10-Day Self-Launched Morocco Grand Loop: Casablanca to the Sahara

Fly into Mohammed V Airport (CMN) and take the ONCF train from the airport station straight to Casa Voyageurs or Casa Port (~30-40 min, about £4-5). Check into a budget hotel or hostel near the old medina or Gauthier district. In the afternoon walk the Corniche along the Atlantic, see the exterior of the vast Hassan II Mosque (guided interior visits run a few times daily, ~£12, book on arrival or via GetYourGuide), and wander the Habous quarter and Marché Central. Eat dinner at a local grill for £6-8.

🚌Airport train ~£4-5; walking and petit taxi (~£1-2 per hop)

🛏Budget hotel/hostel near Casa Port or Gauthier (e.g. Hotel Guynemer or a medina guesthouse), £18-25

• →Hassan II Mosque exterior and optional guided interior visit
• →Corniche seafront walk
• →Habous quarter and Marché Central
• →Old medina wander

Take an early ONCF train from Casablanca to Rabat Ville (~1 hour, £5-6). Drop bags or use station lockers, then walk to the Mausoleum of Mohammed V and Hassan Tower, explore the Oudaya Kasbah with its blue-and-white lanes, and see Bab Challah and the Almohad walls. In the afternoon take the train to Tangier or Souk El Arbaa/Fes and connect by CTM or Supratours bus to Chefchaouen (total ~5-6 hours, £12-18). Check into a medina guesthouse and eat tagine on Outa el Hammam square. Note: a licensed local guide in Chefchaouen costs around £35-40 for a group — or just self-navigate the compact medina.

🚌Train Casablanca–Rabat ~£5.50; train+bus Rabat–Chefchaouen ~£15

🛏Medina guesthouse/riad in Chefchaouen (budget double or dorm), £14-20

• →Mausoleum of Mohammed V and Hassan Tower
• →Oudaya Kasbah and Bab Challah
• →Rabat medina
• →Evening on Outa el Hammam square

Spend the morning in Chefchaouen: climb to the Spanish Mosque for the classic view, visit the 15th-century kasbah and gardens (~£1.50), the Great Mosque exterior, and browse artisan workshops (note the local wool and weaving co-ops). Mid-morning take a CTM/Supratours bus or shared grand taxi to Meknes/Volubilis (~3 hours, £6-9). Visit the Roman ruins of Volubilis (~£6 entry) and the nearby Moulay Idriss hill town, then continue by train or grand taxi to Fes (~1 hour, £3-5). Settle into a medina riad-hostel.

🚌Bus Chefchaouen–Volubilis/Meknes ~£7; train or grand taxi to Fes ~£4

🛏Budget riad or hostel inside the Fes medina, £15-22

• →Spanish Mosque viewpoint
• →Chefchaouen kasbah and artisan workshops
• →Volubilis Roman ruins
• →Moulay Idriss Zerhoun

Full day on foot in the Fes el-Bali medina with a licensed local guide (book a small-group walking tour via GetYourGuide for £20-30, or negotiate a half-day guide at the riad for ~£25-35). See Bab Boujloud (Blue Gate), Bou Inania Medersa (~£1.50), the Najjarine Fountain and museum, the Chouara tanneries (view from a terrace), the Kairaouine Mosque and university perimeter, the Mellah, and the Borj Nord ramparts for panoramic views. Lunch at a medina hole-in-the-wall — try a pastilla or harira for £3-5. Be prepared to decline tannery 'shop' pressure politely.

🚌Walking; petit taxis ~£1-2

🛏Same Fes riad/hostel, £15-22

• →Guided small-group medina walking tour
• →Bou Inania Medersa and Najjarine Fountain
• →Chouara tanneries
• →Kairaouine Mosque and university
• →Mellah and Borj Nord viewpoint

This leg is easiest as a shared desert tour: book a 3-day Fes-to-Marrakech desert excursion (small group, typically £130-170 including transport, one night desert camp with dinner/breakfast, and one night in Dades). Depart Fes early, stop at Ifrane, the Cedar Forest near Azrou to see Barbary macaques, Midelt, the Ziz Valley and Errachidia, arriving in Merzouga late afternoon. Camel trek into the Erg Chebbi dunes for sunset (~1 hour), then dinner and music at a standard desert camp. If you skip the camel, you can be 4x4'd to camp instead. Doing it independently (CTM bus Fes–Rissani ~£15-18, then local transfer) is possible but timings are tight and camp-only bookings are pricier.

