Rabat Best Tours – Sahara Desert Adventure 10 Days

• Best Rabat Tours & Itineraries
• Culture & History Tours
• Morocco Desert Tours Experience
• Morocco Family Private Tours
• Morocco Private Tours

This authentic intimate Morocco tour from Rabat provides a journey of a lifetime through one of the best, diverse and unbelievably beautiful parts of Morocco. Starting and finishing in Casablanca, we explore some of the most scenic places in Nortehrn Morocco & Sahara Desert. We navigate routes that are embedded into Moroccan History and Berber Culture: we follow the Ziz valley River as we leave Fes Medina, make our way to the Majestic Sahara Desert and Rocky Atlas Mountains before following the Caravan Trade Routes to Todra gorge and Ait Benhaddou Kasbah. Along the way, you will experience distinctly Moroccan activities that will deepen your understanding of Moroccan culture, nature and landscape. Be sure to pack your binoculars for this real life experience tour!

Day 1 / Date:
Chefchaouen
Meals included: breakfast, Dinner:

Drive for 4H across the Rif Mountains, arrive to the blue pearl late afternoon.
Check in to your hotel, followed by orientation walk of Chefchaouen the adorable little blue gem, beautifully perched beneath the raw peaks of the Rif mountains is the most attractive city in Morocco.

On arrival, check in and relax before walking orientation with your tour leader.

Enjoy a free afternoon to relax or explore more of the town. Within the plaza is the walled fortress of the Kasbah – you can wander through the tranquil gardens inside, visit the ethnographic museum, and soak in wonderful views from the rooftop. Alternatively, you might prefer to get out of town and enjoy a short hike in the surrounding hills.

Included Activities
• Chefchoauen guided tour
• Optional Day Trip to Akchour

Accommodation
Dar Echaouen guest House.

Day 2 / Date:

Fes
Meals included: breakfast,

Free time to Explore the Blue town on your own pace, optional day trip to Akchour, in the Rif Mountains, Chefchaouen is one of the prettiest Moroccan Cities, Set against a wide valley and nestled between two peaks in the stunning Rif Mountains, the isolated town of Chefchaouen is a surprising delight. Much of Chefchaouen was recreated by Andalusian refugees escaping the Reconquistia, so its striking blue and whitewashed houses, red-tiled roofs and artistic doorways give it the feel of the Spanish hills. After you will start exploring Chefchaouen “The blue city of Morocco”. Situated at the footstep of 2 higher mountains, Chefchaouen is a beautiful unique city with its white washed walls and blue doors, and windows. Unlike many parts of Morocco, Chefchaouen was occupied by Spain; therefore there is much influence of the Spanish civilisation and the Moorish architecture. On the afternoon, you will have your own time to wonder around and enjoy your space.

11am, 3hour Drive to the nearby archeological site of Volubilis, a Roman ruin once was ancient capital of the kingdom of Mauretania during the 3rd century BC. Stroll among rundown massive columns, remains of altars and temples with splendid mosaics, and triumphal archs, and walls with Roman paintings illustrating Greek and Roman gods.
Optional if time permits, depart for Meknes, visit Bab El Mansour gate was completed by Moulay Ismail’s son, Moulay Abdallah, in 1732. Stop next at Hri Souani, which is a complex of three different buildings built for granaries and stables. This amazing site has been used as a scene for many films, the most famous of which is probably “The Last Temptation of Christ” in 1988 by Martin Scorsese. Explore the delightful streets, Continue on to Fes, arriving by evening (approximately 1.5 hours), the spiritual heart of Morocco

continue to Fes the finest medieval city in the Arab world, an ancient Imperial capital for centuries, and a former Morocco`s intellectual and spiritual heart.

This evening it will be time for some savoury local treat, the salt sweet pastilla with local family in old medina, experience where you will have an opportunity to get closer to Moroccan culture and Art.

