Morocco Kasbahs & Desert — Self-Launched Teenage Adventure

Land at Mohammed V Airport and take the train from the airport station into Casa Voyager or Casa Port (about 40–45 min, ~£3–4), then a petit taxi to your riad or budget hotel (~£2–3). Settle in, then walk the old medina and the Corniche. If you want to see inside the Hassan II Mosque (the only mosque in Morocco non-Muslims can enter), book a timed guided visit directly at the mosque ticket office (~£11; morning slots, closed to visitors on Fridays for much of the day). Eat dinner at a cheap local spot near the medina — tagine or brochettes for ~£4–6.

🚌Airport train to Casablanca city ~£3–4; petit taxi ~£2–3

🛏Budget riad or guesthouse in the old medina / city centre (~£15–22 per person)

• →Hassan II Mosque guided visit (optional, ~£11, book direct)
• →Old medina and Corniche walk
• →Buy onward train tickets at Casa Voyager for tomorrow

Take an early ONCF train from Casablanca to Meknès (roughly 3–3.5 hrs, ~£8–10 second class). Drop bags at a guesthouse in the ville nouvelle, then see the imperial city: Bab Mansour, the medina and the Heri es-Souani granaries. For Volubilis (30 km north, UNESCO Roman ruins), either join a shared grand taxi from Meknès's Institut Français / taxi rank (~£4–6 per person each way) or hire a driver for a half-day (~£20–25 total per car). Entry to Volubilis is ~£6; a licensed site guide adds ~£8 if you split it. Late afternoon, take a train or CTM coach Meknès–Fes (~45 min, ~£3–4). Note that Volubilis is best reached as a private half-day rather than by public transport — the shared-taxi option requires some bargaining.

🚌Casablanca–Meknès train ~£9; shared grand taxi to Volubilis ~£10 return; Meknès–Fes train ~£3.50

🛏Family-run guesthouse in Fes ville nouvelle (~£12–18 per person)

• →Meknès medina, Bab Mansour and granaries
• →Volubilis Roman ruins (entry ~£6, optional local guide)
• →Evening walk in Fes ville nouvelle

Spend the day inside the Fes medina — over 9,000 lanes in the world's largest car-free urban area. A certified local medina guide is worth the money to avoid getting lost and to fend off touts: book through GetYourGuide or arrange at your guesthouse (~£20–30 per group of 2–4, so ~£8–15 per person). The classic stops are Bab Boujloud, the Bou Inania madrasa (~£2), the Nejjarine wood museum, the Chaouwara tanneries viewed from a leather shop balcony (free, but expect a hard sell — tip ~£1–2) and the Al-Attarine souk. Lunch on harira soup and bread for ~£2–3. Spend the evening on a rooftop for sunset over the minarets — a much quieter experience than the medina floor.

🚌Walking day; petit taxi in the evening ~£1–2

🛏Family-run guesthouse in Fes (~£12–18 per person)

• →Certified medina guide (shared, ~£8–15 pp)
• →Chaouwara tanneries viewpoint
• →Bou Inania madrasa and Nejjarine museum
• →Buy bus tickets for tomorrow's desert run

This is the long travel day the group tour also does in a minivan: take the CTM or Supratours coach from Fes to Merzouga via Rissani (about 7–8 hrs, ~£12–16; book online or at the station a day ahead — morning departures). In Merzouga, arrange your camel trek and overnight camp directly with a Berber camp operator (~£35–45 per person including camel each way, dinner, breakfast, bedding and a communal tent) or book via GetYourGuide in advance for guaranteed departures. Ride out into the dunes late afternoon, climb a dune for sunset, then dinner and drums at camp. Expect very basic bathroom facilities and bring a warm layer and a headtorch — nights are cold from November to March.

