MOROCCO with the SAHARA DESERT  
9DAYS
LAND ONLY

For travel agents and companions
  
Also available Morocco 7 days, 
Morocco combined with any other Mediterranean country

CASABALANCA / RABAT / FES / ERFOUD / OUARZAZATE / MARRAKECH

SUNDAY arrivals 2024 - 2025

Day 1    Sunday - Casablanca/Rabat
WELCOME TO MOROCCO !!!    
After passing through customs and collecting your luggage, please proceed to the exit gate, where a representative will be waiting for you with a paging board with your name on it. You will be met and transferred to Casablanca city for panoramic tour.

Visit of “The White City”: drive through the wide avenues and long stripes. Later walk through the narrow streets of the Medina. The tour also features visits to United Nations Square, habous district. Hassan II Mosque (outside) and Corniche Boulevard. Visit inside of Mosque additional $15.00 per person.

Departure to Rabat (approximately 1 hour)    
      Overnight RIAD KELAA, Rabat

Day 2    Monday - Rabat/Fes
Breakfast and sightseeing of the “Imperial Garden City”.  Today tour the capital of Morocco, one of the four Imperial Cities. During the tour see the Medina built by Moorish refugees from Spain, the district with most of the city’s oldest architecture; the Roman ruins of Chellah; the Royal Palace (residence of the King Hassan II and seat of the government since 1912), the Tour Hassan, the unfinished mosque and more.

Continue to Moulay Idriss, Situated on top of a rocky mountain, this town is named after a prominent Moroccan saint, Moulay Idriss. His tomb and shrine are situated in an elevated position between two hills, and the town is one big structure around the tomb.

Onward to the village of Volubilis which was the administrative center of the province in Roman Africa also referred to by Moroccans as Walili (Arabic). It was destroyed by an earthquake in the late fourth century AD. Extensive remains survived and create now what is considered one of the most important archaeological sites in Morocco.

Continue to Meknes, second of the Imperial Cities, with its rich architectural legacy, built by Moulay Ismail. With tireless effort and unrelenting will, he undertook the task of making this town into a capital worthy of his image. Palaces, mosques, fountains, terraces, gardens, stables and shops were built without any respite over a period of 50 years. See the Bab-el- Mansour, Gate of Victory, with its exquisite ceramic work leading to the old Medina; the Royal Palace and underground stables which housed 12,000 horses; the underground granaries; and the ornate tomb of Moulay Ismail, beyond the city walls.  This is the only mosque accessible to non-Moslems.

Finally travel to Fès, the oldest Imperial City, and the spiritual and cultural center of Morocco.  Enter Fès through the symmetrical horse shoe arches at Bab Boujeloud (The Blue Gate).

Fès is best characterized as a sea of rooftops embellished with minarets and domes.  (b)
     Overnight MERINIDES HOTEL, Fes 

Day 3    Tuesday - Fes
After breakfast at the hotel, enjoy a full-day sightseeing tour of Fès. Visit medieval Medina and religious Islamic centers, the Medersas, the Karaouine Mosque, the University, as well as the Nejjarin Fountain.

Continue on to visit the famous souks (markets) of Fès. It was only at the beginning of the XIVth century, that Fès started its prosperous era; castles and palaces were built, the ornamental Islamic architecture and craftsmanship in the oriental tradition reach their high peach, marble and mosaics, sculpture and carved woodwork are visible everywhere.

Bab Boujeloud, a gateway which stands like an arabesque giving access to the Medina, that had kept the spell of the old traditional commercial centers. Its intricate, narrow streets lead to Moulay Idriss’s sanctuary, which survives, from the XVth century. The intellectual capital, the craftwork capital, the most imperial of all cities in Morocco and pearl of the Arab world, Fès is where the senses are given truly royal treatment. This is where the inexhaustible riches and profusion of a generously varied life blend with the sensual play of sun, color and flavor. Diner and overnight at the hotel (b)
       Overnight MERINIDES HOTEL, Fes 

Day 4    Wednesday - Fes/Erfoud
Breakfast at the hotel. Today is going to be a long drive (about 6 hours), so dress comfortably and warmly.  Depart for Midelt, gateway to the Atlas Mountains, an area of Kasbah and Castles and an important mining center. Midelt is famous for its handicraft art, especially the Berber carpets. The drive winds through the resort city of Azrou with its Swiss style chalets and native handicraft markets, past cedar forests and broad plains.

After lunch we cross the Ziz River, located between two rows of tall palm trees. Also pass a series of fortified villages with outstanding pre-Saharan architecture.

This afternoon arrive Erfoud. Dinner at hotel. (b,d)
Overnight L’HOTEL by CHATEAU de SABLES, Erfoud

Day 5 Thursday Erfoud/Merzouga
After breakfast depart for Merzozuga. Change vehicles to a 4-wheel drive and departure over a track road (about 1 hour 15 minutes). Arrive at the spectacular dunes of Merzouga. The dunes are a majestic sight to witness the sunset.