Included Activities
• Guided tour of Volubilis
• Optional Visit to Meknes
• Home-cooked dinner ( to be paid by guest ) 100 Dirham per person )

Accommodation
Palais Houyam

Day 3 / Date:
Fes
Meals included: breakfast,

At 9am, Enjoy the guided city tour of Fes. Begin with the entrance to the largest royal palace in Morocco. Continue with a panoramic view of the ancient medina. Enjoy an authentic experience at the traditional ceramic crafts village of Fes after that. Your next stop is Fes El Bali, the ancient town or Medina, which is a medieval part of Fes that has not changed for centuries. Optional lunch at a local restaurant. Visit the famous Al-Karaouine mosque, built by Fatima Al Fihria in 857. Al-Karaouine mosque became home to the University of Al-Karaouine, which is the first university in the world and the world’s foremost center of learning at the beginning of the second millennium. The university was built by Fatima Al Fihria in 859, and, since then, it has become one of the leading spiritual and educational centers of the Muslim world. In the medina, visit also a Merdersa, which is a Coranic school. Complete the city tour of Fes with the leather Souq and the oldest Leather Tannery in the world. The tannery dates back at least nine centuries.
Fes is the spiritual and cultural heart of Morocco; vibrant, noisy, fascinating and overwhelming – a visual and pungent feast for the senses. It is made up of three distinct ‘cities’, or quarters, and you will stay in elegant, riad-style accommodation on the edge of the huge, well-preserved medieval old city – the mother of all medinas. Today head into the old city, known locally as Fes el Bali, arguably the world’s most fascinating and confounding old city. Medieval Fes was one of the world’s great centres of education and culture, both Islamic and Jewish. Its religious institutions and libraries are legendary, its mosques of great renown. Walk through the twisting streets and alleyways, passing donkeys piled high with goods, and explore the specialty sections that divide the souk. Filled with historic khans, medresses and dye-pits, stalls loaded with fruits, herbs and soups, and where the squawk of chickens, smell of spice and sound of hammering of copper fills the air, it’s not hard to imagine yourself back in the Middle Ages. Spend the day exploring the old city, visiting, Mederassa Bou Inania, the tanneries and the splendid Funduk Nejjarine, a beautifully restored 18th century inn
Balance of the day is at leisure.

Included Activities
• Guided tour of Fes old medina
• Funduk Nejjarine visit
• Tannery visit
• Jewish Quarter

Accommodation
Riad Palais Houyam

Day 4 / Date:
Merzouga
Meals included: breakfast, dinner

Meet at your hotel in Fes at 7am and embark on long drive, The day has come to go on a desert adventure to cross off Merzouga from your bucket list. Merzouga is the rocky desert plateau that give way to a vast stretched sea of sandy hills, the far-flung Erg Chebbi.
In the way we will pass through the most modern and clean city in the country Ifran. This Berber name of Ifran means caves and it is nicknamed in Morocco as a little Switzerland since it is a very green town and is a ski resort in the Middle Atlas region of Morocco because of its high altitude at 1665 meters. Ifran is very known as well by The Brotherhood private university, established in 1997 by The king of Morocco Hassan II and the king of Saudi Arabia Fahd. Where all classes are taught in English, it is an international university. Lunch will be scheduled in a Berber village called Midelt which is situated on the foothills of the eastern part of the High Atlas Mountains. From vast plateau we start crossing up those tough mountains which are still settled by a big Berber community. The landscapes here includes palm tree oases at Jbel Ayachi (at 3747 m) before driving down the curves and join the pre-Saharan zone passing first by Errachidia and Erfoud, which is famous for its pottery and the interesting fossil quarries. Fossils are a major industry in Erfoud, some 350 million years ago the region around Erfoud was a part of the huge ocean. Heading up to the red colored sand sea dunes of Erg Chebbi at Merzouga via Rissani, the hometown of the Alaouist dynasty, where Moulay Ali sheriff started to unify Morocco under his red flag in the beginning of the 17th century. From a vast plateau you will get impressed by the huge sand dune of Merzouga appearing from the horizon. We meet our camel men, embark on a 1hour camel ride into the desert to spend a wonderful night enjoying these dramatic dunes, wonderful skies and stars at night, you may get involved in some drumming arround the fire with the berbers tonight, dinner in the campsite. Car : 7 hours –

The golden magical dunes regularly moving by wind blows across wide part of north Africa including Algerian border nearby. On arrival check in to your riad, enjoy sunset drink and relax admiring the sunset over the dunes.

