Morocco Desert and Kasbahs

Arrive in the morning at Casablanca airport (flying home from Marrakesh) and transfer to our hotel. Shuttles will be available every 2 hours in the morning. Check-in and meet all your new single travel friends as we are greeted in the lobby by our tour guide at 3:00pm.
Casablanca, Morocco’s economic capital and the second largest city in Africa, retains its charm thanks to its Art Deco architecture. There are many wonderful discoveries to be made on our afternoon tour of Casablanca including: the Central Market, United Nations and Mohamed V Squares, the Habous Quarter, view The Royal Palace and visit Hassan II Mosque, the second largest mosque in the world.
Welcome Dinner at Rick’s Cafe Restaurant, the mythical saloon from the 1942 film "Casablanca", has finally been transformed from celluloid to wood, glass and plaster. Set in an old courtyard-style mansion built against the Old Medina, the restaurant piano bar is filled with architectural and decorative details reminiscent of the film.

After breakfast we depart for Rabat the capital of the kingdom and headquarters of the government, parliament, ministries and administrations. View the Royal Palace, Hassan Tower, the famous tomb of the late king Mohamed V who fulfilled Morocco's independence, and the Oudaya Kasbah.
Next we travel to Meknes with its 25 miles of walls surrounding the city it is rich in history. See the Gate of Bab Mansour, the ancient Jewish quarter, and the Moulay Ismail Granaries.
Before we continue to Fez we stop to explore the relics of the Roman city Volubilis, North Africa's best preserved and most significant archaeological site. Occupied by the Romans in around 40BC, it developed into a thriving city of 20 000. To walk around the site today brings the grand achievements and daily routines of an ancient civilization vividly to life. Especially notable are a series of mosaic floors depicting scenes from classical mythology and everyday life.

Today we explore Fez, the cultural and spiritual center of Morocco, founded in 790 AD and the oldest of the three imperial cities. Our guided tour includes the medieval Medina, the old part of the city, which has been continuously inhabited since the 10th century and still bustles with a throng of colorfully costumed tribal people, from olive-dealers and veiled women, to merchants and traditional bell-ringing water-sellers.
Our vacation continues to the Mellah, the Jewish quarter with a walled boundary and a fortified gateway. These Jewish quarters were located near the royal residencies so that the inhabitants would be protected.
After time for lunch, wander the winding cobblestone streets in search of bargains. We’ll visit the famous leather tanneries, a honeycomb of vats erupting in an explosion of brilliant color.

After breakfast we travel past a pageantry of fragrant, dense pine and cedar forests, terraced farms and the mud-brick Berber villages in Azrou known for its wood-carved handicrafts and expert carpet weaving. We stop in Midelt, a sleepy village flanked by the verdant beauty of both the Middle and the snow-covered High Atlas Mountains, bursting with colorful minerals that mottle the mountainside in a blaze of ruby, emerald and topaz.
On arrival to Erfoud we will be transported by 4WD vehicles across the High Atlas, along oasis valley gorges and past one thousand Kasbahs for a sunset camel trek across the sandy dunes of the Erg Chebbi. The Moroccan desert is beautiful and Camel trekking, in such a destination is a once in a lifetime experience. These dunes are unique due to its gorgeous orange color during sun set.
We spend the night in Merzouga, a small village in southeastern Morocco.

After breakfast we travel back to Erfoud by 4WD vehicles where we reboard our bus and drive to Tinghir and onto Todra Gorge. The scenery is spectacular. The gorge is just wide enough for a crystal-clear river and some trekkers to squeeze through. Local people live in the area and can be seen with their small donkeys, or herding camels.
Our day ends at Ouarzazate where we check-in to our hotel and enjoy a wonderful dinner

Just on the edge of Ourazatate, we visit the Taourirt Kasbah, a citadel set against the backdrop of the Atlas Mountains. With almost 300 rooms and a true maze of passageways, steps, and keylock doors, it’s easy to feel lost within this immense structure that only connects to the outside world through a narrow entrance doorway.
Stop at Ait Benhaddou, a traditional Mud Brick city and a UNESCO site. Ait Benhaddou has appeared in more than 10 movies, including Lawrence of Arabia and Gladiator. Free time for souvenir shopping or have lunch at the terrace of the restaurant facing the kasbah.
We depart for Marrakech via the Tichka Mountain Pass. Starting at the gateway of the Sahara Desert we drive to the great Marrakech Plains. The road winds and turns up along the Atlas Mountains, offering views of massive foothills blanketed in green vegetation. Walnut groves and crystal mountain streams, along with rows of oak trees are found along the way.

We spend the day in Marrakech. An enchanting palm oasis set against the snow-capped peaks of the High Atlas Mountains, Marrakech is Morocco’s second oldest majestic imperial city and retains the splendor of its ancient past. Buildings are blushed in hues of the red earth, the horse-drawn carriages clip along broad avenues lined with palm, lime and orange trees. In the morning w visit the ancient Bahia Palace from the days of the harem, the royal Saadian Tombs and the Koutoubia Mosque and Minaret, Menara Garden and the Medina.
This afternoon, we continue our visit visit of Jemaa El Fna Square where Berber acrobats, fortune tellers, storytellers and mischievous monkeys perform. By night food stalls open in the square turning it into a huge busy open-air restaurant

Take a day off from the city as we drive southeast to the Souk Tnine de L’ourika, the gateway to the pleasant Ourika Valley. En route we will stop at an Argan Cooperative where we will witness women cultivating the Argan nut to make Argan oil, Argan butter, and cosmetic products. The cooperative is run by women and samples and purchases are available.The souk, located near a picturesque zaouia with a rock drop background, is a small village easily explored on foot. Our driver will stop and we will have time to browse the local crafts and other Moroccan treasures.

Moving through the valley we stop at Setti Fatma, a favorite weekend resort with beautiful streams and waterfalls. Enjoy a stroll through the typical Berber village, have lunch,l visit the famous tomb of Setti Fatma and take a short hike to the first waterfall. Then we visit a saffron farm, this spice is a key part of Moroccan tradition.
It is known as "red gold" due to its color and because it has long been the most expensive spice in the world. Between 150,000 and 200,000 Persian saffron (crocus sativus) flowers, which produce saffron, are required to obtain just a kilo!

A free day to explore the city and markets of Marrakech. Marrakech has the largest traditional market (souk) in Morocco. A souk can mean either a single market stall or, as in this case, a whole bustling labyrinth of stalls selling everything from rugs and spices to leather goods and love potions.
And later this evening -- Promenade by horse-drawn carriages to our Farewell Dinner at Gharnata Palace, a beautiful private palace or "riad" situated in the "médina". Walk through a torched lit Narrow Street to arrive at the Palace. Our entertainment will be an Andalusian orchestra and a belly dancer.

After a final breakfast we have to say goodbye to all our new single travel friends as our vacation comes to an end and we are transferred to the airport and our flights home.