Switching to camels, and trek into the vast and silent Sahara, to a Berber camp for overnight. (b,d)
     Overnight SAHARIAN LUXURY CAMP, bivouac, Merzouga

BIVOUAC DESCRIPTION: Magic and unusual venue for an unforgettable experience.
Bivouac decoration: On arrival at the Camp, you would be greeted in a big nomadic tent (made with camel hair). On the ground: carpets, tables and traditional chairs and lamps.

Light: Burning wood fire, storm lanterns and a light generator for the whole camp.
Table set up (minimum basis): napkins, tables and traditional chairs
Dinner: Meals are served on a round table for 6 to 8 passengers.
Sample of menu served during a seated bivouac dinner:
*Variety of Moroccan salads Tagine with chicken, lemon and olives
*Tagine with beef and prunes
*Kebab
*Seasonal fruits
*Mint tea and Moroccan pastries
Sanitary: Chemical toilets, toilets paper and soap, hot water, mirrors

 Day 6 Friday - Erfoud/Tinghir/Ouarzazate
To see Merzouga, no one ever regretted getting up at 5.00 am to witness the unique sunrise: admire and watch the pink disc of the sun appearing over the gigantic dunes of Merzouga.

After breakfast, travel today to Tinghir, the former French Foreign Legion Post. Travel via the Tinejad road, which reveals magnificent kasbahs, and palm groves.

Visit the Todra Gorge, known as the Grand Canyon of Morocco, a spectacular work of nature with walls towering to a dizzying height of 1,000 feet.

Continue on to El Kelaa through the Dades Valley, and then along the trail of 1,000 Kasbahs to the town of Ouarzazate, perched on the edge of the Atlas Mountains. The Administrative Capital of the area, Ouarzazate is the gateway of the Sahara, situated on the Ouarzazate River. The mountains and oasis, which surround it, make it look like a magical landscape at the heart of an arid region. (b)
      Overnight  BERBER PALACE, Ouarzazate

Day 7    Saturday - Ouarzazate/Marrakech
This morning visit the Kasbah of Taourirt and the fortified village of Ait Ben Haddou. This is the most spectacular fortress in the south of Morocco and is one of those places you dream of visiting, different, exotic and it invokes your imagination, when you try to imagine life here before. A few families still live around the kasbahs, but most have moved away or into the ordinary settlement on the other side of the river.

Journey over 7,000 feet through the Tichka pass.

Arrive Marrakech. (b)
      Overnight  KENZI MENARA HOTEL, Marrakech

Day 8    Sunday - Marrakech
Enjoy a full-day sightseeing tour of Marrakech. Visit the legendary souks, craft markets, wool-dyers quarters and legendary Djemaa-El- Fna Square with its permanent display of folklore, magicians, and storytellers.

Marrakech’s prestige is mainly due to its past glories. Being for many successive dynasties, the prosperous Capital of Morocco, Marrakech knew at the folding of history, masterpieces of architecture, such as the slender minarets like the Koutoubia, which dominates the ancient Medina. We see the tombs of the Saadi rulers, outstanding examples of Moorish art. Marrakech prestigious past is evoked as well by the historical monuments, which survive intact in their splendor, with their brilliant mosaics, carved woodwork and gorgeous marbles. This can be founded in Palais Bahia and Palais El Badia.

Finally we visit the Menara Garden with palm groves dating from the 12th century.

In the evening, enjoy OPTIONAL Fanaisa Dinner show in Marrakech. ($60.00 US) (b,d)
     Overnight  KENZI MENARA HOTEL, Marrakech

Day 9    Monday - Marrakech
After breakfast transfer to Marrakech airport for departure. (b)

  
INCLUSIVE FEATURES;
-          Eight nights hotels regular 5* stars standard (or similar) as per itinerary except one night luxury camp in Merzouga
- Breakfast daily, dinner in Erfoud, Bivouac and OPTIONAL Fantasia dinner Marrakech
-          All transfers and sightseeing by PRIVATE car or mini van with English speaking driver
-          Transfer via 4-wheel drive from Erfoud to Merzouga and back to Erfoud
-          Camel ride sunset in desert
- Entrance fees to monuments: Chellah / Rabat - Volubilis - Medersa / Fes - Kasbah Taourirt / Ouarzazate - Bahia Palace -
Saadians Tombs - and Majorelle Garden / Marrakech
- Local guides during city tours when necessary
-         All taxes and service charges

COSTS PER PERSON
based on double occupancy - low season
1-6 passengers sharing a PRIVATE VAN 2024 - 2025
Travel agent rate from $2420.00 (US) per person
Companion rate from $2520.00 (US) per person

OPTIONAL quotes available for 4 star OR 5-superior hotels

EXTENSIONS and UPGRADES are AVAILABLE