9D8N Morocco Kasbahs & Desert

Exceptional Experiences:

• Visit the most cosmopolitan city in Morocco, Casablanca: Today, Casablanca is a large, modern city, but the former French colonial post still allows myriad movie moments for those who want to revisit love in the medina and Old City.

• Watch the sunset over the Saharan dunes as you enter the gateway into the golden dunes of the Sahara Desert.

• Spend a night in a Deluxe Tented Camp in the world's largest hot desert and the third largest desert, Sahara Desert.

• Kasbah of the Udayas: Predominantly residential, its narrow streets are lined with whitewashed houses, and its beautiful white and blue interior of Mediterranean flavour, most of which were built by Muslim refugees from Spain.

• Visit the world’s largest living medieval medina, The Fès medina: It is also a UNESCO site. Exploring the maze of little streets here will leave you wondering where you are in time.

• Have lunch with a local in their traditional kasbah, with a charming garden where they cultivate much of the produce used in their kitchens

• Visit a Popular Filming Site in Ouarzazate, known as a gateway to the Sahara Desert. It is also known as a filming site in Morocco, where movies such as “Lawrence of Arabia”, “Star Wars” and “Games of Thrones” were filmed.

• Visit one of the best-preserved Kasba’s in the entire Atlas region, Ait-Ben-Haddou: Also a UNESCO World Heritage Site, it is very popular among travellers. It is one of the filming locations of HBO’s blockbuster series: Game of Thrones.

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Itinerary:

DAY 1 SINGAPORE – CASABLANCA (Lunch/Dinner)

Depart from Singapore Changi Airport for your flight to Casablanca.

Upon arrival, meet your friendly tour guides and check in to your hotel to freshen up before heading out to see some of the sights of Casablanca, in particular the Hassan II Mosque with the tallest minaret in the world.

Then, visit the exterior of The Royal Palace and the Mohammed V Square. Next, explore the city’s main attraction which lies in its neighbourhoods and admire the wonderful Moorish architecture of the downtown area, the pretty Quartier Habous and the upmarket beachfront suburbs of Anfa and Ain Diab

Evening, enjoy dinner at Casablanca’s famous Rick’s Cafe. This place was designed to recreate the bar made famous by Humphrey Bogart and Ingrid Bergman in the movie classic Casablanca. Rick's Café is also known for having an unrivalled view of the sunset in Jamaica. Set in the West End atop a 35-foot high cliff, it is also known for a heart-throbbing, exhilarating cliff jumping

After dinner, check into your hotel.

Accommodation: Sofitel Casablanca Tour Blanche or similar
Sofitel Casablanca Tour Blanche: The Sofitel Casablanca Tour Blanche hotel is located opposite the Hassan II Mosque and close to the medina, making it ideal for business trips or exploring the city. The 141 rooms 30 suites, with butler service and breathtaking views of the city and ocean, were designed by Marc Hertrich and Nicolas Adnet.

DAY 2: CASABLANCA – RABAT – FEZ (Breakfast/Lunch/Dinner)

This morning after breakfast, meet your guide in the lobby and head towards the imperial city of Rabat, the administrative capital of the Kingdom. Rabat was also the capital of a short-lived pirate republic many years ago.

Make a visit to the Kasbah of the Udayas, a massive ancient fortress quarter built in the 12th century and its beautiful white and blue interior of Mediterranean flavour.  It contains a mosque, a large museum (housed in Moulay Ismail’s pavilion), Andalusian Gardens and a residential neighbourhood. In 2012, it was granted the status of World Heritage Site by UNESCO.

Next, travel onward to Meknes, one of Morocco’s lesser-visited Imperial Cities. Built on the backs of tens of thousands of slaves by the tyrannical Moulay Ismail, it was conceived to be the ‘Versailles of Morocco’. The Bab Mansour said to be one of Morocco’s most fabulous gates.

Continue your journey to your next stop, Volubilis, the largest Roman archaeological site in Morocco, and one of the former Empire’s most remote outposts.

Spend the night tonight in Fez, the historic centre of arts and sciences in Morocco.

Accommodation: Riad Fès - Relais & Châteaux or similar

DAY 3: FEZ (Breakfast/Lunch/Dinner)

This morning after breakfast, meet your guide in the lobby and begin your day to explore Fez. Fez was the capital of the kingdom before 1912.

Explore the labyrinth of streets within the famous Fès medina. The Fès medina is the world’s largest living medieval medina and a UNESCO site. See buildings in the medina that date back to the 9th century; there are 350 mosques in the medina that are still in use today. Enter through one of the great gates into the chaos.

Explore the artisans’ quarters as well as the many carpenters, bakers, butchers, and spice sellers. Visit the mausoleum and Al Qarawiyin University. View of the famous Fès tannery from the balcony of a leather shop, where you can observe the men hard at work treating and dyeing the different hides.

