14-Day Tour from Tangier — Route C

Meet your driver at Tangier port and travel south through the green foothills of the Rif Mountains to Chefchaouen. After checking in, take time to enjoy the blue-painted lanes and relaxed atmosphere of the medina.

Leave Chefchaouen and cross the Rif foothills to Volubilis, Morocco's best-preserved Roman archaeological site. After exploring its mosaics, arches, and columns, continue to imperial Meknes for its monumental gates, medina, and evening atmosphere.

Begin with the imperial monuments of Meknes, including its monumental gates, medina, and historic granaries. In the early afternoon, continue to Fes and settle into your riad inside or near the old city.

Explore Fes with a local guide, entering the UNESCO-listed medina through its historic gates. Walk the narrow lanes to traditional souks, Quranic schools, artisan workshops, the Nejjarine quarter, and viewpoints over the famous tanneries, with time to understand the city's living crafts and history.

Depart Fes and cross the Middle Atlas through Ifrane, the cedar country around Azrou, and the mountain town of Midelt. Continue through the Ziz Gorges and palm valley to Erfoud, the gateway to the Tafilalt oasis and the Sahara.

Travel from Erfoud through the Tafilalt oasis to Rissani, the historic market town linked to the former caravan city of Sijilmassa. Continue to Merzouga, then ride by camel across the Erg Chebbi dunes at sunset and spend the night in a desert camp.

Leave Merzouga by off-road piste and cross the open desert landscapes south of Erg Chebbi. Stop to meet nomadic families along the way, then continue to the remote oasis village of Ramlia for a quiet night in the local guesthouse.

Leave remote Ramlia by off-road piste and cross the desert plains toward the paved road near Alnif. Continue through southern villages to Tinghir and walk beneath the high walls of the Todgha Gorges before reaching the Dades Valley for the night.

Today is dedicated to drive through the Dades Valley towards Kalaat Mgouna and Ouarzazate. The route through Dades Valley is the way of the thousand Kasbahs – providing numerous opportunities to take some of your best photographic shots of the trip. Then the rose valley and Skoura village. Continue to Ouarzazate, “the Hollywood of Morocco”. Lunch is at the famous Ait Ben Haddou kasbah, the largest Kasbah in Morocco. After touring this UNESCO matrimonial historical site, our journey will continue through the majestic Tizi ‘n’ tichka pass (2260m) on the High Atlas Mountains,. We will have time to stop and enjoy impressive views and visit the argan oil cooperative. We will arrive in Marrakech in the late afternoon.

After breakfast in the riad, you can start exploring Marrakech " the red city of Morocco”. We will ensure that you see the most important sites of historical and cultural interest, including the Majorelle Gardens, the Koutoubia Tower, the Saadian tombs, the Bahia Palacel. After Lunch at a restaurant near the square, you will walk through the souks and view hundreds of handicrafts. On the afternoon, you will have some free time to wander on your own the other parts of the city.

The hustle and bustle of Marrakech quickly slips away as you travel to and enter into the peace and beauty that is Essaouira. This ancient citadel on the West Atlantic coast of Africa literally means “wall” in the Berber language, and you’ll soon discover why. Travelers from all over the world come here to experience the very special weather, and explore its diverse and unique history.

As we leave Marrakech, we drive through lush valleys filled with orange groves, ancient olive trees and working farms on the drive to the coast. After a short while, we arrive in Chichaoua, where we can take a short break for a coffee or snack at Cafe Afoulki.

Once you have had the chance to refuel a bit, we will continue on, soon coming upon our first signs of the Argan trees. These special trees are valued for their nutritive, cosmetic and numerous medicinal properties. The tree, a relic species from the Tertiary age, is extremely well adapted to drought and other environmentally difficult conditions of southwestern Morocco, and because they are now endangered, they are under the protection of UNESCO.

After all of your morning travels, you arrive in Essouira, where you have the chance to wander the ancient streets and can imagine what life existed here in the past. The streets have a genuinely Portuguese feel, after they renamed the city in the 16th century and used it as a port city of their own. Here you can dine on fish straight out of the sea at any number of local restaurants, and can even have a camel ride on the beach, if you want!

After breakfast in your riad, depart back to Marrakech. On our way - since this is the land of Argan culture - this is an opportunity to visit the women's co-operative of Argan oil where they extract the oil that is famous for its culinary, cosmetic and medicinal properties. After several stops to take photographs, you will continue your travel to Marrakech and check-in to your riad.

After dinner you will enjoy walking within the famous square of Jemaa Elfna, entertained by magicians, story tellers, musicians and snake charmers. Overnight in a riad in the Medina.

Today you will be on your own and if you would like to have a cooking class, Sahara Whispers Team will help to arrange for you.

We will drive you to the airport and provide assistance.