A 10 day Morocco road trip itinerary

The hustle of an African city, the calm of the desert, and the breeze of the ocean – all combined in a 10 days trip to Morocco.

From Marrakesh to the dry desert heat of the Sahara, to the the windy Atlantic Coast.

Day #1 Marrakesh 

Wow what a city. The hustle and bustle of Marrakesh is unlike any city I’ve ever seen. Scooters driving through the narrow Labyrinth like streets, marketers trying to sell to tourist, locals bargaining prices for food, kids running around, tourist pushing themselves through. 

Not everyone will love their time here, but nobody will be able to leave this city without a sensory experience which stays with them for a long, long time. Marrakesh is colourful, loud and chaotic and a bit overwhelming for me. Since I prefer to stay in more quiet cities I decided to spend only one night in the beautiful Riad Dar Nour El Houda.

Day #2 Trekking through the Atlas mountain

I was picked up by a driver early the next morning heading toward Ilmil, the starting point of the 2days trekking tour in the atlas mountain. At Ilmil my tour guy was already waiting there for me together with a mule to carry my luggage to the Armed, highest village in the Atlas mountain, and my sleeping place for the night. I booked the tour with Trek Atlas, a very small trekking company run by Chris and Mohammed. 

The first day Mohammed and me hiked approximately 3 hours to Armed from where we did another 3 hours trekking route in another area close by. I slept in Armed at a small guesthouse together with other trekkers viewing the peak of the highest mountain of North Africa: Toubkal. I decided not to hike all the way to the top, however, many others did. It usually takes 3-4 days to reach the peak and is of medium difficulty. 

Day #3 The base camp of Toubkal

Early morning we started our cling to the base camp of the Toubkal mountain. It’s a 3 hours hike from Armed and totally worth it. The closer you get to the highest peak of North Africa the more impressive it becomes. While many of my companions stayed there for the night, planning an ascent the next day, I decided to go back to Ilmid and ultimately to Morocco in the afternoon to start my tour to the desert from there.

Day #4 On the trail of Game of Thrones, Gladiator and Laurence from Arabia

I’m sure you remember those scenes from Game of thrones when they’re waking through this medieval city: all those scenes have been shot at the old city of Aït-Ben-Haddou. A beautifully set fortified town, its red mud-brick façade and walls conjure images of biblical towns, long lost villages, and battling Persian and Greek armies. 

The entry fee to the city is 20 Dirham and I took myself a local guide to get more information about this village from the 11th century for another 20 Dirham. Its definitely worth the price.

In the early afternoon I continued my trip to the desert, arriving at my desert destination at Tatooine Stars Camp right on time for the sunset.

Day 5# New Years Eve in the Sahara

Waking up to nothing but the sound of the wind is the most beautiful feeling on this planet. I enjoyed the tranquility of the desert and the exclusivity of the camp to its fullest hiking along the dunes and chilling in the sun before a festive nye dinner was served followed by songs and story telling around the fire. At midnight we opened the bubbles and cheered to the new year under the starlit sky of the Sahara making it the most exclusive and romantic start of the new year I ever had. Check out our review on Tatooine Stars Camp here.

Day 6# Happy New Year 

I said goodbye to the tranquility only in the early afternoon driving another 5 hours towards Fes. What I saw during this drive was one of the most beautiful sceneries I’ve ever seen in a road trip. Gentle hills cover in apple trees, landscapes dyed in the red of the sunset, endless roads ahead of me. 

Day 7# A day in Fez

Fez is a beautiful city in the north of the country that gives a real insight into daily life in Morocco. There are far fewer tourist traps and less crowds than Marrakech. The huge medina in the centre of the old town is one of the main sites to see in Fez, and most visitors need a full day or more to explore just this.

I’ve been recommended to take a guided tour. It was one of the best decision: I booked a free walking guided tour through Guru walk and explored the city for 4 hours as otherwise I would have got lost. The city is full of sights, smells and people which I tried to capture with my camera. It was overwhelming.

Day 8# Chefchachoeun

My favourite city in Morocco : the charming, small, cozy and picturesque city of Chefchachoeun.

I also decided to book a guided tour through guru walk and got the only 5* rated guide in the city: Carlo, originally Italian and living in Choeun, how the locals calm it, for 20 years. This was the best walking tour I ever did! Carlo is such a charismatic man and showed us 3 hours the hidden paths, the secrets of the city and the best cookies I had in the whole of Morocco.

If you ever wondered why the city has been painted blue: here are a couple schools of thought on why Chefchaouen is painted blue. Some say it was painted blue as a mosquito deterrent. While others look to history for answers. In the 1400’s Chefchaouen became home to many Jewish and Spanish refugees. A few decades later, they began painting their doorways the colour blue. And the reason for this is that the colour blue represented the colour of the sky and therefore a closer presence to god. Others say it has simply been a marketing gag. 

Day 9# The Atlantic breeze in Rabat

I must admit Rabat is severely underrated as a travel location. While it may lack the hustle and bustle that you’ll find in Marrakech and Fez, it more than makes up for with mind-blowing history and a laidback coastal charm that you don’t find in other Morrocan cities.

I mainly spend my time in Rabat with shopping because I have been told that merchants are less aggressive in the capital than anywhere else in Morocco. Its Médina is buzzing with buyers and sellers alike. Rugs, cushions, ceramics, tagine pots, leather goods, shoes, fresh fruit and veg…you can find just about anything you’d want or need in the Médina de Rabat. Rue des Consuls in particular has lots of rug and textile stalls to purchase. 

I spend the last night of my trip in Cafe Maure, a gem of a place to have some traditional Moroccan tea and pastries in total relaxation , overlooking the sea.

Day 10# Home

Re-entering Marrakech in good time, I stopped for a coffee in a quiet part of town, before arriving at the airport to drop off my little warrior of a rental.

Thank you Morocco for this wonderful experience.