15-Day Morocco Tour from Tangier to Marrakech with Sahara Camel Ride

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Day 01

Arrival in Tangier

• Welcome to Morocco! Whether you arrive by plane or by ferry, you will find our shuttle waiting for you with a card bearing your name, ready to drive you to your hotel.

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Day 02

Tangier Sightseeing

• We start this tour from the gateway of Europe to Africa, Tangier, named for the goddess Tinge and the lover of Hercules, who mythically pulled Europe apart from Africa to form the Strait of Gibraltar.
• A dramatic drive takes you through La Montagne over a pine-covered headland to the Cap Spartel Lighthouse, which lies just 14 km west of Tangier.
• Five kilometres further, you'll reach the Grottes d'Hercule, where you'll enjoy the much-photographed view from within the mythical dwelling cave of Hercules that resembles a map of Africa.
• Back in the Medina, you'll spend a few hours meandering down the alleyways within its 15th-century Portuguese fortress walls to visit the Kasbah Museum of Mediterranean Culture.
• Wander up to St. Andrew's Church for a spot of gravestone reading, then take in the latest art exhibition at the Center Culturel Ibn Khaldoun.

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Day 03

Rif Mountains and Chefchaouen

• Leaving the famously decadent Tangier, with its Europe-facing Medina, we head inland into the Rif Mountains.
• European influence continues in Chefchaouen with its bright blue, Andalusian-tiled medina and its grand red-hued Kasbah overlooking the main square of Outa Hmam.
• Chaouen, a city perched beneath the raw peaks of the Rif Mountains, is also known as the "Blue Town" due to its mystical blue-washed Medina, which is surely the prettiest and smallest compared to others in the country.
• The town remained isolated with its Andalusian character architecture. Chaouen is undoubtedly a place to enjoy exploring at random.

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Day 04

Mediterranean Coast to Al-Houceïma

• Head east along the 210 km coast, passing through some of the most beautiful beaches of the Mediterranean, including Steha, Jabha, and Cala Iris, before reaching the dry canyons and limestone cliffs of Al-Houciema National Park.
• You'll stop in a small village famed for its history of piracy called Targha. High atop an outcrop of black rock stands a stone fort, where the 13th-century mosque is associated with a local saint, before continuing through Steha and Cala Iris.
• From here, the road follows the coast on a splendid roller-coaster ride to the blue-and-white town of El-Jebha.
• Continue east to the city of Abdelkarim El Khattabi, Al-Houciema, the city that was built as a garrison after the Rif Wars in the early 20th century.

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Day 05

Zegzel Gorges and Oujda

• Take the route east from Al-Houceima to Oujda. Wander through a verdant area of scenic gorges that few imagine when they think of Morocco, and even fewer visit - the ruggedly beautiful Beni-Snassen Mountains.
• While you're here, it is highly recommended to visit the site of an active excavation by Oxford University, the Grottes des Pigeons, which has revealed human remains from the Pleistocene era, including early human jewellery dating back some 80,000 years.
• A few more kilometres bring you to Grottes de Chameau with its camel-like shape. About 3 km further, enjoy the pretty 10 km-long Zegzel Gorges. Do not miss the chance to sample the cumquats, a local industry that even the Romans remarked upon.
• Not far from here is the home of Ria music. Despite Oujda's heritage, it receives very few foreign travellers. The reason is that it was once the busiest border crossing with Algeria, making it popular with traders and tourists alike. When the border closed in 1994, Oujda's economy took a major hit and lost most of the passing trade and a steady flow of tourists.

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Day 06

From Oujda to Fes

• In the morning, before heading to Fes, you'll soak in the three-sided walled Medina and its surroundings.
• Further south, via the highway, we reach the imperial city of Fes, more quintessentially Moroccan in its ancient Medina.

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Day 07

Guided Discovery of Fes Medina

• Do not panic; the guide will show you the must-see sites!
• With your private Fes-born and bred guide, you will have the opportunity to discover the ancient breeding ground for scholars and artisans and the largest medina in the world.
• You will see the America Fondouk, Nejjarines, the Tanneries, the Medersa (theological college), and Karaouine, the first established university in the world.
• Your guide will shed light on many tales and 1,200 years of history in this UNESCO-protected Medina.
• After visiting the medina, we will drive you out of Fes to Lalla Fatiha's place in Sefrou, where you can enjoy delicious house-made food.

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Day 08

Fes to Merzouga and the Sahara

• An early-morning start is recommended for this day. We leave the amazing Medina of Fes, with its mysteries and secrets of the 9,000 alleyways, and head southeast towards Merzouga, the gateway into the golden dunes of the Sahara desert.
• En route, we will pass by the cedar forests of Ifrane, Morocco's Switzerland, which might make you think you are in the Alps.
• If we're lucky, we'll come across the Barbary Macaques on our way to Midelt, where we'll stop for lunch.
• After eating, we drive through the Middle Atlas Mountains to reach the Ziz Valley, considered one of Morocco's largest producers of oasis dates.
• Then it's off to Merzouga, which has the highest dunes in Morocco. You can store any baggage while packing an overnight bag to bring along.
• You'll have the chance to be accompanied by a camel and a blue-turban-robed guide into the sandy seas.
• After an hour-long camel ride, you will be among the lucky ones to watch the sunset over the Sahara dunes and spend a night in a Bedouin-style tent.