🚌Fes–Merzouga CTM/Supratours coach ~£14; camel ride included in camp package

🛏Berber tented desert camp, shared tent, bedding provided (~£35–45 pp incl. camel and meals)

• →Camel trek into Erg Chebbi (~90 min)
• →Sunset from the dunes
• →Berber desert camp overnight with dinner and music

Walk back out of the dunes after breakfast (shower back at the camp operator's base in Merzouga). From Merzouga, the simplest independent option is a shared grand taxi or a shared 4x4 transfer to Tinghir/Todra (~£10–15 per person, 2.5–3 hrs, arranged through your camp or the Merzouga taxi stand); public buses also run Merzouga–Rissani–Tinghir but are slow. Base yourself in a simple family-run gîte in the gorge (~£10–15 per person). In the afternoon, walk the Todra Gorge canyon floor and follow the irrigation channels through the palm groves to see how local farming works — free, and easily done on foot from any gîte. Note the gorge has generator electricity, often off between midnight and 7am.

🚌Merzouga–Todra shared transfer ~£12

🛏Simple family-run gîte inside Todra Gorge (~£10–15 per person)

• →Todra Gorge canyon walk
• →Palm grove and irrigation channel walk
• →Mint tea with a local family (optional, tip-based)

Take a shared grand taxi to Ouarzazate (via the Dades and Roses valleys; ~3–4 hrs, ~£10–14 per person shared) and continue ~30 km to Aït Ben Haddou by grand taxi (~£3–5). Most budget travellers base in a guesthouse in the new village opposite the ksar (~£12–18 per person). Cross the riverbed on foot to explore the fortified ksar — a UNESCO site and film set for Gladiator, Babel and Game of Thrones (site entry is nominally free; some houses charge ~£1–2 to climb to the granary viewpoint). Book a tagine cooking class in the afternoon through your guesthouse or GetYourGuide (~£12–15), including dinner — the group tour charges ~£10 as an optional extra and it's excellent value either way.

🚌Shared grand taxis Todra–Ouarzazate–Aït Ben Haddou ~£15

🛏Guesthouse in Aït Ben Haddou new village (~£12–18 per person)

• →Aït Ben Haddou ksar walk and granary viewpoint
• →Tagine cooking class with dinner (~£12–15)
• →Sunset over the Ounila valley

Take a shared grand taxi or local bus from Aït Ben Haddou to Ouarzazate, then the CTM/Supratours coach over the Tizi n'Tichka pass to Marrakech (~4–5 hrs, ~£8–11). Check into a hostel or riad in the medina (~£15–20 per person). Late afternoon, explore the souks and the Koutoubia, then walk into Djemaa el Fna at dusk as the food stalls fire up and the musicians, storytellers and henna artists gather — entirely free. Eat at the stalls (a grilled mixed plate ~£4–5) or at a cheap terrace restaurant off the square. A short guided medina walk can be booked via GetYourGuide for ~£10–12 per person if you want orientation.

🚌Local transfer to Ouarzazate ~£4; coach to Marrakech ~£10

🛏Hostel or budget riad in the Marrakech medina (~£15–20 per person)

• →Coach over the High Atlas
• →Marrakech souks and Koutoubia
• →Djemaa el Fna at dusk (free)
• →Optional short medina guided walk (~£10–12)

Morning free: the Bahia Palace (~£6), the Saadian Tombs (~£6), Jardin Majorelle or a hammam (~£10–20). Marrakech Menara Airport is a ~£10–12 petit taxi from the medina; if you're heading back to Casablanca or the airport by train, the ONCF train from Marrakech to Casa Voyager takes ~3 hrs 10 min (~£8–10), and Casa Voyager connects to Mohammed V Airport. Don't book a flight home before 13:00 if you're using the train.

🚌Petit taxi to airport ~£10–12, or train to Casablanca ~£9

🛏Not included — book post-trip accommodation if you want a full day in Marrakech (~£15–20 per person)

• →Bahia Palace or Saadian Tombs (optional)
• →Hammam (optional)
• →Last souk shopping