15 Day Grand Morocco Tour

Route: Marrakech – Essaouira – Ouarzazate – M'Hamid – Erg Chigaga – Dades Valley – Todra Gorges – Merzouga – Fes – Meknes – Volubilis – Chefchaouen – Casablanca

Fifteen days lets you see Morocco in sequence instead of in fragments. You begin in Marrakech, go west to the sea at Essaouira, turn south-east over the Atlas, sleep in the Sahara twice, then work north through Fes and the Rif mountains to finish in Casablanca. The same vehicle and the same driver-guide stay with you all the way.

The two desert nights are meant to feel different. Day 7 takes you out beyond M’Hamid to Erg Chigaga and our own Erg Chigaga Luxury Camp; day 9 ends at Merzouga with a sunset camel ride into Erg Chebbi and a second camp. With only eleven days, the 11 day Grand Morocco Tour keeps one desert and trims the coast.

If the order, the length or the stops are not quite right for you, say so on the Customized Trips page and we will rework the route.

What you will see

Marrakech's medina, souks, Bahia Palace and Jemaa el-Fnaa square, with a guide
A free day in Essaouira, the walled Atlantic port
The palm groves of the Draa Valley on the way to M'Hamid
A camel ride and a night at the Erg Chigaga Luxury Camp, dinner included
The Todra Gorges, then a sunset ride into the Erg Chebbi dunes
A guided walk through the medina of Fes, tanneries included
Meknes and the Roman ruins of Volubilis
A full day in Chefchaouen, the blue town of the Rif
The Hassan II Mosque in Casablanca

Good to know

The tour is private: one vehicle and one English- and French-speaking driver-guide for the whole circuit.
The driver meets you at the airport on day 1 and takes you back for your flight on day 15.
Night 1 is in a riad in Marrakech. The other nights are in hotels, assigned according to availability.
The route covers a lot of ground, so several days are long drives; the day-by-day notes show where the stops fall.
Desert nights can be cold in winter and days hot in summer, so pack layers, a scarf and sun protection.
Prices depend on your dates and group size: send them to us and we reply with availability and a quote.

Not sure about fifteen days? Compare tour packages by length.

15 Day Grand Morocco Tour: day-by-day itinerary

Day 1Marrakech: arrival

No schedule beyond the airport meeting. Your driver delivers you to your riad in Marrakech so you can rest before the circuit begins.

Day 2Marrakech with a guide

A local guide takes you through the medina's souks, into the Bahia Palace and finally onto Jemaa el-Fnaa, the big square that changes character from afternoon to night.

Day 3To the coast: Essaouira

The road goes west to the Atlantic. Essaouira is a fortified port with ramparts facing the sea; the evening is for fish, usually straight from the harbour.

Day 4A free day in Essaouira

There is no plan on purpose. People walk the sea walls, browse the small workshops of the medina or sit at the fishing port.

Day 5Over the Atlas to Ouarzazate

You leave the coast, cross the High Atlas and arrive in Ouarzazate, the town on the southern side that serves as the base for the south.

Day 6Down the Draa to M'Hamid

Today follows the Draa Valley, a long ribbon of palm oases between stony hills. M'Hamid, where the road effectively ends, is your stop before the dunes.

Day 7Erg Chigaga

You ride into Erg Chigaga by camel and sleep at our own camp, the Erg Chigaga Luxury Camp. Dinner is served there, with the dunes and the night sky as the setting.

Day 8North to the Dades Valley

Sunrise over the dunes, then a long drive north. The night is in the Dades Valley, a river valley lined with earth-built kasbahs.

Day 9Todra Gorges and Merzouga

The Todra Gorges, a narrow canyon with high rock walls, come first. In the evening you reach Merzouga and ride into Erg Chebbi at sunset for the night in a second desert camp.

Day 10Merzouga to Fes

After sunrise on the dunes you start the longest drive of the circuit: the Ziz Valley, then the cedar forests of the Middle Atlas, then Fes.

Day 11Fes with a guide

Fes el-Bali, the old walled medina, is a UNESCO World Heritage site. Your guide leads you through its souks and to a viewpoint over the traditional tanneries.

Day 12Meknes, Volubilis, Chefchaouen

Going north you stop in Meknes and at Volubilis, the best-known Roman site in Morocco, before the road climbs into the Rif mountains to Chefchaouen.

Day 13A full day in Chefchaouen

Chefchaouen is a small mountain town whose lanes and houses are painted in shades of blue. It is a day for walking slowly and taking photographs.

Day 14Chefchaouen to Casablanca

A drive south to Casablanca, Morocco's largest city, and a different pace after the mountains and the desert.

Day 15Casablanca and departure

The Hassan II Mosque, built on the Atlantic shore, is the last visit. Then the driver takes you to the airport.

What is included in the 15 Day Grand Morocco Tour

Included

Private air-conditioned vehicle with an English- and French-speaking driver-guide for the whole route
Airport pick-up on day 1 and airport transfer on day 15
Guided visits in Marrakech (day 2) and the Fes medina (day 11)
Camel ride into Erg Chigaga and a night at our Erg Chigaga Luxury Camp on day 7, with dinner
Sunset camel ride into the Erg Chebbi dunes and a night in a second desert camp on day 9
Night 1 in a Marrakech riad; the other nights in hotels, according to availability
Breakfast every day

Not included

Lunches, and dinners other than the one at the Erg Chigaga camp
Drinks, tips and entrance fees

Sources and further reading

Photos from the 15 Day Grand Morocco Tour

Similar tours

11 Day Grand Morocco Tour

Eleven days from Marrakech to Casablanca by private vehicle, with Essaouira, one night in a Berber desert camp at Erg Chebbi, Fes and Chefchaouen.

See the day-by-day plan