12-Day Morocco Tour from Casablanca: Sahara, Kasbahs & Coast

You wake before dawn in the Sahara to watch the sun rise over Erg Chebbi's sand dunes.

A 12-day guided tour of Morocco beginning in Casablanca and ending on the Atlantic coast, with private transportation throughout, local guides in major cities, and overnight stays in hotels and a Berber camp. The itinerary moves through Rabat and the blue-walled medina of Chefchaouen, crosses the Atlas Mountains to the Sahara Desert near Merzouga for a camel trek and sunrise, then loops back west through the Todra Gorges, the UNESCO kasbah of Aït Benhaddou, and the imperial cities of Marrakech and Essaouira.

Step-by-step itinerary

Day 1: Arrival and transfer to hotel

• Meet driver at Casablanca Airport
• Transfer to hotel in Casablanca

Day 2: Casablanca, Rabat, and Chefchaouen

• Visit Hassan 2 Mosque in Casablanca
• Tour Rabat: Bab Challah, Mausoleum, Oudaya Kasbah
• Drive to Chefchaouen and explore blue alleys

Day 3: Chefchaouen, Volubilis, and Meknes

• Free morning to visit Chefchaouen
• Visit Roman ruins at Volubilis
• Drive to Meknes and overnight

Day 4: Meknes city tour and travel to Fes

• Visit Meknes: medina walls, Bab el Mansour, shrine
• Travel to Fes and check in hotel
• Explore Fes views and surroundings

Day 5: Full day Fes city tour

• Visit Royal Palace gate and Jewish quarter
• See Al Qaraouine University and Tanneries
• Visit Moulay Idriss mausoleum and tile cooperative
• Enjoy panoramic view of Fes medina

Day 6: Travel from Fes to Sahara Desert

• Travel via Ifrane and cedar forest
• Lunch and travel through Midelt and Ziz Gorge
• Stop for views in Ziz Valley and arrive Merzouga
• Camel ride to Sahara Desert camp

Day 7: Sunrise and travel to Dades Valley

• Watch sunrise over Erg Chebbi dunes
• Camel trek back to Merzouga village
• Visit Rissani and fossilized marble factory
• Lunch and walk in Todra Gorges
• Drive through Dades Valley and overnight

Day 8: Dades Valley to Aït Benhaddou

• Travel Valley of a Thousand Kasbahs
• Visit rose collective in Kela’a M’gouna
• Tour Ouarzazate movie studios and museum
• Explore Aït Benhaddou kasbah and old town

Day 9: High Atlas pass to Marrakech

• Drive over High Atlas mountains
• Visit Argan Oil Cooperative in Taddert
• Arrive and settle in Marrakech hotel
• Evening at Jemaa el-Fna Square

Day 10: Marrakech city exploration

• Visit Majorelle Gardens and Koutoubia Tower
• Tour Saadian tombs and Bahia Palace
• Lunch near Jemaa el-Fna square
• Walk through souks and handicrafts
• Free afternoon in Marrakech

Day 11: Day trip to Essaouira

• Travel to Essaouira
• Stop at argan forest and cooperative
• Relax on Essaouira beach and promenade
• Explore Essaouira medina and historic sites

Day 12: Transfer to Casablanca airport or hotel

• Travel from Essaouira to Casablanca airport or hotel

The experience

Your driver meets you at Casablanca Airport Mohammed V and transfers you to your hotel for the first night. The next morning, the tour proper begins: you visit the Hassan II Mosque in Casablanca, then drive north to Rabat to see the Mausoleum of Mohammed V and the Oudaya Kasbah before heading to Chefchaouen. You arrive with time to walk the blue alleys of the medina and photograph the faded blue buildings that line the steep cobbled streets. A full day in Chefchaouen follows, then you travel south through the Rif Mountains to Volubilis, where Roman ruins sit scattered across hillsides, and on to Meknes and Fes.

Fes gets two days. After settling into a traditional riad, you spend a full day exploring the medina on foot with a local guide, moving through the Jewish quarter (the Mellah), past the Al Qaraouine University, the oldest in the world, and down to the tanneries where leather hides dry on sun-warmed rocks. You visit the Royal Palace gate, the Saadian tombs, and climb to a panoramic viewpoint overlooking the whole old city. From Fes, the route turns southeast toward the desert: you pass through Ifrane, a mountain village known as the Switzerland of Morocco, stop in the cedar forest to spot Barbary apes, cross the Ziz Gorge, and arrive in Merzouga in the afternoon. After mint tea at your Berber camp, you take a camel ride into the Erg Chebbi dunes.

