14 days · 13 nights · Private journey
14-Day Private Grand Morocco Tour
The Grand Morocco Tour: a two-week private journey from Casablanca and Chefchaouen to Fes, Erg Chebbi, Skoura and Marrakech.
The Grand Morocco Tour is our most complete crossing of the country: fourteen private days that begin on the Atlantic, travel north into the Rif Mountains, pass through Fes and the Middle Atlas, spend a full desert chapter around Erg Chebbi, then follow the southern valleys back over the High Atlas to Marrakech.
It is designed for travellers who want Morocco's essential contrasts without turning the country into a checklist. Two weeks is enough time to give Chefchaouen a slow day, to walk Fes with a specialist guide rather than a rushed circuit, to stay two nights in the Sahara instead of one, and to arrive in Marrakech with energy left for it. The rhythm alternates deliberately: a driving day is usually followed by a day on foot, and no single stretch of road is repeated.
The route also reflects how Morocco actually changes as you move through it. The north is green, Andalusian-influenced and mountainous. Fes is dense, scholarly and medieval in plan. The Middle Atlas brings cedar forest and cooler air, the Ziz Valley narrows into palm groves, and the Sahara opens the horizon completely. Turning west again, the Todra and Dades gorges, the Rose Valley and the kasbahs around Skoura form what is often called the Road of a Thousand Kasbahs before the Tizi n'Tichka pass drops you into Marrakech.
Driving is real but measured. The longest stages — Fes to Merzouga, and Skoura across the High Atlas — are broken with meaningful stops rather than treated as transfers. If you prefer a gentler pace, an extra night can be added in the north, in the Sahara or in the southern valleys, and equally the route can be shortened if your flights allow less time.
Everything is private: your own vehicle, your own English-speaking driver, licensed local guides in the cities where a guide genuinely adds something, and accommodation chosen around your preferred level of comfort. This is a tailor-made Morocco tour, and the itinerary below is a starting point rather than a fixed package.
The journey is adapted to your dates, pace, interests and preferred level of accommodation.
Plan your Grand Morocco TourHighlights
- A slow day in Chefchaouen rather than a photo stop
- Privately guided Fes with time for artisan quarters, not only the landmarks
- Two nights in the Sahara, including a full day around Erg Chebbi
- Todra, Dades, the Rose Valley and Skoura's palm grove in sequence
- Aït Ben Haddou and the Telouet side of the High Atlas
- Marrakech at the end, with a free day built in
Day by day
Day by day
Day 1
Arrive Casablanca, continue to Rabat
Your driver meets you at Casablanca airport and travels up the coast to Rabat, around an hour and a half away. Rabat is a gentle first chapter: an administrative capital with wide avenues, an Atlantic breeze and a compact historic core. Depending on your arrival time, walk the Kasbah of the Udayas, look out over the estuary toward Salé, or simply rest. Overnight in Rabat.
Day 2
Rabat to Chefchaouen
See more of Rabat in the morning — the Hassan Tower and Mausoleum of Mohammed V, the medina, or the Chellah depending on your interests and current access — then travel north-east through farmland and the foothills of the Rif. The landscape becomes greener and steeper as you climb toward Chefchaouen, arriving in the afternoon with time to walk into the blue-washed medina before dinner. Overnight in Chefchaouen.
Day 3
Chefchaouen
A full unhurried day in the mountain town. Mornings are the quietest time in the lanes above Plaza Uta el-Hammam, and the Spanish Mosque viewpoint is an easy uphill walk for the wider setting. The town's Andalusian heritage shows in its architecture, food and craft — wool, weaving and goat cheese from the surrounding villages. Time is deliberately left open for walking, cafés and the shift in light through the afternoon. Overnight in Chefchaouen.
Day 4
Volubilis and Meknes to Fes
Leave the Rif and drive south to Volubilis, the most substantial Roman site in Morocco, where mosaics remain in place among the olive groves. Continue to Meknes, an imperial capital of monumental gates, granaries and walls that sees far fewer visitors than Fes. Arrive in Fes in the late afternoon and settle into your riad inside the medina. Overnight in Fes.