Included Activities
Day trip to Khamlia village
Dinner under stars if weather allow it
Astronomy experience
Wine tasting ( please buy your wine in Fez )
Drumming around Fire

Accommodation
Madu Luxury desert Camp

Day 5 / Date:

Todra Valley
Meals included: breakfast, dinner

Visiting Errisani and the Mausoleum of the founder of the Alaouite Dynasty of Morocco, Moulay Ali Chrif in the 17th century. This silent town was the ancient capital of Tafilalet and its location as a crossroads between north and south brought the city to an important status of a former major caravan center. Up to now Rissani remains a major commercial center in the region, with a large souk, particularly lively today on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Sunday. It was noted for its leather and goat skin trading in ancient ages.
we will then visit the underground irrigation channels used by the nopmads to irrigate theire oasis of palms and henna during the drought times, we will visit the oasis Museum to discover the Saharan Heriateg and berber culture.
1 hour drive from here to the great canyons of Morocco Todgha Gorges are situated beyond the central high Atlas Mountains. Here, the contrasting landscapes remind visitors of the Colorado, with its high plateau, its gorges and great canyons, and its peaks sometimes splintered by erosion. Several peaks in this area exceed 4000 m, with Jbel Saghro 2500 m and Jbel Mgoun at 4068 m being the highest peak in this part of the High Atlas. The area is populated by Berbers. Here you can enjoy a hike among those fabulous canyons.

Included Activities
Day trip to Khamlia village
Dates Market Rissani
Khatarat Irrigation Canals
Oasis Museum.
Accommodation
Bab Todgha

Day 6 / Date:
Ouarzazate
Meals included: breakfast, dinner

At 9am, a walk to discover the nearby fields with the locals is scheduled, This morning, trek the surrounding villages and fields of the valley of Todra, With several peaks above 4000 metres, the Central High Atlas is part of a larger chain of mountains that spreads from the Atlantic Coast in the west to the Algerian border in the east. The mountains are home to the indigenous Berber (or Amazigh) people who have inhabited Morocco for at least 5000 years. The Berbers live in small clusters of earthen adobe houses which cling precipitously to mountainsides and are often only accessible by mule or foot. A trek in the valley will offer more than a glimpse into a way of life that has barely changed for centuries and where traditional values and hospitality have been mostly unaffected by the outside world, learn about the irrigation system, finish your hike in the most beautiful canion in Morocco, known as todra Gorge, famous for Rock climbers.
Take the road to ouarzazate, Lunc break, with a local family to get close to the local culture and real life.
Getting to Ouarzazate (Hollywood of Africa, Noiselessly town, The door of the desert), is a city situated in the middle of a bare plateau, south of the High Atlas Mountains. It is mainly inhabited by Berbers, who constructed many of the prominent kasbahs and building for which the area is known. One of those building is Taourirt Kasbah diverted in 17th century.
Why this town is nicknamed as Hollywood of Africa? Simply because it has been noted as a film-making location, with Morocco’s biggest studios inviting many international film companies to shoot their movies like: Lawrence of Arabia (1962), The Living Daylights (1987), The Last Temptation of Christ (1988), The Mummy (1999), Gladiator (2000), Kingdom of Heaven (2005), Martin Scorsese’s Kundun (1997) and Babel (2005).