The next morning you rise before sunrise to watch the light change across the sand dunes, then camel-trek back to the village for breakfast. Your driver meets you to continue west: you pass through Rissani, visit a fossilized marble factory in Erfoud, and reach the Todra Gorges, where vertical walls of stone rise on either side of the river. The highest and narrowest gorges in Morocco. A walk through the palm grove and Jewish quarter follows, then you drive through the Dades Valley, where rock formations known as "monkey toes" rise from the earth. The next day takes you west along the Valley of a Thousand Kasbahs to Aït Benhaddou, a UNESCO World Heritage site dating to the 11th century. You visit a rose cooperative in Kela'a M'gouna to see how rose petals become rose water and oil, and can tour a movie studio in Ouarzazate if you choose. You spend the night in the old town of Aït Benhaddou and have the late afternoon to wander its alleys after the day crowds leave.

The ascent over the High Atlas follows: you spot Mount Toubkal, the range's highest peak, stop at an Argan Oil Cooperative to learn how the argan nut is processed, and descend into the flat plains around Marrakech. Two days in Marrakech let you explore the Majorelle Gardens, the Koutoubia Tower, the Bahia Palace, and the souks filled with handicrafts, with time to sit in a café overlooking Jemaa el-Fna Square and watch musicians, performers and food stalls. The final leg takes you to Essaouira on the coast, where you can relax on the beach and walk the medina: a blend of 18th-century fortified architecture and modern cafés. On the last day, your driver transfers you back to Casablanca Airport or to your hotel if you're staying longer.

What’s included

• Private transportation throughout the 12 days.
• local guides in Fes and Marrakech.
• breakfast every morning.
• a camel trek in the Sahara Desert.
• accommodation for 11 nights in hotels and a Berber camp.
• driver and guide services.

Before you book

Days and timesEvery day

AgesAdult (3 to 95 years) · Under 3: can't be included in the booking

GroupUp to 8

Live guideEnglish, Spanish, French, German, Italian and Arabic

Audio guideEnglish, Spanish, French, German, Italian and Arabic

Meeting point and pickupHotel pickup included.

Cancellation and refundsFree cancellation up to 24 h before the start. After that, no refund.

Prices and times updated 5 days ago

Good to know

Easy physical levelStroller friendlyInfant seats availableNot for pregnant travelersNot for heart conditionsNot for back problems

Operated by Tilila Travel

Is this one for you?Your guide speaks English, Spanish, Italian, French and two additional languages, so you can follow the commentary in whichever language suits you best. The itinerary is fixed, which keeps all the major sites (from the Sahara sunrise to the Todra Gorges to Aït Benhaddou) within the 12 days without backtracking.

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Top questions

What languages is the guide in?

Live guide in English, Spanish, French, German, Italian and Arabic.

What is the Hassan II Mosque in Casablanca like?

The Hassan II Mosque is the biggest mosque in Casablanca and sits as one of the first stops on the tour, visited on day two after you've settled into the city.

Can I really see Barbary apes in the cedar forest?

Yes. The cedar forest on the Middle Atlas Mountains is the largest in Morocco, and you'll have the opportunity to see Barbary apes there during the drive from Fes toward Merzouga.

What happens during the camel trek in the Sahara?

You ride a camel into the Erg Chebbi dunes to reach your Berber camp for the night, then wake before sunrise the next morning to watch the sun rise over the sand dunes before camel-trekking back to the village for breakfast.

Is Aït Benhaddou really a UNESCO World Heritage site?

Yes. Aït Benhaddou is a UNESCO World Heritage site dating to the 11th century, when it held an important position along the trans-Saharan trade route. The old ksour (fortified village) has been featured in films including Lawrence of Arabia and Gladiator, and you'll spend a night there with time to explore after the day crowds leave.

What can I do in Essaouira?

Essaouira is a coastal town on the Atlantic where you can relax on the beach, swim safely, and walk the medina, which blends 18th-century fortified architecture with modern cafés and restaurants in a cooler climate than inland Morocco.

How many nights do I spend in hotels versus the Berber camp?

You stay 11 nights total: in hotels in Casablanca, Chefchaouen, Meknes, Fes (two nights), Dades Valley, Aït Benhaddou, Marrakech (two nights), and Essaouira, plus one night in a luxury Berber camp in the Sahara near Merzouga.