12 Days
From Tangier
12-Day Tangier Tour: Merzouga, Erg Chigaga & the Coast
Both deserts including the wild Erg Chigaga, plus the Atlantic.
from€959 /person
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Imperial cities, the blue city, the Sahara and the coast in one loop.
Imperial cities, the blue city, the Sahara and the coast in one loop. This 12-day private journey begins in Casablanca and is designed to give you the best of the route without the rush — with hand-picked accommodation, an English-speaking driver-guide and plenty of freedom to stop wherever catches your eye.
Highlights include rabat, fez & chefchaouen, erg chebbi dunes, aït ben haddou & essaouira. Like every Edita itinerary it is fully flexible: we can lengthen or shorten it, upgrade your riads and desert camp, or change the start and finish cities to fit your flights.
Keep exploring: Morocco Tours from Casablanca · all 39 Morocco tours · First-Timer's Complete Guide to Morocco
Today we take in two very different faces of modern Morocco along the Atlantic. In Casablanca, the country's largest city, the highlight is the magnificent Hassan II Mosque, one of the largest in the world, its minaret rising more than 200 metres above the ocean and part of it built out over the water — the vast courtyards and intricate craftsmanship are unforgettable, and non-Muslims can visit inside on a guided tour. We then drive north to Rabat, the elegant, easygoing capital, to explore the Kasbah of the Udayas, a blue-and-white walled quarter above the river, the towering Hassan Tower and the beautiful Mausoleum of Mohammed V, and the tranquil ruins of the Chellah. It is a gentle, cultured start to the journey before we head into the mountains and desert.
Leaving the Atlantic capital behind, we head inland and north toward the Rif Mountains and the enchanting town of Chefchaouen. The drive takes us across rolling farmland and up into greener, hillier country than many expect of Morocco, with the mountains rising ahead. On arrival, Chefchaouen reveals its magic: an entire medina painted in blue, from pale sky-wash to deep indigo, spilling down the hillside in a tangle of stepped lanes, archways and flower-filled corners. The afternoon is free to wander and photograph at leisure, to browse the wool weavings and handicrafts for which the town is known, and to sip mint tea in a shaded plaza beneath the kasbah walls. For a memorable finish, climb to the Spanish Mosque viewpoint above the town to watch the sun set over the blue rooftops.
Leaving the blue mountains behind, we drive south across rolling farmland toward the imperial heartland of Morocco, breaking the journey with two of the country's great historic sites. First we stop at Volubilis, the best-preserved Roman ruins in Morocco, where standing arches, columns and remarkably intact floor mosaics of Bacchus, Orpheus and the seasons spread across a hillside of olive groves. Nearby lies Moulay Idriss, the whitewashed holy town cascading over two hills. We continue to Meknes, the 17th-century capital of Sultan Moulay Ismail, to admire the monumental Bab Mansour gate, the vast granaries and royal stables. By late afternoon we reach Fez and check in to a riad within the old medina, leaving the evening free to rest before tomorrow's full day exploring the labyrinthine heart of the city.
Today we dive into Fez el-Bali, the largest living medieval medina in the world and a UNESCO treasure of some 9,000 lanes where donkeys and handcarts still do the work of trucks. With a licensed local guide we thread through the maze to its landmarks: the Chouara tanneries, where leather is still soaked and dyed by hand in honeycombs of stone vats exactly as it was a thousand years ago; the Al-Qarawiyyin, founded in 859 and recognised as the oldest continually operating university on earth; and the exquisitely tiled Bou Inania and Al-Attarine madrasas. We visit the coppersmiths hammering in their square, weavers at their looms and the fragrant spice souks. It is an intense, unforgettable immersion, and your guide makes sense of the beautiful chaos at every turn.
One of the great road days in Morocco, carrying us from the medieval north to the edge of the Sahara across ever-changing landscapes. We climb into the Middle Atlas to Ifrane, a curiously alpine town of pitched roofs and gardens nicknamed 'little Switzerland', then into the cedar forests around Azrou where troops of wild Barbary macaques gather at the roadside. Beyond Midelt the mountains give way to the dramatic gorges and endless palm groves of the Ziz Valley, a ribbon of green threading through bare desert rock. By late afternoon the first dunes of Erg Chebbi appear on the horizon. We swap the vehicle for camels and ride out over the sand as the light turns molten, reaching a Berber camp for tea, dinner and drumming beneath a blaze of stars.
A full, unhurried day in the heart of the Sahara at Erg Chebbi, Morocco's most spectacular sea of dunes, some rising 150 metres from the plain. You can begin by climbing a high ridge for sunrise, when the sand shifts through pink, gold and deep orange. Later we explore deeper by 4x4: a visit to the village of Khamlia to hear the hypnotic Gnawa music of its Saharan community, calls on nomad families who still live by their herds, stops at desert wells and fossil-strewn flats, and a look at the old routes once walked by camel caravans. There is time to rest in the shade, try sandboarding, or simply sit with the immense silence. As evening returns you ride out once more to camp for a second magical night under the stars.
