Marrakech Round Trip: Imperial Cities & The Sahara desert tour 7-days

MOROCCO – ARTS, CULTURE AND HISTORY DISCOVERY TOUR

Morocco is a land of contrasts – where Africa meets Europe and the Middle East adds its own flavor. Considered a moderate Islamic state, Morocco opens its doors to everyone regardless of ethnicity, religion or political status. From ancient philosophers and scholars to Bob Marley and Jimmy Hendrix, Morocco has hosted many! If you´re looking for a colorful and diverse experience, this is the place. From the wild markets of Marrakech to the snowy peaks of the Atlas, the silence of the Sahara and pristine beaches of the Atlantic, Morocco is simply amazing. Our journey combines the best of everything – cities, villages, mountain, desert, music, food, shops and the coast, plus opportunities to do community services and some fun adventure activities along the way! Expect plenty of interaction with the friendly Berber tribes’ people of North Africa. Learn their unique drumming, practice the language and taste the delicious food. We´ll fill your week with a lifetime of memories and educational experiences that are second to none.

Day 1 / Date: 

Marrakech

Meals included: dinner

Welcome to Morocco!

On arrival to Marrakech airport, you will be transferred to your accommodation.

After, have an orientation walk to the Jamaa lafna square.

please note that hotel rooms are generally only available after midday, and that there will a Welcome Meeting with your leader tonight at 6pm – check with hotel reception to confirm the time.

 Tonight, join your group for welcome dinner in a beautiful restaurant in the heart of Marrakech, in a traditional Moroccan setting and get served a local cuisine.

 Arrival Transfer

• Included

 Included Activities

• Welcome meeting
• Welcome dinner

 Accommodation: Riad Nesma

Day 02 / 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 Nesma

 Optional Activities

Luxury Spa Hammam & Massage – MAD450

Hot air Ballon – MAD2500

Cooking class – MAD450

Day 3 / Date:

Marrakech to TELOUET & AIT BENHADOU – DADES VALLEY

Meals included: dinner

This morning after breakfast we set off in a comfortable private A/C Vehicule; for our circular Marrakech to Casablanca Souks Camels Beach and beyond 12 days journey through the Saharan landscapes of both the Hamada (stone desert) and Erg (dune desert).  Our first visits include : High Atlas mountains, discover traditional Berber villages and Terraces, drive up the spectacular Tichka Pass 2260m high, we drive down the valleys to Ait Benhadou via the amazing valley of ounila, discover the pacha glaoui kasbah and the authentic villages of Ounila, ex-caravan route with 100 of kasbah, we arrive to the most spectacular Unesco Site in the southern Morocco, a walk to discover the Kasbah where Gladiator, Game of thrones, Lawrence of Arabia and many other moveies were shot, discover the beautiful berber Archeticture, Lunch in a local restaurant and set off for Ouarzazate Largest saharan center, Moroccan Hollywood, Visit the Cinema Museum, opportunity to shop in a super Market…

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). Continue to the valley of roses, locals here extract product roses from Damskina rose widely grown in the lush valleys and celebrate the festival of roses in first week of May, arrive to our hotel in Dades valley.

Included Activities

• Visit to High Atlas
• Visit to Telouet
• Visit to Ait benhaddou Kasbah
• Cinema Studios
• Welcome dinner

Accommodation: Chez Ichou

Day 4 / Date: 

Sahara Desert

Meals included: breakfast, dinner

This morning we will start the day by a hike in  Todra velley,– a vast canyon of the Atlas Mountains.  a light trek through the date palm oasis to observe the strange sand castle-like homes.and learn about the agricultural and irrigation system of the valley of Todra.

Today we head for the great Sahara dunes of Erg Chebbi – Morocco´s most authentic location.  Before leaving however we take part in a few adventure challenges in the canyon and a short trek through an amazing oasis plantation, perhaps visiting a Berber home for mint tea.  Carrying on to the dunes, we arrive late afternoon to find our camels waiting to take us (2 hours approximately) to a unique Nomadic style desert camp where we sleep in comfortable tents under the stars.  Time permitting, we can explore the high dunes and climb, jump, roll, etc. to our heart´s content!  Tonight we enjoy Sahara Berber drumming and perhaps a fire to keep us warm – unless you prefer to dance!  This experience is a highlight of any visit to Morocco.  Travel time approximately 4.5 hours total.  Breakfast and dinner included. overnight in Luxury Desert Camp.

Included Activities

• Visit Oasis Museum
• Visit Date Markets
• Camel Trek
• Deluxe Desert Camp

Accommodation: Luxury Camp

Day 5 / Date: 

Fez

Meals included: breakfast,

Early in the morning, enjoy sunrise from the dunes of Erg chebbi at 20 km away of Algeria, breakfast in the camp or in the hotel at the dunes line, and camel ride back or walk with the caravan to the hotel at the dunes line, We drive afterwards drive along the ziz valley, second largest dates valley of Morocco where locals grow more than 300 types of dates, harvested every October, also called Moroccan dates baskest, enjoy beautiful canions of Ziz valley, lunch in a restaurant before arriving to the Middle Atlas forests, explore the cydar trees where you may encounter wild macaque monekys in the forsts of cydar and oak. Pick up at 9am, drive along thecydar forests drive down to Ifran, a mountanious town also called Moroccan Swizerland, set at 1600m high, known for it ski station and snow during the winter, considere the cleanest city of Morocco, continue to fez.

