Southern Moroccan Adventure

Welcome to Morocco!

We begin the trip in Casablanca. Your flight should arrive at Casablanca International Airport on March 3 (or earlier). After customs and baggage claim, your driver and guide will welcome you and take you to the hotel, Le Casablanca. Rest and refresh for as long as you wish. In the afternoon, we’ll visit the Hassan II Mosque, the largest mosque in Africa and a stunning example of Moroccan architecture! (30 mins driving time).

We’ll meet for drinks at the hotel before dinner at Rick's Cafe.

The morning is yours to relax before lunch at La Sqala, a lovely Moroccan restaurant with open seating in an outdoor garden.

After lunch, we're off to Casablanca’s Habous district. It's one of the most popular shopping areas in the city. Our guide will walk us through the district, offering us local information and helping to negotiate prices for Moroccan goods on sale! Morocco is a wonderful country in which to shop! 

After a day spent in Casablanca, the rest of the afternoon is yours to enjoy before meeting back at the hotel for dinner. You may want to take a rest. Tonight will be a late one. 

After dinner, we’re off to Casablanca Airport for a late evening flight to Errachidia. It's the closest airport to the Sahara Desert. The only flight leaves at 11 pm. Fortunately, the flight duration is under an hour. Our driver will pick us up on arrival, driving south to Erfoud, where we’ll spend the night at Palais Masondoia, an hour and a half from the airport. 

Your pillow will be a welcome sight tonight. 

After breakfast at our hotel, we’re off to the Sahara Desert! We’ll stop for lunch and then head through the dunes to arrive at our desert camp (Approx. an hour's driving time).

Settle into your luxury tents (complete with a bathroom and shower!) and take time to enjoy the surrounding scenery. As the golden hour approaches, we’ll take a camel ride through the dunes to experience the traditional nomadic lifestyle and a glorious sunset.

Tonight, we’ll enjoy a homemade dinner in the camp’s dining tent and then spend the rest of the evening sitting at the campfire, enjoying live music and stargazing! 

Our home in the desert is at the Luxury Desert Camp.

If you're in the mood to wake up early, set your alarm to catch the sunrise over the Saharan dunes. It's a beautiful sight that you'll never forget. Otherwise, we’ll meet you for a delicious breakfast at the desert camp. Sand-board down the dunes before we bid farewell to the desert and head to Dades, halfway between the Sahara and Marrakech.

We’ll stop for lunch, snap photos, and enjoy a stretch-your-legs walk through the Dades Gorges, Morocco’s Grand Canyon. 

We'll check into our charming rooms at our rustic mountain lodge for the evening and relax over a gourmet dinner. The chef is known for his Moroccan-European fusion cuisine. The food changes daily depending on the availability of the local ingredients (Approx. 5.5 hours driving time total).

Overnight stay at Chez Pierre.

After breakfast, we’ll depart for the Ochre City of Marrakech, stopping at Ait Ben Haddou, a popular location where Game of Thrones and Lawrence of Arabia were filmed. We’ll visit the Kasbah briefly and have lunch nearby. Then continue the drive to Marrakech (Approx. 7 hours driving time).

After arriving and checking into our riad, you'll have free time to settle in and explore the area. In the evening, we'll visit the famed Djemaa el Fna Square. It comes alive at night. Storytellers hold the audience captive, juice vendors call their available stock, and live musicians perform in the square.

Dinner is at our beautiful property, the Riad Elegancia, with time to relax after a long day of travel.

We’ll wake to a relaxed breakfast on the riad’s terrace. Then, head out to explore Marrakech’s old city. We'll do a guided walking tour of the most notable monuments, followed by a lunch break in the medina. 

In the afternoon, we'll continue our exploration of the medina and the souks, where every imaginable good is on sale, from spices to shoes to handmade carpets. Once again, our guide will help us negotiate a good deal at the souks!

After a long day of exploring, we'll return to the hotel for some much-needed rest. 

