7 Days Morocco Private Tour: Fes to Marrakech via the Sahara

Your one week in Morocco begins in Fes. Our driver meets you at the airport and takes you to your riad or hotel, then helps you check in.

The rest of the day is free. If you arrive early, take a first walk near your riad to feel the atmosphere of the old city, its walls and gates.

Moment to remember: your first evening in the oldest of Morocco's imperial cities.

With a local guide, you start at the golden doors of the Royal Palace and walk through the Mellah, the historic Jewish quarter. Then you pass through Bab Bou Jeloud, the blue gate, into Fes el-Bali, the UNESCO-listed medina and one of the largest car-free urban areas in the world.

Inside the medina you see the 14th-century Bou Inania Madrasa, with its tilework and carved cedar, and the Al-Qarawiyyin mosque and university, founded in the 9th century and often described as the oldest university still working. After lunch in a traditional restaurant (not included), you explore the souks and the tanneries before returning to your riad.

Moment to remember: the first look over the dye pits of the Chouara tannery.

You leave Fes at about 08:00 for Ifrane, the Little Switzerland of Morocco, for a short stop and photos. In the cedar forest near Azrou, you stop to watch the wild Barbary macaques among the old trees. Then you continue to Midelt, at the foot of the Atlas, for lunch (not included).

In the afternoon you drive through the Ziz Gorges and along the palm groves of the Ziz Valley, past Errachidia and Rissani, to Merzouga. There you ride a camel with a camel guide for about one hour into the Erg Chebbi dunes and watch the sunset over the Sahara. Dinner is served at your camp, followed by Amazigh music around the fire under the stars.

Moment to remember: sunset from the dunes as the camels reach the camp.

Wake up early to watch the sunrise over the dunes, have breakfast at the camp and ride your camel back to Merzouga. Then you drive to Erfoud, known for its fossil marble, and visit a workshop where it is cut and polished.

Next you reach the Todra Gorge, with its high cliffs and river, for a walk and lunch (not included). In the afternoon you follow the Road of a Thousand Kasbahs through Kelaa M'Gouna, the town of roses, and the Skoura palm grove, arriving in Ouarzazate, known as the Hollywood of Morocco, in the evening.

Moment to remember: the light on the walls of the Todra Gorge.

In the morning you can visit a film studio in Ouarzazate, then drive to Aït Ben Haddou, a UNESCO-listed fortified ksar on the old caravan route between the Sahara and Marrakech. Its earthen houses rise on a hill above the Ounila River and have appeared in films such as Lawrence of Arabia, The Mummy and Gladiator, and in the series Game of Thrones.

After exploring the ksar and its kasbahs, you cross the High Atlas on the Tizi n'Tichka pass, with views over valleys and Berber villages, and arrive in Marrakech in the late afternoon.

Moment to remember: the first view of Aït Ben Haddou rising above the riverbed.

After breakfast a local guide shows you the highlights of Marrakech, a former imperial city: the Ben Youssef Madrasa, the Saadian Tombs, the Bahia Palace and the Koutoubia Mosque, seen from outside, as well as the Jardin Majorelle. You have lunch in a restaurant in the medina (not included).

In the afternoon you continue through the souks at your own pace. In the evening, go back to Jemaa el-Fna, when the square fills with musicians, storytellers, snake charmers and food stalls.

Moment to remember: Jemaa el-Fna coming alive with music and food stalls at nightfall.

Your one week in Morocco comes to an end. Depending on your flight time, your driver picks you up at your riad or hotel and takes you to Marrakech airport. If you fly from Casablanca, we can take you there instead.

You leave with memories of the medina of Fes, the dunes of the Sahara, the gorges and kasbahs of the south and the souks of Marrakech.

Moment to remember: looking back on a week from Fes to Marrakech.