Morocco in Luxury: Casablanca Round Trip - 14 Days

Day 1: Arrive in Casablanca

Welcome to Morocco! Land in Casablanca in the afternoon, and meet your private driver. Begin your tour with a visit to the enormous Hassan II Mosque, home to the second-tallest minaret in the world. This landmark not only showcases the best of Moroccan architecture, but it's also one of the few mosques in Morocco whose interior is open to non-Muslims. So step inside and lose yourself in the phenomenal craftsmanship, detailing, and divine vibes of this incredible site. 

Take the rest of the evening to relax at your five-star hotel. Enjoy dinner on your own, armed with recommendations from your driver, who will guide you to any number of luxurious restaurants around Morocco's capital. 

Day 2: Explore Rabat and Salé

The next day, travel to Rabat, the capital of Morocco and home to the Moroccan royal family. Once there, visit the Hassan Tower monument, one of the most magnificent buildings of the Almohad Dynasty. The Hassan Tower is the minaret of an incomplete Almohad-era mosque. All that remains of the mosque is the tower, which is 145 feet (44 m) high, plus about 200 columns. In the afternoon, head to the nearby city of Salé for a tour of the historic Salé Madrasa, a medieval religious school. Take in its stunning architecture and unique Moroccan craftwork. Then, check out the Bab Antare and Bab Mellah, the walls and regions that divide the city. 

Later, return to Rabat and spend some time exploring the blue-painted Oudaya neighborhood that is perched above the Atlantic Ocean. Watch the sunset from the ramparts for a beautiful experience. As Morocco's capital, Rabat has a busy culinary scene. You will find excellent Moroccan food around the city, or you could head to the embassy quarter of the new city (just inland from the medina) for some of the best French and Italian dining in the country. 

Day 3: Wander through the "Blue City" of Chefchaouen

Make your way to Chefchaouen, also known as the "blue city" due to the pastel-blue and sky-blue colors of its architecture. Chefchaouen is located in the heart of the Rif Mountains and offers travelers the romance of old Morocco. After you check-in at your luxurious riad (traditional house with a courtyard), explore the town at your own pace or simply relax.

Place Outa el-Hammam, the main square, is the perfect place to watch the world go by. This neighborhood is a great location to shop for handcrafted wool garments, woven blankets, cedarwood furniture, and other artisanal work from northern Morocco. Be sure to order a maqlouba (upside-down) coffee, and enjoy it while watching the local women retrieve water and wash their laundry in the nearby spring. If you wander up the tiny alleyways away from the touristed areas, you'll find the everyday life of Chefchaouen. 

Day 4: Transfer to Fes via Volubilis, Moulay Idriss & Meknes

Enjoy your morning in Chefchaouen, then hit the road to travel through Morocco's royal past. First, head south toward Fes. En route, stop to visit Volubilis, a UNESCO World Heritage Site that features Morocco's best-preserved Roman ruins. Wander the massive complex and explore large merchant homes with visible heating systems, temples, and many intact mosaics.

Afterward, move on to Moulay Idriss. As Morocco's first Islamic capital, the city remains a site of ongoing cultural significance. Check out the unique round minaret here, the only one of its kind in Morocco. If you can snag reservations early enough beforehand, you can enjoy a private dining experience at the city's most exclusive restaurant for lunch. 

Your next stop is the prosperous city of Meknes, which features a smaller medina and friendlier shopkeepers than you will see in larger cities. Explore the Ville Impériale (New City) area, where you can see gardens, palaces, the impressive gate of Bab al-Mansour, the Mausoleum of Moulay Ismail, and the Royal Stables. Many of these palaces were constructed with materials taken from Volubilis, so be on the lookout for Roman columns hidden in unexpected places! End your royal road trip in Fes, one of Morocco's four "imperial cities." After you check in to your luxury riad in the historic medina, the rest of the day is yours. 

Day 5: Guided Tour and Hammam in the Imperial City of Fes

Fuel up with a delicious breakfast, then meet with your private tour guide (a Fes local) to explore the UNESCO-listed medina. Your guide will share hidden stories and show you the secluded corners of this thriving epicenter. Take in the minutiae of daily life and the magnificence of madrasas (religious schools) and palaces. Once you've worked up an appetite, ask your guide for lunch suggestions—there are many elegant restaurants hidden behind unassuming doorways. 

After lunch, dive into traditions and crafts as you visit tanneries and mosaic workshops to observe traditional crafting methods still in use and connect with the artisans at work. Later, return to your riad to unwind for a bit, then visit the local hammam (traditional public bath) for some pampering and rejuvenation. Most hammams provide a variety of services, including massages, baths, and an extensive treatment menu using locally-sourced argan oil products. Whatever you choose, start with a traditional steam, soak, and scrub, the perfect hammam trifecta. 