Included Activities
• Todra gorges visit
• Hiking
• Local Family Experience
• Dinner at the Riad
• Visit to Studios if time permit

Accommodation
Dar Chamaa

Day 7 / Date:
Marrakech
Meals included: breakfast,

We start our day visiting the fortified city of Aït Benhaddou, built in the 11th century. Once up on a time this Kasbah was the former caravan route between the Sahara and Marrakesh. It is situated on a hill along the Ounila River and has some beautiful examples of kasbahs, which unfortunately sustain damage during each rainstorm and windstorms. Most of the town’s inhabitants now live in a more modern village at the other side of the river; however, around five families are still living within this Kasbah.
Aït Benhaddou Kasbah has been a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1987 and several films have been shot there, including Lawrence of Arabia (1962), Time Bandits (1981), The Jewel of the Nile (1985), Kundun (1997), Gladiator (2000) and Alexander (2004). We will then drive accross the high Atlas mountains, to tizi n Tichka pass 2260 m, enjoy dramatic view and drive along the windy road, of the High Atlas Mountains.

Included Activities
• Visit Ait Benhaddou Kasbah
• Visit Ounila valley
• High Atlas Mountains
• Visit to Ouarzazate Studios

Accommodation
Hotel to be confirmed.

Day 8 Date:
Essaouira Day Trip
Meals included: breakfast,

7am, Transfer to Essaouira, which is another charming town in Morocco. Essaouira is a relatively small, easily navigable beach city. Essaouira has got a distinct multicultural feel, resulting from the large Portuguese, French, and Jewish populations that once called it home. Its mild climate and expansive stretches of ocean sand also place it among Morocco’s top beach towns. Essaouira’s walled medina was added to UNESCO’s World Heritage list in 2001. Its well-preserved, late-18th-century fortified layout is a prime example of European military architecture in North Africa.
is also referred to as The “City of the wind” and it attracts surfers from all over the world. Essaouira knew many civilisations – including the Portuguese occupation, which affects much of its architecture – however, it remains a small village with much history. Because of its size and its characteristic blue doors and washed walls, it is also regarded as Morocco’s “Jewel of the Atlantics”. There is an annual festival of “Gnawa music”, where many musical groups come from different parts of Africa and the world. Usually it starts in the second week of June.
Today you will have lunch in a Moroccan way, bought fishes ‘cooked to order’. On the afternoon, you will have some free time to wonder around, go to the beach and enjoy your space. 3pm, drive Back to Marrakech.

Included Activities
Guided tour of Essaouira

Accommodation
Marrakech

Day 9 / Date:

Marrakech.
Meals included: breakfast,

Breakfast in the Riad. Enjoy a guided city tour of Marrakech, Paris of the Sahara as Winston Churchill once described it. Stop first at the Koutoubia Mosque, which is an old monument built under the reign of the Almohad Caliph Yaqub al-Mansur (1184 to 1199). This monument inspired other buildings such as the Giralda in Seville in Spain and the Hassan Tower in Rabat. Stop next at the Bahia Palace. This Palace was built in the late 19th century and was intended to capture the essence of the Islamic and Moroccan style. Visit Madrasa Ben Youssef after that. This Coranic school is named after the Almoravid Sultan Ali Ibn Yusuf (reigned 1106–1142). Madrasa Ben Youssef is the largest in all of Morocco. Stop next at the Saadian tombs, which is a site that dates back to the time of the sultan Ahmad al-Mansur (1578-1603). The tombs were discovered in 1917 and were restored by the Beaux-arts service. Optional lunch at a local restaurant. Continue the tour with the world famous Jema El Fna Square where you will enjoy amazing performance of traditional activities by storytellers, snake charmers, peddlers of traditional medicines. Your last stop is the bustling souks in the old medina.
Free afternoon in Marrakech at leisure.

Included Activities
Guided tour of Marrakech

Accommodation
Riad / Hotel

Optional Activities
Luxury Spa Hammam & Massage – MAD450
Hot air Ballon – MAD2500
Cooking class – MAD450

Day 10 / Date:
Departure
Meals included: breakfast
There are no activities planned for the final day, Transfer to the airport.

Airport Departure Transfer
Airport Transfer