En route we will pass through Arfoud, the Zizpalm Valley, Meditlt, the cedar forests and macaque monkeys of Azrou, and Ifrane, before we drop you at your riad/hotel in Fez.

Included Activities

• Visit Ziz Valley
• Visit Ifran

Accommodation: Riad

Day 6 / Date: 

Fez Guided Tour – Drive to Marrakech in the Afternoon.

Meals included: breakfast,

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.

2PM, we embark on 6H drive from Fez to Marrakech. arrive to Marrakech in the late afternoon.

Accommodation : www.riadmarjana.com / riadmyra.com  / riad dar dmana

Tour Activities :

Guided walking tour Fes

Fondouk Nejjarine

Mederassa Bou Inania, Tanneries, Jewish Quarter

Meals Included : Breakfast

Day 7 / Date: 

Departure

Meals included: breakfast

There are no activities planned for the final day, Transfer to the airport.

Airport Departure Transfer

Airport Transfer

Marrakech Round Trip: Imperial Cities & The Sahara desert tour 7-days

Marrakech Round Trip: Imperial Cities & The Sahara desert tour 7-days, offer fabulous experiences in Morocco´s most attractive zones: from The most vibrant cities and Medinas, Architectural tours, Food and Wine Tours, Roman Ruins archeological sites, Culture of the Berbers, Moroccan History, Luxury hotels and Riads, the High Atlas Mountains; The rural villages of the countryside and the Sahara Desert itself. There is also one very unique stay in the Sahara dunes where we travel in and out by camel and stay in a Bedouin style camp.

We invite you to join a life enhancing journeys visiting Morocco landscapes in comfort on our Marrakech Round Trip: Imperial Cities & The Sahara desert tour 7-days – leading to the most charming, historical Medinas and Monuments in Morocco, from Marrakech to Southern valleys, breaking the journey at Fez, Morocco’s most inspiring Medina, travel to the famous Erg Chebbi dunes where we’ll travel on camel back and spend a night under the stars in a Bedouin camp. Consider this a personal reward for your efforts!

Highlights

• – View the stunning contrast of Morocco
• – Deep Introduction to Culture, Nature, Life Philosophy
• – Enjoy authentic Berber’s hospitality
• – Taste delicious traditional Berber food
• – Explore one of Morocco Beautiful deserts
• – Ride in a 4×4 in Sahara & Atlas Mountains
• – Spend three full days seeing the best of what Sahara has to offer

Essential Information:

Why Us?:

– Your hotel Pick-up, so you spend the maximum time exploring real & Authentic, Sahara Desert & Atlas Mountains, Private tour at your own pace

– Top Rated tour, with 5 star customer feedback and a Excellence reviews from Trip Advisor

– One guide that is with you from the moment you arrive in Morocco until you leave, taking care of your entire trip.

Visited Places

• Fes Medina
• Meknes
• Tizi n’Tichka Pass
• Ait Benhaddou Kasbah
• Ouarzazate
• Dades & Todra gorge & Valley
• Valley of roses & Ziz Valley
• Errissani Traditional Markets
• High Atlas Mountains
• Berber villages
• Sahara Desert

Travel Experience

• Moroccan Culture & People, Food & History
• Berber Culture
• Camel trekking
• Berber music and animation
• Sleeping in desert camp

Travel Preparation:

The list below is a suggestion of what you might find useful to take on this trip. It is not an exhaustive packing list. If you need further advice, please contact us or consult your nearest outdoor store.

Clothing & Footwear:

• Comfortable walking clothes that are suitable for layering
• Fleece jacket/warm jumper
• Lightweight raincoat/windbreaker
• Comfortable shoes for walking
• Sandals/flip-flops
• Synthetic/woollen socks
• Hat
• Swimsuit
• Sarong/scarf/loose cotton trousers that can easily be pulled on over shorts to cover shoulders/legs when walking through villages

Equipment:

• Day pack
• Beach towel
• Water bottle/hydration bladder
• Water purification pen/tablets
• Sunglasses
• Head torch
• Camera, memory card and charger
• Spare batteries
• Personal items (including hand sanitiser, lip balm, microfibre towel, sunscreen, toilet paper, toiletries, wet wipes etc)
• Medicine and copy of doctor’s prescription which states medication and quantity carried
• Personal first aid kit (including blister tape, insect repellant, oral rehydration salts, plasters, tweezers, diarrhoea tablets etc)
• Rubbish bag