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Day 09

Sunrise, Todgha Gorge, and Dadès Gorges

• This morning, you'll wake up with the sun shining on your face to witness what we hope will be a glorious sunrise among the dunes.
• Meanwhile, watch the light creep slowly down the dunes and draw the world around you out from under its warm, heavy mound of blankets for an early breakfast.
• After an hour-long camel ride back out of the desert, you will depart and head for Erfoud, where you can marvel at the million-year-old fossils that the area is famous for.
• Then, heading north for a sublime experience in the Todgha Gorges, we'll find ourselves between gigantic rock walls.
• Arriving at Dadès Gorges, rust-red and mauve mountains greet you. A series of crumbling Kasbahs and Ksours line the valley in the Berber villages all the way to the Monkey Fingers Mountains.
• If we get there early and you still have enough energy to hike for a couple of hours, we will drop off our luggage at the hotel and get dressed for the hike.

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Day 10

Valley of Roses to Marrakech

• You leave Dadès at 8:00 am, traversing the Valley of Roses and daggers straight to the 11th-century UNESCO-protected red mud-brick ksar, which has formed the backdrop for many Hollywood productions such as Lawrence of Arabia, Kingdom of Heaven, Jesus of Nazareth, Gladiator, Game of Thrones, and many others.
• You might also like to explore Ouarzazate, home to Taourirt Kasbah and the "Hollywood" studio.
• Wind up the memorable Tizi n'Tichka Pass through the High Atlas Mountains, beneath North Africa's highest peaks, with Berber villages lining the road, before arriving in Marrakech, where you will have time to explore the crazed cacophony of musicians, snake charmers, and vendors in the famed open-air Jemaa El Fnaa square, along with the highly recommended sites with your guide.

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Day 11

Marrakech Medina and Gardens

• Today, with your private Marrakech-born and bred guide, you explore the Red City from its old quarter, where the Medina's skinny lanes lead to lavish sites, tombs, and religious monuments decked out in marble.
• Bahia Palace, El-Badii Palace, and Saadien's Tombs will be your targets.
• Afterward, your driver/tour guide will pick you up for an outside-medina visit to explore the Majorelle Garden, Museum Saint Laurent, and Berber Museum.
• While in Marrakech, you will undoubtedly encounter thousands of motorcyclists and horse-carts roaming the city, and some of them pull over next to the vast square of Jemaa el-Fnaa, where it's carnival night every night and musicians, acrobats, storytellers, and slapstick acting troupes tap into the Medina's frenetic pulse.

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Day 12

Marrakech to Essaouira

• After breakfast at the riad, you'll be picked up by your driver/tour guide around 08:00 am.
• You will head to Essaouira. Along the road, we'll see the tree goats phenomenon before giving you enough time to explore Jimi Hendrix's town.
• You're free to roam in the city that once was, and still remains, a haven for hippie backpackers and Gnawa musicians.
• You can book a local guide; if not, you can start your visit at the ramparts, a series of forts built in the 15th century around the Medina of Mogador.
• Inside the Medina, you'll have the chance to visit the Mellah, the former Jewish quarter, and Morocco's third fishing port, where you can enjoy a delicious fish meal.
• For sports-oriented travellers, Essaouira is also a place for fine windsurfing and kitesurfing schools.

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Day 13

El-Jadida and Casablanca

• Around 8 am, you'll head north to the 15th-century Portuguese fortified city of Mazagan, now known as El-Jadida, nicknamed "the Deauville of Morocco."
• Its Portuguese structures, fortified ramparts, and the defensive system surrounding the Medina, which advances out into the sea, all evoke the city's past history. Listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site, it is an ancient coastal town with impressive testimony to Portuguese architecture.
• Continue driving north to Casablanca, where you will spend your last night in Morocco before leaving.

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Day 14

Rabat and Return to Tangier

• If time did not allow you to visit Casablanca's sights yesterday, you must do so this morning.
• After we finish Casa, Morocco's political and administrative capital will be waiting. Rabat may be short on top-drawer tourist attractions, but it compensates with plenty of charm.
• During your short vacation, you'll have the chance to delve into the city's rich history. Start with the monumental Hassan Tower, where the pillared stumps of its mosque stand as a testament to the devastating earthquake of 1755.
• There is also the nearby Mausoleum of the royal family. Do not miss the chance to have a cup of mint tea in red Oudayas, a walled village within a city.
• Head north to the famously decadent Tangier, which has always carried a slightly seedy allure due to its time as a semi-independent international zone that attracted eccentric foreigners, artists, and spies. The corniche bustles.

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Day 15

Departure from Tangier

• Airport shuttle! We tell you "see you soon" instead of goodbye, and we hope that you have spent with us one of your most memorable tours ever.