10-Day Morocco Discovery: Casablanca to Marrakech

The one-way journey from Casablanca to Marrakech is the perfect format for travellers flying into one airport and out of another. Ten days gives you time for two nights in the Sahara, a full Marrakech free day, and unhurried stops at every major southern landmark. The route covers the full cultural spectrum of Morocco from its modern commercial capital to the ancient red city of Marrakech, passing through four centuries of history along the way.

Day 1 — Casablanca › Rabat

Pickup at Casablanca airport. Brief Casablanca city visit: Hassan II Mosque exterior, the Place Mohammed V (Art Deco administrative quarter with its ornate French colonial buildings and central fountain), and the Habous Quarter (New Medina) — a planned 1930s artisan district of quiet arcaded streets, honey-coloured archways, and specialist souks selling pastilla pastry, argan products, and religious texts. Continue to Rabat: Hassan Tower, Mohammed V Mausoleum, Kasbah des Oudayas, and the ancient walls of the Chellah necropolis where Roman-era ruins are colonised by fig trees, bougainvillea, and nesting white storks. Overnight Rabat.

Day 2 — Rabat › Meknès › Volubilis › Fez

Drive to Meknès. Visit Bab Mansour — the greatest ceremonial gate in Morocco, built by Moulay Ismail in 1732 using marble columns looted from Volubilis. Explore the Place el-Hedim (Meknès’s main square, once the city’s central market), the Moulay Ismail Mausoleum (open to non-Muslims — a rare honour reflecting the sultan’s legacy as Morocco’s Versailles-builder), and the vast Heri es-Souani granaries with their metre-thick earthen walls and elaborate ventilation system. Continue to Volubilis for the Roman mosaics, triumphal arch, and Capitol. Arrive Fez for dinner. Overnight in riad.

Day 3 — Fez Medina Morning

Expert guided tour of Fez el-Bali: Chouara Tanneries, Bou Inania Madrasa, al-Qarawiyyin quarter, Attarine souk, Nejjarine Fondouk, and the Mellah (Jewish quarter). Afternoon free for photography and independent souk exploration — the woodturners, the saddlers, the weavers, and the sellers of traditional Fassi ceramics are each found in their dedicated quarter. Overnight Fez.

Day 4 — Fez › Middle Atlas › Merzouga

South through Ifrane‘s alpine streets and Azrou‘s cedar macaque forest. Lunch in Midelt. Afternoon through the Ziz Valley palm corridor. Arrival in Merzouga. Overnight desert lodge.

Day 5 — Erg Chebbi Desert Immersion › Camp Overnight

Full day: Khamlia Gnawa village, nomadic family visit, sandboarding, sunset camel trek, Berber camp dinner and music. Overnight in luxury desert tent.

Day 6 — Desert Sunrise › Rissani › Tinghir › Todgha Gorge › Boumalne Dadès

Pre-dawn dune sunrise. Rissani ancient market. Tinghir palm oasis stroll along the Todgha River. Todgha Gorge canyon walk. Overnight Boumalne Dadès hotel with gorge views.

Day 7 — Dadès Gorge › Rose Valley › Skoura › Ouarzazate

Dadès Gorge morning drive past the monkey-paw rock formations. Through the Valley of Roses rose water distilleries and the fragrant rose orchards of Kalaat M’Gouna. Skoura palm grove. Ouarzazate: Atlas Studios and Kasbah Taourirt. Overnight Ouarzazate.

Day 8 — Aït Ben Haddou › Tizi n’Tichka › Marrakech

Guided visit to Aït Ben Haddou UNESCO Kasbah. High Atlas crossing via Tizi n’Tichka (2,260 m). Arrival Marrakech by evening. Overnight riad.

Day 9 — Marrakech Full Guided Day

Licensed city guide: Koutoubia Mosque, Bahia Palace, Saadian Tombs, themed souk quarters, Majorelle Garden and Berber Museum. Evening at leisure in Jemaa el-Fna square — orange juice sellers, fortune tellers, open-air kitchens, acrobats. Overnight Marrakech.

Day 10 — Marrakech Free Morning › Airport Transfer

A slow riad breakfast, optional hammam visit, or final souk browse before your driver transfers you to Marrakech Menara Airport in good time for departure.

What’s Included

• Private air-conditioned vehicle (fuel included)
• Casablanca pickup; Marrakech airport/hotel drop-off
• Licensed guides in Fez and Marrakech
• 7 nights hotels/riads (breakfast & dinner)
• 2 nights desert camp (dinner & breakfast)
• Camel trek and sandboarding at Erg Chebbi
• Complimentary bottled water
• All taxes

Not Included

• Flights tickets
• Entrance fees to
• Monuments of any
• Lunches and drinks
• Anything not mentioned in the itinerary