The evening is yours to explore. Find a traditional restaurant, and enjoy the evening with new friends or by yourself.

After breakfast, we have a hammam spa trip planned. You're about to get all scrubbed up and relaxed. The traditional hammam involves several steps and is one of the world’s oldest rituals. You'll start with a black soap cleanse followed by a cascading cold-water rinse. The wash and rinse prepare your skin for an invigorating scrub, leaving you soft and free of accumulated toxins and impurities. After another rinse, your body, face, and hair are covered in a mask of Moroccan volcanic clay. The last step in this centuries-old purification practice is a relaxing massage using pure oils, Morocco’s precious youth elixir!

Once you're relaxed and refreshed, we’ll head to the Majorelle Gardens for a self-guided visit following colorful paths! The gardens are filled with exotic plants and trees from all over the world. Next door, the YSL Museum is home to the original work of the internationally renowned designer Yves Saint-Laurent. Once you’ve made your way through the gardens, take the time to visit the museum and learn more about YSL.

Lunch is at the Amal Association, an organization dedicated to empowering disadvantaged women in Marrakech. The women prepare a delicious lunch here, and we can learn more about the critical work they do.

We'll conclude our trip with a tagine cooking class and a farewell party at a private venue. While our wonderful meal cooks, we’ll celebrate with entertainment and traditional henna artists. It’s the perfect way to end our unforgettable adventure in Morocco.

But wait....for those taking the extension, there's more! 

If you're not joining the trip extension to Essaouira, bid a melancholy but heartfelt farewell to new friends and the sights and sounds of the past week’s adventures.

Ideally, your return flight is from Marrakech airport (a 15-20 min drive from the hotel). If you've booked a round-trip flight to/from Casablanca, we’ll arrange a drive to the Casablanca International Airport. Casablanca is a 2.5-3-hour drive from Marrakech, so make sure your departing flight is in the late afternoon or evening to ensure plenty of time to get to the airport and for customs and security. If you prefer, you can also book a connecting flight from Marrakech to Casablanca. 

For those of you joining the trip extension to Essaouira ... onward!

If you're staying on for the extended trip, the morning is yours to enjoy in Marrakech. After the others have left, we’ll pack and head to Essaouira, a charming coastal town and UNESCO World Heritage site just a few hours west of Marrakech. (approx 3-hour drive)

We’ll stop en route to see the tree goats and visit an argan oil co-op to discover how this famous health and beauty product is made. Most argan oil is made by women and is critical to their families and the local economy. We’ll enjoy lunch at a local vineyard on the outskirts of town.

We’ll check in at the Riad Villa Maroc, allowing free time to relax before meeting for dinner at the hotel.

After a breakfast of Moroccan pancakes or Viennese pastries, we’re off on a half-day guided tour of Essaouira. We’ll visit the city’s old ramparts, the Medina, artisan cooperatives, and heritage sites. With its brilliant blue and white architecture, windswept beach, and easy-going charm, Essaouira is a lovely change after the hectic Marrakech pace. 

We’ll learn about the city’s history and the Carthaginian, Roman, and Portuguese influence over the centuries. Thuya wood workshops, artists’ enclaves, and silent alleyways where cats sun themselves and veiled women emerge from studded doorways lie behind the 18th-century sea walls. The harbor is a photographer’s dream, with fishing nets laid on the quayside, boats unloading their catches and the smell of freshly grilled sardines and lobsters hanging in the air.

We've included a fresh seafood lunch at La Coupole on the beach. 

The afternoon is yours to enjoy. Head off to the nearby beach, do some last-minute shopping, or soak up the sun! We’ll meet again later in the evening for a final dinner of Mediterranean fusion cuisine at Dar Baba. 

Sadly, you bid farewell to your new friends and the wonderful Moroccan people who have supported our journey. We'll drive back to Marrakech airport (~3 hours) or Casablanca airport (~4.5-5 hours). Please ensure that your departing flight is in the late afternoon or evening so we have plenty of time to get to the airport.