Thereafter, take your time to shop for leather goods.

Then continue your tour and explore The Royal Palace, The Mosque of Medersa Bou Inania, built between 1350 and 1357, is the biggest in Fès, and the hallmark of Marinid architecture.

Accommodation: Riad Fès - Relais & Châteaux or similar

DAY 4: FEZ – ZIZ VALLEY - ERFOUD (Breakfast/Lunch/Dinner)

This morning after breakfast, meet your local guide and driver and embark on a long drive and admire the view that shows the visual wealth of Morocco. Pass through a scenic forest of cedars and the Middle Atlas mountain range to the mineral mining city of Midelt.

En-route, you will have the opportunity to visit the Ziz Valley, the largest producer of dates in Morocco. Then, have lunch with the family of a local. Visit his home, a traditional kasbah with a charming garden where they cultivate much of the produce used in their kitchens.

Continue to Erfoud, an oasis town in the Sahara Desert. Upon arrival, check in to your hotel.

Accommodation: Hotel Belere Arfoud or similar

DAY 5: ERFOUD – SAHARA DESERT (Breakfast/Lunch/Dinner)

After breakfast, meet your guide in the lobby and head south towards Merzouga and the gateway into the golden dunes of the Sahara Desert.

Hop out from the car and onto the camels that will take you into the sandy seas. After your hour-long camel ride, you’ll have the chance to watch the sunset over the Saharan dunes.

Your home for the night will be a Bedouin-style tent in a private tented area. Complete with beds, blankets and sheets, as well as rich Moroccan carpets covering the sand and western-style bathroom facilities.

Accommodation: Deluxe Tented Camp (deluxe tents, each tent has its own hot-water shower, sink, and western toilet)

DAY 6: SAHARA DESERT – OUARZAZATE (Breakfast/Lunch/Dinner)

After breakfast, depart for Ouarzazate via Tinghir, where you can visit the craft centre or explore the small city, you can also see a local Berber cultural museum and even enjoy a walk in the oasis.

Visit Todgha Gorge, the narrow canyon where 300-metre-high cliffs drop to the river bed below. You’ll then continue onward to Ouarzazate, known as a gateway to the Sahara Desert. It is also a popular filming site in Morocco, where movies such as “Lawrence of Arabia”, “Star Wars” and “Games of Thrones” were filmed.

Then, check into your accommodation and you may wish to utilize your complimentary 50-minute massage for two in the evening.

Accommodation: Dar Ahlam or similar
Dar Ahlam: Dar Ahlam is a traditional Kasbah in the palm grove of Skoura (40kms of Ouarzazate, 250 km of Marrakech), at the gateway to the Southern Moroccan desert. It is a truly unique location, where everything is designed to ensure that your dreams come true. 

DAY 7: OUARZAZATE - MARRAKECH (Breakfast/Lunch/Dinner)

This morning, meet your guide in the lobby and make your way to Ait-Ben-Haddou, a UNESCO World Heritage Site and one of the best-preserved Kasba’s in the entire Atlas region.

Don’t be surprised if you feel as if you are stepping into another, more ancient world, as the Kasbah has been the backdrop to many historical films. Your journey will take you over the Tiz n’Tichka pass in the High Atlas Mountains, to end in Marrakesh.

Accommodation: Fairmont Royal Palm Marrakech or similar
Fairmont Royal Palm Marrakech: Nestled in a natural landscape of 231 hectares of palm, olive and orange trees, lying in the shadow of the snow-capped peaks of the Atlas Mountains. 

DAY 8: MARRAKECH (Breakfast/Lunch/Dinner)

This morning, meet your guide in the lobby and embark on your Marrakesh city tour. Head into the maze of tiny streets and alleyways of the ancient medina to really get a taste of everyday life in Marrakech.

Proceed to visit the Mosque of Koutoubia, and the famous Palais de Bahia, a beautifully decorated palace full of enchanting inner rooms and elaborate mosaic walls.

Then, visit the Saadian Tombs, a complex of sepulchres and mausoleums that house the remains of Saadian Sultan Ahmed Al Mansour Ed Dahab. The tombs were sealed off until their re-discovery in 1917.

Next, experience the sights and sounds of the bustling Djemaa el-Fna Square. Wander through souks, sample mouth-watering dishes, admire snake charmers doing their mystical work and savour a traditional Moroccan meal.

Accommodation: Fairmont Royal Palm Marrakech or similar

DAY 9: MARRAKECH - SINGAPORE (Breakfast)
After breakfast, meet your guide in the lobby and transfer to airport for the flight home to Singapore.

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Please note: This itinerary is designed to give you an idea of what to expect on the tour but is not set in stone. What we actually do on a given day is flexible and can be tailored based on the interests of the group.

This itinerary and its package inclusions might be changed later in time, subject to availability.

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