Self-Launched 6-Day Tangier to Sahara, Fes & Chefchaouen Adventure

Arrive in Tangier by ferry from Tarifa (FRS or Balearia, ~£30 one-way, 1hr) or by air into Tangier Ibn Battouta. Check into a medina-side guesthouse, then self-guide a loop of the Kasbah, the Petit Socco, the American Legation Museum and the Café Hafa terrace over the Strait of Gibraltar. A free walking tour (tip-based, ~£5-8 tip) runs from the Grand Socco most mornings if you arrive early. Buy your onward bus ticket to Chefchaouen today — CTM and Supratours both serve the route.

🚌Ferry from Tarifa ~£30 or flight into Tangier; walking + petite taxi in town ~£3

🛏Medina guesthouse or hostel private twin in Tangier (~£22-28/room)

• →Kasbah & Petit Socco walk
• →American Legation Museum (~£4)
• →Café Hafa sunset tea (~£2)
• →Optional tip-based walking tour

Morning CTM or Supratours coach from Tangier to Chefchaouen (roughly 3hrs, ~£7-9). Drop bags at a riad inside the medina and spend the afternoon wandering the blue-washed lanes on your own — the medina is small and impossible to get truly lost in. Climb to the Spanish Mosque for sunset over the Rif (20-min uphill walk, free). In the evening, join a cheap local guide for a 1.5hr medina orientation if you want the history, or simply eat at a plaza-side restaurant off Plaza Uta el-Hammam.

🚌CTM/Supratours coach Tangier–Chefchaouen ~£8; local petit taxi ~£2

🛏Medina riad or guesthouse in Chefchaouen (~£22-30/room)

• →Blue medina self-walk (free)
• →Kasbah of Chefchaouen entry (~£2)
• →Spanish Mosque viewpoint sunset (free)
• →Optional local guide ~£10-15

The one logistically fiddly day — do it as a shared grand-taxi/van transfer booked the night before at your riad (~£25-30 per person to Fes with stops) or take the CTM bus to Meknes (~£7) and a grand taxi out to Volubilis and back (~£10 shared). Explore the Roman mosaics and Triumphal Arch at Volubilis (entry ~£6), then stop in Meknes for Bab Mansour gate and the buzzing El Hedim square. Continue to Fes by train (ONCF Meknes–Fes, ~£3, 45min) and check into a riad in the medina.

🚌Shared van transfer Chefchaouen–Volubilis–Meknes ~£25-30 pp, or CTM bus + shared grand taxi ~£15; ONCF train Meknes–Fes ~£3

🛏Riad or guesthouse in Fes medina (~£25-32/room)

• →Volubilis Roman ruins entry (~£6)
• →Bab Mansour & El Hedim Square (free)
• →Medina of Fes evening wander

Long transfer day south. The cheapest reliable option is the CTM/Supratours coach Fes–Rissani or Fes–Merzouga (8-9hrs, ~£15-18), or a shared 4x4/van transfer arranged through your desert camp (~£35-40 pp, quicker and stops at Ifrane, the Azrou cedar forest with its Barbary macaques, Midelt and the Ziz Valley viewpoint). Arrive late afternoon, then take the classic 1.5hr camel ride into the Erg Chebbi dunes for sunset (~£25-30 including the camel and guide) and sleep in a standard Berber tent camp with tagine dinner and drumming.

🚌CTM/Supratours coach Fes–Merzouga ~£16, or shared van transfer with sightseeing stops ~£38

🛏Standard Berber desert camp, twin tent with shared or en-suite bathroom (~£30-40 pp incl. dinner & breakfast)

• →Ifrane & Azrou cedar forest stop
• →Ziz Valley viewpoint
• →Sunset camel ride into Erg Chebbi (~£28)
• →Berber camp dinner & music

Sunrise over the dunes, then back to Merzouga village for breakfast and a shared grand taxi or van along the N10 to Tinghir/Todra Gorge (~£8-12 pp, 2.5hrs). Walk the gorge floor along the river between the 300m cliffs — free and spectacular — then continue by shared taxi or local bus to Boumalne Dades (~£4-6). If you have energy, hire a local guide for the Monkey Fingers rock formations and a short Dades Valley walk (~£10). Overnight in a budget riad or guesthouse with valley views.

🚌Shared grand taxi Merzouga–Todra ~£10; shared taxi/bus Todra–Boumalne Dades ~£5

🛏Budget riad/guesthouse in Boumalne Dades (~£22-28/room)

• →Todra Gorge river walk (free)
• →Valley of a Thousand Kasbahs drive
• →Monkey Fingers viewpoint & optional local guide ~£10

Early shared taxi or local bus to Ouarzazate (~£6, 2hrs) via Skoura's palm oasis. See Kasbah Taourirt (entry ~£2) and, if timing allows, the Atlas Film Studios (~£7). Take a shared grand taxi or local bus to Ait Benhaddou (~£3, 30min) and walk up through the UNESCO ksar to the granary at the top — free, allow 1.5hrs. Continue to Marrakech by shared grand taxi to Télouet/Ouarzazate road connections or the CTM bus over the Tizi-n-Tichka Pass (~£8-10, 4hrs including the High Atlas switchbacks). Arrive Marrakech in the evening; drop-off at your riad or the airport.

🚌Shared taxi Dades–Ouarzazate ~£6; taxi Ouarzazate–Ait Benhaddou ~£3; CTM bus/coach Ait Benhaddou/Ouarzazate–Marrakech ~£9

🛏Not included — night in Marrakech riad/hostel from ~£15-25 pp if you're staying on

• →Kasbah Taourirt (~£2)
• →Ait Benhaddou ksar walk (free)
• →Tizi-n-Tichka Pass High Atlas crossing
• →Optional Atlas Film Studios ~£7