🚌Shared 3-day desert tour minibus (Fes–Merzouga leg), included in excursion price

🛏Standard desert camp in Erg Chebbi (tent with shared or private bathroom), included in excursion ~£65-85/night equivalent

• →Ifrane and Cedar Forest macaques
• →Ziz Valley and Midelt viewpoints
• →Camel trek into Erg Chebbi
• →Sunset over the dunes
• →Desert camp dinner and Berber music

Wake for sunrise over the dunes, then breakfast at camp. Rejoin the group tour: stop at the Rissani souk (livestock market days are Tue/Thu/Sun), the Erfoud fossil and marble workshops, then drive the Todra Gorges where you can walk the canyon floor between the cliffs for free (rock climbing routes are ~£40-60 if you want a guided climb). Continue to Boumalne Dades for the night, with an evening detour to the Dades 'monkey fingers' rock formations. Dinner at the hotel is included in the excursion.

🚌Shared tour minibus

🛏Budget hotel/riad in Boumalne Dades (included in excursion)

• →Desert sunrise
• →Rissani souk
• →Erfoud fossil workshops
• →Todra Gorges canyon walk
• →Dades Valley viewpoint

Final day of the excursion: drive via Kalaa M'Gouna (Rose Valley), Skoura's palm oasis, Ouarzazate (optional Atlas/CLA film studios entry ~£8), and the UNESCO ksar of Ait Benhaddou (~£2 entry to the granary). Cross the Tizi n'Tichka pass and arrive in Marrakech in the evening. The excursion drops you in Marrakech; check into a medina hostel or budget riad and head to Djemaa el-Fna for the night food stalls (a full meal is £5-8).

🚌Shared tour minibus; walking in Marrakech

🛏Budget riad/hostel in Marrakech medina, £16-24

• →Rose Valley and Skoura oasis
• →Ouarzazate film studios (optional)
• →Ait Benhaddou ksar
• →Tizi n'Tichka pass
• →Djemaa el-Fna at night

Self-guided monument day: Majorelle Garden (~£12, book a timed slot online), Koutoubia Mosque exterior, the Saadian Tombs (~£6), Bahia Palace (~£6), and Ben Youssef Medersa (~£5). Spend the afternoon haggling in the souks and the souk des teinturiers. Optional: sunrise hot air balloon over the Atlas foothills, bookable on GetYourGuide for £150-180 with pickup around 4:30-5am. In the evening try a rooftop dinner or a cheap grill in the medina.

🚌Walking and petit taxis ~£2-3

🛏Same Marrakech riad/hostel, £16-24

• →Majorelle Garden
• →Saadian Tombs and Bahia Palace
• →Ben Youssef Medersa
• →Souk shopping and Djemaa el-Fna
• →Optional hot air balloon (£150-180)

Take a CTM or Supratours bus from Marrakech to Essaouira (~3 hours, £7-9). Check into a medina guesthouse, then walk the ramparts of the fortified medina (Skala de la Ville), the fishing port with its blue boats, and the beach. Browse the art galleries and woodwork boutiques — Essaouira is a famous thuya-wood craft town. Fresh grilled sardines at the port for £3-5. This is a good spot for a wind-down evening; a cheap hammam is £5-8.

🚌CTM/Supratours bus Marrakech–Essaouira ~£8

🛏Medina guesthouse in Essaouira, £15-22

• →Essaouira ramparts and medina
• →Fishing port and sardine grills
• →Beach walk
• →Art galleries and thuya workshops
• →Optional hammam

A relaxed morning in Essaouira, then either return to Marrakech (bus ~£8, 3 hours) for a cheaper/easier onward flight from RAK, or take the direct CTM/Supratours bus to Casablanca (~4.5-5 hours, £10-13) with an optional stop at El Jadida or Oualidia if you split the journey. Flight from Casablanca or Marrakech depending on your ticket. Budget a buffer if connecting to an international flight the same day.

🚌Bus Essaouira–Marrakech ~£8 or Essaouira–Casablanca ~£12

🛏None if departing; expect ~£20-25 if you add a night

• →Morning on the Essaouira beach
• →Optional El Jadida or Oualidia coastal stop
• →Departure transfer