

Day 4: Ouarzazate to Merzouga desert

• Depart for Merzouga dunes
• Travel through Dadès valley and see Kasbahs
• Visit Todra Gorges
• Continue to Erfoud
• 4x4 ride to Merzouga dunes
• Dinner and overnight in desert camp

Day 5: Merzouga to Fez via Middle Atlas

• Early morning camel ride to sunrise
• Return for breakfast at Kasbah
• Depart for Fez
• Stop for lunch in Midelt
• Travel through Middle Atlas and Azrou
• Arrive and overnight in Fez

Day 6: Fez guided medina tour

• Visit royal palace gates
• View old Medina panorama
• Enter Medina via Boujloud gate
• Visit Merdersa Bou Inania and Mosque Abou El Hassan
• Explore Attarine Souk and Nejjarin Fountain
• Visit tanneries and potters
• Lunch in traditional restaurant
• Visit Kairaouine Mosque and Moulay Idriss II mausoleum
• Return to hotel

Day 7: Meknes, Volubilis and Chefchaouen

• Travel to Meknes
• Visit Moulay Idris
• Visit Volubilis ruins
• Continue to Chefchaouen
• Lunch in Chefchaouen
• Explore blue and white-washed town
• Dinner and overnight in Chefchaouen

Day 8: Chefchaouen to Rabat

• Breakfast in Chefchaouen
• Travel to Rabat
• Explore Rabat city
• Overnight in Rabat

Day 9: Rabat to Casablanca city tour

• Explore Casablanca including Hassan Mosque
• Afternoon at leisure
• Overnight in Casablanca

Day 10: Departure from Casablanca

• Early morning transfer to airport
• Flight home

The experience

The tour opens in Marrakech or Casablanca, where your guide meets you and takes you to your hotel. Day two is a full city tour of Marrakech: the Koutoubia Minaret, the Saadian tombs, the Majorel Gardens, and the Djemaa El Fna Square where snake charmers and acrobats work the crowds. You walk the souks, a maze of stalls selling spices, carpets and metalwork, then return to your riad or hotel.

The route south crosses the Tizi-N-Tichka pass at 2,260 meters through Berber villages and farmland, stopping at the Kasbah of Aït Ben Haddou, a UNESCO site of stacked earthen buildings that has stood for centuries. You continue to Ouarzazate and visit the Atlas Studios and the Taourirt Kasbah. From there the itinerary turns east through the Dadès valley (in spring, Persian roses line the hedgerows), and the Todra Gorges, the region's highest and narrowest. A 4x4 ride takes you into the Merzouga dunes, where you sleep in a Berber luxury tent or a kasbah by the sand. Early the next morning you ride a camel to watch the sunrise over the dunes before heading north.

The northbound drive climbs through the Middle Atlas, where evergreen pines and cedar trees cover the slopes and streams run through valleys that feel un-Moroccan in their lushness. You stop in Midelt for lunch, then continue to Fez. The medina tour there starts from the royal palace gates and moves through the Boujloud gate into the old city's narrow streets lined with fresh fruit, spice stalls (the Attarine Souk), and Berber carpets. You visit the Nejjarin Fountain, the tanneries and potters, and the Kairaouine Mosque. From Fez, the final leg takes you through Moulay Idris and Volubilis, Morocco's Roman provincial capital, then to Chefchaouen: a blue and white-washed Andalusian town in the Rif Mountains where women from surrounding villages sell handmade goods in the market squares. The tour ends with a day in Rabat, the capital, before transfer to the airport.

What’s included

• Air-conditioned vehicle with driver throughout.
• nine nights' accommodation in 4-star hotels or riads on bed-and-breakfast basis.
• English-speaking driver-guide for the entire tour.
• local guides in Marrakech, Fez and Chefchaouen.
• camel ride at sunrise in Merzouga.
• visits to the Kasbah of Aït Ben Haddou, Marrakech's Djemaa El Fna and souks, Fez's medina and tanneries, Volubilis, and Chefchaouen.

Information

Lasts 10d, runs every day with no fixed time, from US$ 1,989 per person, with a live guide in English and French, as a private tour and with free cancellation up to 24 h before.

Days and timesEvery day

GroupPrivate

Live guideEnglish and French

Meeting point and pickupHotel pickup is optional; you can also go straight to the meeting point. Ends back at the starting point.You can choose from 4 pickup points.

AgesAdult (18 to 60 years) · Senior (65 to 90 years) · Youth (13 to 17 years) · Child (7 to 12 years) · Infant (3 to 6 years) · Under 3: can't be booked

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

Prices and times updated today

Good to know

Low physical effortStroller-friendlyInfant seats availablePets welcomeNot recommended with heart problemsInfants must sit on laps

Operated by Best of Morocco Tours

Is this one for you?Choose this tour if you want both Sahara desert and northern medinas in one itinerary with a driver-guide handling all logistics, rather than piecing together separate regional trips.

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Top questions

What languages is the tour guided in?

Live guide in English and French.

Can children come?

Yes. Ticket types: Youth (13 to 17 years); Child (7 to 12 years); Infant (3 to 6 years). Children under 3 can't be included in the booking.

What happens if it rains?

It may be canceled due to bad weather. If that happens, you're offered another date or a refund. Free cancellation up to 24 h before the start.

What is the Kasbah of Aït Ben Haddou?

The Kasbah of Aït Ben Haddou is a UNESCO World Heritage site of stacked earthen buildings in the Atlas foothills, built centuries ago and still inhabited. You visit it on day three as you travel from Marrakech toward the Sahara, stopping for lunch there before continuing to Ouarzazate.

Do I ride a camel in the Merzouga dunes?

Yes. On the morning of day five, before breakfast, you ride a camel to watch the sunrise over the dunes, then return to your tent or kasbah for breakfast before departing for Fez.

What will I see in Fez's medina?

The Fez medina is one of the world's largest walled cities. Your guide takes you through the Boujloud gate and the narrow streets to the Attarine Souk (spice market), the Nejjarin Fountain, the tanneries where leather is dyed, pottery workshops, and the Kairaouine Mosque. You'll have lunch in a traditional restaurant in the heart of the medina.

Is Chefchaouen really blue?

Chefchaouen is a blue and white-washed Andalusian town nestled in the Rif Mountains. The buildings and streets are painted in shades of blue, and the town is small and relaxed, with winding alleyways and market squares where local artisans sell handmade goods.

What kind of accommodation will I have?

You stay nine nights in 4-star hotels in new towns or traditional riads in old medinas, depending on the city. In Merzouga, you sleep in a Berber luxury tent or a kasbah by the sand dunes instead of a hotel.

Is the driver also my guide?

Your driver is an English-speaking guide who leads you throughout the 10 days. In the cities (Marrakech, Fez, and Chefchaouen) local guides join to lead the medina and site tours in more depth.