Day 5
Fes with a local guide
A full privately guided day in Fes el-Bali, one of the largest car-free urban areas in the world. Your licensed guide makes sense of the medina's logic: the madrasas and their carved cedar and zellij, the fondouks that once housed traders, the tanneries, the coppersmiths and the neighbourhoods organised around bakery, hammam, fountain and mosque. The pace can be adjusted toward architecture, craft workshops or food. Overnight in Fes.
Day 6
Fes to Merzouga through the Middle Atlas
The longest driving day of the journey, and one of the most varied. Climb through Ifrane and the cedar forests of the Middle Atlas, cross the high plateau near Midelt, then descend the Ziz Valley where a continuous ribbon of palm groves follows the river toward the Tafilalt. Arrive in the Merzouga area in the late afternoon. Exchange the vehicle for camels for the ride into Erg Chebbi if you wish — guests who prefer not to ride are always transferred to camp by 4x4 — and reach your desert camp for dinner under the stars. Overnight in the Sahara.
Day 7
A full day at Erg Chebbi
One night in the dunes gives you sunset and silence; a second gives you the region. Today explores the area around Erg Chebbi by 4x4: different desert surfaces beyond the sand sea, the village of Khamlia and its Gnawa musical tradition, the old mining settlements and dry lake bed. Where genuinely and respectfully arranged, there may be an opportunity to share tea with a local family — never a staged or guaranteed encounter. Afternoons are free for the dunes, sandboarding or rest before a second Sahara sunset. Overnight in the Sahara.
Day 8
Merzouga to the Dades Valley
Travel west along the edge of the Sahara through Erfoud and Tinejdad to Tinghir, where a palm oasis runs for kilometres below the town. Walk into the Todra Gorge, where limestone walls rise several hundred metres above a narrow river bed, before continuing to the Dades Valley. The final approach passes eroded rock formations and earthen villages before your kasbah stay. Overnight in the Dades Valley.
Day 9
Dades to Skoura
A shorter, scenic day. Depending on your interest and the season, take time in the upper Dades gorge before travelling west through Kelaat M'Gouna and the Valley of Roses — an agricultural region all year, with the rose harvest normally in spring. Continue to Skoura, where a dense palm grove hides kasbahs down sandy tracks. Arrive with the afternoon still ahead of you. Overnight in Skoura.
Day 10
Skoura, Ouarzazate, Aït Ben Haddou and the High Atlas
Explore Skoura's palmeraie on foot or by vehicle, then continue to Ouarzazate. Visit Aït Ben Haddou, the UNESCO-listed ksar on the old caravan route, ideally with a local guide who lives there. Rather than driving straight to Marrakech, turn onto the older road through Telouet and the Ounila Valley for an atmospheric mountain overnight. Overnight in the High Atlas.
Day 11
Over the pass to Marrakech
Cross the Tizi n'Tichka pass, the highest major road pass in Morocco, with viewpoints over the southern slopes and walnut villages on the descent. Arrive in Marrakech around the middle of the day and settle into your riad in the medina, leaving the afternoon free to acclimatise to the city's very different energy. Overnight in Marrakech.
Day 12
Privately guided Marrakech
A full day with a licensed Marrakech guide: the Bahia Palace and its painted ceilings, the Saadian Tombs, the Koutoubia area, and the souks organised by trade — dyers, leather, brass, carpets. Your guide provides context rather than a shopping circuit. The day usually ends near Jemaa el-Fna as the square changes character toward evening. Overnight in Marrakech.
Day 13
Marrakech at leisure
A deliberately open day. Options include a cooking experience in a Moroccan home, the gardens and museums of the Ville Nouvelle, a hammam, a day in the Ourika or Ouirgane valleys of the High Atlas, or a long-distance excursion toward Essaouira. Equally, doing very little in a riad courtyard is a legitimate use of the day. Overnight in Marrakech.
Day 14
Departure
Private transfer to Marrakech Menara Airport according to your flight, or continue with a tailored extension — the Atlantic coast, Essaouira, or additional days in the High Atlas.
At a glance
14 days / 13 nights. Starts in Casablanca, finishes in Marrakech (open-jaw flights work well). Core route: Casablanca → Rabat → Chefchaouen → Volubilis and Meknes → Fes → Middle Atlas and Ziz Valley → Merzouga / Erg Chebbi (2 nights) → Todra and Dades → Skoura → Aït Ben Haddou and Telouet → Marrakech (3 nights). Pace: active but balanced, with two full rest-or-explore days built in.