Leaving the great dunes behind, we set off west along the fabled Road of a Thousand Kasbahs. First we pause in Rissani, the market town built on the ruins of Sijilmassa, once a wealthy caravan capital at the gateway to the Sahara, and pass through Erfoud, centre of the date and fossil trade. The route then climbs into the Atlas foothills to the magnificent Todra Gorge, where sheer rose-coloured limestone walls soar 300 metres and close to just a few metres apart above a clear river — we walk a stretch on foot, dwarfed by the cliffs. Continuing through Tinghir's palm oasis and a string of earthen ksour, we reach the Dades Valley in the late afternoon, checking in near the dramatic gorge with its famous switchback road for the night.
A gentler, more leisurely stage that lets us savour the highlights between the gorges and Marrakech rather than rushing past them. From the Dades Valley we drive back down through the Skoura oasis, stopping at the beautifully restored Kasbah Amerhidil, one of the largest earthen fortresses in Morocco and a wonderful place to understand how these mud-brick strongholds were built and lived in. We continue to Ouarzazate to visit the Taourirt Kasbah and, for film buffs, the famous Atlas Studios where much of Hollywood's desert cinema is made. The day ends at Ait Ben Haddou, the storied UNESCO ksar, where we stay nearby so you can wander its car-free lanes and climb to the hilltop granary at golden hour — enjoying this magical place in soft evening light, long after the day-trip crowds have gone.
After a relaxed start we take a final walk through Ait Ben Haddou in the fresh morning light, crossing the river to explore the honey-coloured towers, alleyways and kasbahs of this remarkable fortified village before the tour buses arrive. From here the road turns north for the great mountain crossing of the day: the Tizi n'Tichka, the highest major pass in Morocco at over 2,200 metres, which snakes up through the High Atlas past terraced Berber villages, walnut groves and viewpoints that seem to reach forever. We stop for photographs and perhaps a mint tea at a mountain cafe where argan oil and local honey are sold. Descending the far side, the landscape softens into the Haouz plain and we arrive in Marrakech in the afternoon, with time to relax before the evening.
Today we swap the mountains for the ocean, driving west across the plains to the breezy Atlantic port of Essaouira. Along the way we pass through classic argan country and stop at a women's cooperative, where you can watch the nut being cracked and pressed by hand into the golden oil used in Moroccan cooking and cosmetics — and often spot goats perched improbably in the argan trees. Essaouira itself is a delight: a walled 18th-century town of whitewashed houses and blue shutters, its ramparts and sea-battered Skala bastions open to the wind that has made it a windsurfing legend. We explore the lively fishing harbour where the day's catch is landed and grilled, wander the relaxed medina of art galleries and workshops, and stroll the wide sweep of beach before dinner.
There is time this morning to enjoy Essaouira at its gentlest, before the afternoon wind picks up. You might take a final walk along the broad Atlantic beach, watch the blue sardine boats unload at the harbour, or browse the artisan medina for the thuya-wood carvings and paintings for which the town is famous — it is one of Morocco's most creative and laid-back places. When you are ready we drive back east through the argan groves and open countryside to Marrakech, roughly a three-hour journey with a stop or two along the way. Arriving in the late afternoon, you have the evening free once more in the Red City — perhaps a return to Jemaa el-Fnaa for dinner, or a quiet rooftop where the Koutoubia glows against the darkening sky.
Your Moroccan adventure draws to a close today with a comfortable transfer from Marrakech to Casablanca, roughly three hours by road across the open plains. If your flight schedule allows, we can make the most of the morning with a stop in Casablanca to see the spectacular Hassan II Mosque, whose minaret towers over the Atlantic and part of whose vast prayer hall is built out over the sea — a fitting final image of the country. From there we deliver you to Mohammed V International Airport in good time for your onward flight, or to a hotel if you are staying a final night. We say goodbye with a warm Moroccan farewell — b'slama — and the hope that the dunes, kasbahs and mountains of these days stay with you long after you fly home.
“The best trip we have ever taken. Our guide felt like a friend by the end, the desert camp was magical and everything ran perfectly.”
“Impeccably organised and completely private. We changed the plan twice and Edita made it effortless. The Sahara sunrise was unforgettable.”
12 Days
Both deserts including the wild Erg Chigaga, plus the Atlantic.
11 Days
A grand south-to-north loop finishing at the Casablanca gateway.
11 Days
Chefchaouen, both great ergs and the Atlantic on a sweeping route.