Day 6: Guerrouane Region Winery Tour

Enjoy a fun and decadent day trip out of the city today when you venture into Morocco's unique Guerrouane agricultural region, just beyond Fes. Spend the day learning about the region's crops, history, traditions, and flavors with a winery tour and private tasting. Moroccans have been cultivating and refining wine grapes for large-scale production since the Roman era. The winemaking tradition can be traced back to the region's Jewish communities and was later expanded by French settlers. Growers and vintners focus on red blends, rosé, vin gris (a type of rosé), and local brandies called mahia (water of life).  

Guerrouane is Morocco's agricultural heartland, where good soil, rain, and sun combine to provide excellent conditions for orchard fruits like apricots, plums, and oranges, as well as the region's prized grapes. This hidden gem is also home to Morocco's only AOC wine—Coteaux de l'Atlas 1er Cru. After a fun and informative vineyard tour, sit down to an afternoon of tasting flights featuring various local styles of wine. Later, return to Fes for the night, and relax in the courtyard of your riad as you crack open your favorite bottle from the day's wine discovery. 

Day 7: Travel over the Middle Atlas Mountains to the Sahara

Today, start early so you can answer the seductive call of the Sahara Desert. After breakfast, begin your road trip by crossing the Middle Atlas Mountains through the town of Azrou and the Cèdre Gouraud Forest. You may see groups of Barbary macaque monkeys relaxing in cedar trees near the road. Then, stop for lunch in Midelt, which sits on a cold, high desert plateau. As the day continues, cross a landscape of steep mountain ranges, broad valleys, and narrow canyon passes. Your driver will take you through the Ziz Valley, an essential branch of the ancient Saharan Trade Route. Gaze out the window to see the area's ksars, fortified houses built by merchants to protect the gold, salt, and spices that passed this way.

Once you reach the Sahara, prepare for a once-in-a-lifetime experience in North African luxury. Mount a camel for a ride across the dunes as the sun sets. Take in the golden glow across the landscape with an unobstructed view (you can even spot Algeria in the distance). As night falls, you'll maintain visibility as the moon reflects off the sand, guiding you and your camel to your unique accommodation for the night: a luxurious camp nestled at the foot of the Erg Chebbi dunes. Sink into total relaxation in your glamping tent. Later, enjoy a dinner prepared by local Berber tribesmen and cozy by the fire, serenaded by live music.

Gaze up at the heavens from your romantic spot, or see if you can stargaze from atop the dunes before you turn in for the night.

Day 8: Adventure in the Todra Gorge

Rise early to be rewarded with a sunrise over the dunes. Then, enjoy breakfast in camp before traveling back across the desert to Merzouga. Once you meet your private driver, begin your journey to Tinghir, an oasis city at the foot of the Atlas mountains. Consider stopping in the desert community of Rissani before setting out across the plains. This town is an excellent place to take a walk around a traditional market, where many animals are bought and sold. Be sure to stop by the "donkey parking lot" while you're here. 

Enjoy the change in landscape when you reach Tinghir. There's a weekly market in town for local farmers who grow figs, dates, and wheat and live in the area's ksars. Take some time to relax with a delicious lunch and use your afternoon to explore this scenic spot before pressing on. Continue your road trip through a green valley that grows increasingly tighter until you enter the vertical Todra Gorge. Get out and explore the rustic trails winding up and out of the canyon.

Then, head back down into the Todra oasis, where you'll spend the night in a sumptuously-appointed kasbah, a fortified hilltop town featuring mud bricks and furnished with the finest local products and fossils. Lounge in luxury, then explore the valley for dinner (there are several unexpectedly ambitious restaurants here.) The locals are quite friendly, so feel free to explore the oasis a bit after your meal.

Day 9: Head to Ouarzazate via the Valley of a Thousand Kasbahs

Today, travel along ancient trade routes from Tinghir to Ouarzazate through the Valley of a Thousand Kasbahs. Along the way, you'll see many iconic fortified towns. The first significant stop en route will be the town of Boumalne Dadès, an oasis town at the mouth of the Valley of a Thousand Kasbahs. If you turn north, you can visit the Dadès Gorge, which cuts through a dramatic landscape of rust and mauve-striped mountains. The valley below is an irrigated oasis filled with fig, almond, and olive orchards and dotted with crumbling kasbahs and Berber villages. 

After lunch in Boumalne Dadès, head south toward the Valley of Roses, the heart of rose oil production in Morocco. Every spring, the landscape smells heavenly during the harvest of the perfumed Provence rose. End the day in Ouarzazate, a town famous for its involvement in the Moroccan film industry. There is more to Ouarzazate than movies, though, and you'll drive a short way from town to the iconic ksar of Aït Benhaddou. It's believed that this site dates back to the 11th century when it held a prominent position along the trans-Saharan trade route between Marrakech, Ouarzazate, and the southern desert.

Later, retire to your very own kasbah across a dry riverbed from Aït Benhaddou. If you'd like, head out for a nighttime stroll—when the moon is out, the entire valley glows from light reflecting off the white sand. The sight is enchanting.  