Who it suits
First-time visitors with two weeks who want the north as well as the south; travellers who dislike backtracking; couples, families with older children and small private groups. It suits people who would rather understand four or five places well than glimpse ten. Travellers with mobility considerations should tell us early so medina accommodation, walking distances and the desert transfer can be arranged appropriately.
How it can be customised
Add a night in Essaouira or Oualidia at the end; swap the Telouet overnight for an extra night in Marrakech; add a third Sahara night; begin in Tangier instead of Casablanca; include a High Atlas walking day; adjust for slower travel with older travellers or young children. The camel ride is always optional with a 4x4 alternative, and any driving day can be split with an additional overnight. Displayed itineraries are starting points, not fixed packages.
Accommodation style
Boutique riads inside the medinas of Fes and Marrakech, character guesthouses in Chefchaouen, kasbah lodges in the southern valleys and a private ensuite camp in the Sahara. We choose for location, atmosphere, cleanliness and service rather than star ratings. Specific properties are proposed only once your dates and preferred comfort level are confirmed, since availability in the best small houses changes constantly.
What can be included
Depending on your confirmed proposal: private air-conditioned vehicle suited to your group size, experienced English-speaking driver throughout, accommodation with daily breakfast, selected dinners, licensed local guides in Fes, Marrakech and at Aït Ben Haddou, the Sahara camp with dinner and breakfast, the optional camel trek with 4x4 alternative, a 4x4 desert exploration day, airport transfers, bottled water in the vehicle, fuel, tolls and parking, and Morocco Shiny Days assistance during the journey. Final inclusions are always defined in your personalised quotation.
Two weeks. The whole arc of Morocco.
If you have fourteen days and want the north, the imperial cities, the Sahara and the southern valleys in one continuous route, this is the journey we build most often — and never twice the same way. Send your dates, the number of travellers and your preferred accommodation level, and we will shape it around you.
Frequently asked questions
- How long is the Grand Morocco Tour?
- Fourteen days and thirteen nights. It is a two-week Morocco tour, and the length can be shortened or extended to match your flights.
- Where does the tour begin and finish?
- It begins with your arrival in Casablanca and finishes in Marrakech, so open-jaw flights work well. Starting in Tangier or Fes instead is possible.
- Is this a private or group tour?
- It is entirely private. You travel with your own vehicle and your own experienced English-speaking driver, with licensed local guides in the cities where a guide genuinely adds something.
- Can the itinerary be customized?
- Yes. The published route is a starting point. Nights can be added or moved, driving days can be split, and the pace and interests — food, photography, architecture, walking, family travel — shape the final plan.
- What type of accommodation is used?
- Boutique riads inside the Fes and Marrakech medinas, character guesthouses in Chefchaouen, kasbah lodges in the southern valleys and a private en-suite camp in the Sahara. Specific properties are proposed with your quotation once dates and comfort level are known.
- Is the tour suitable for families or older travellers?
- Yes, with adjustments. Because the journey is private, walking distances, rest days and the desert transfer can all be adapted. Tell us early about mobility considerations or young children so accommodation and daily distances are chosen accordingly.
- Is the camel ride compulsory?
- No. The camel ride into Erg Chebbi is optional, and guests who prefer not to ride are transferred to the desert camp by 4x4.
- What is normally included in the proposal?
- Typically the private air-conditioned vehicle and driver, accommodation with daily breakfast, selected dinners including the desert camp, licensed local guides where planned, the optional camel trek with its 4x4 alternative, airport transfers, water, fuel, tolls and parking. Exact inclusions, along with monument fees and lunches, are confirmed in your personalized quotation.
- Can the journey be extended to Essaouira, the Atlantic coast or the High Atlas?
- Yes. Common extensions are a night or two in Essaouira or on the Atlantic coast after Marrakech, or a walking day in the High Atlas valleys.
- What is the best time of year for this Morocco itinerary?
- Spring and autumn are the most comfortable across the whole route. Winter is pleasant in the south but cold at night in the desert and mountains, and high summer is hot inland, which we plan around with earlier starts and lighter afternoons.
Explore more private Morocco travel
Everything you have just read can be woven into a private journey, planned personally around your dates, pace and interests.
Interested in the 14-Day Private Grand Morocco Tour?
We adapt this route to your dates, group size, pace and preferred style of stay.
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