Day 10: Cross the High Atlas Mountains to Marrakech via Aït Benhaddou

Take the time to explore Aït Benhaddou once more in the morning light, before leaving the Sahara. Wind your way into the High Atlas Mountains through the towering Tizi n'Tichka Pass. Near the top, enjoy incredible panoramic views of the mountains and the plains of Marrakech below. Be on the lookout for Mount Toubkal—North Africa's highest peak—to the west. As you descend the north-facing slopes, notice the dramatic change in the climate and landscape. You'll soon begin to cross deep river valleys and see abundant almond and walnut orchards.  

Once in Marrakech, check in to your luxury riad, the perfect place to unwind after your travels. Spend the rest of the afternoon at a slower pace and sip a pot of fresh mint tea by the pool or in the shade of a jasmine bush. If you're inspired to head out in the evening, you'll be right on time to watch the medina's main square, Jemaa el-Fna, comes alive with food stalls, snake charmers, and performers. There are many cafés surrounding the square where you can sit and enjoy the activity over a delicious meal, or you could head to the new city to explore Marrakech's modern food scene. 

Day 11: Hot Air Balloon, Medina & City Tour in Marrakech

Wake up before the sun and head out to the fields for a hot air balloon ride. In this fantastic experience, you'll see the high plains of Marrakesh, including Berber villages, and the Sahara far off in the distance. In the afternoon, your local private guide will lead you through the old city of Marrakech. Explore this UNESCO World Heritage Site, wandering through its lively souks and maze-like alleys. You're sure to be dazzled by displays of djellabas (traditional robes), brightly colored babouches (slippers), intricately-pierced lanterns, conical mounds of exotic spices, and the intense hubbub of medina life. 

On your tour, you'll explore places like the Bahia and El Badii Palaces and the Saadian Tombs. You'll also see the Majorelle Gardens, an iconic garden retreat built over forty years by French painter Jacques Majorelle and later inhabited by famed designer Yves Saint Laurent. Stroll through two and a half acres of peaceful water gardens, visit Morocco's only museum dedicated entirely to Berber art and culture, and explore Yves Saint Laurent's gallery, all within the walls of this urban oasis.

Day 12: Sunrise Yoga and Afternoon Hammam in Marrakech

Today is about total relaxation. Start the day with a private yoga session at sunrise, led by a local yogi who will personalize your practice to your experience level. Then, retire to your hotel for breakfast and spend the rest of the morning however you please. You could venture out into Marrakech for exploration or relax poolside at your luxury riad. 

Finish the day with a blissful visit to an authentic Moroccan hammam (bathhouse). Learn about the traditions and history of the hammam and unwind with one of Marrakech's most highly sought-after spa experiences. Loosen your muscles with a steam, soak, and traditional scrub. You can also tailor your services to include massages, baths, and an extensive treatment menu using locally-sourced products like argan oil. Afterward, head back to your riad to enjoy the rest of the day. If you're up for it, return to town and enjoy a delicious dinner at one of Marrakech's spectacular eateries. 

Day 13: Drive to Casablanca via the Atlantic Coast & Portuguese Ports

Hit the road early this morning to head to Casablanca via the coastal route, visiting two old Portuguese fortified cities along the way. Your first stop is El Jadida for a tour of its underground Portuguese Cistern. You can also stay to walk the ramparts and explore the Church of the Assumption.

Next is Azemmour, which has inspired many Moroccan artists over the decades, some of whom have chosen to live here. Life here is still traditional, despite its proximity to the cosmopolitan art market of Casablanca. The crumbling 16th-century medina squeezed between the Oud Er-Rbia (Mother of Spring River) and the ocean provides plenty of artistic inspiration.

Take advantage of the Atlantic's incredible bounty today with some delicious fish for lunch. Wander the local fish markets, where unassuming food stalls serve some of the freshest grilled and fried seafood. The traditional way to eat here is to buy the fish yourself in the market and have the grill-masters cook it for a small fee. Once you arrive in Casablanca, check into your chic downtown hotel, then see how the locals live with an exploration of the city's trendy neighborhoods.

Start your discovery in Maarif, home of the French-style eponymous market, and Ain Diab, a prime beachfront community home to the Morocco Mall and miles of walking paths. The waterfront, or Corniche, is a great place to people-watch, especially when the entire city comes out to promenade right before sunset. 

Day 14: Depart Casablanca

It's time to say goodbye to Morocco. Depending on the time of your departure flight, you may be able to do some last-minute sightseeing in Casablanca or enjoy tea at one of the traditional cafés. When the time comes, head to Casablanca's Mohammed V International Airport for your flight. Bon voyage! 

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Looking for more inspiration for your trip to Morocco? Check out these 2-week Morocco itineraries, with outdoor adventures, cultural trips, and best-of tours to hit the highlights.