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

Fly into Mohammed V Airport and take the train (ONCF) to Casa Voyageurs or Casa Port, roughly 45 minutes and ~£4. Check into a budget hotel or hostel near the old medina or Gauthier district. Spend the afternoon at the Hassan II Mosque — one of the only mosques in Morocco open to non-Muslim visitors on guided tours (about £11, several departures daily; book on arrival or via the mosque's site). Wander the Habous quarter and the crumbling old medina, then eat grilled sardines and harira in a local snack bar. Skip the expensive hotel spa — the ocean corniche at sunset is free.

🚌ONCF airport train to city centre, ~£4; walk/tram locally

🛏Budget hotel or hostel near the medina (e.g. Hotel Guynemer or a Gauthier hostel), ~£22

• →Hassan II Mosque guided interior tour (~£11)
• →Habous quarter and old medina walk
• →Ain Diab corniche at sunset

Catch an early ONCF train from Casablanca to Rabat Ville (~1 hour, ~£5), drop your bag at a café or station locker, and walk the Hassan Tower and Mausoleum of Mohammed V (free entry, modest dress). Continue to the Oudaya Kasbah for the blue-and-white lanes and river views, then take the tram or a petit taxi to Bab Challah and the Almohad walls. In the afternoon take a train Rabat → Tangier (~3h, ~£14) and a CTM or Supratours bus on to Chefchaouen (~2.5-3h, ~£7). Alternatively book a single CTM coach Rabat → Chefchaouen where timed connections allow. Arrive into the blue city in the evening and eat in the Plaza Uta el-Hammam.

🚌Train Casablanca-Rabat ~£5, train Rabat-Tangier ~£14, bus Tangier-Chefchaouen ~£7

🛏Guesthouse in the Chefchaouen medina, ~£18

• →Hassan Tower and Mausoleum of Mohammed V (free)
• →Oudaya Kasbah and gardens
• →Chefchaouen medina sunset from the Spanish Mosque

Start with a dawn walk up to the Spanish Mosque for the classic view over the blue rooftops, then a hammam or a mint tea in the square. Take a CTM/Supratours bus or shared grand taxi south to Moulay Idriss and Volubilis (bus to Meknes ~4h, ~£9; then a grand taxi to Volubilis and back ~£10 shared). Volubilis entry is ~£6 — a UNESCO Roman site with superb mosaics; you can self-guide with the on-site signage and an audio app, or hire a licensed local guide at the gate for ~£8 shared. Onward by grand taxi to Meknes (~£3) to see Bab al-Mansour, the Heri es-Souani granary and Sahrij Souani basin, and the Moulay Ismail Mausoleum (free). Evening train Meknes → Fes (~45 min, ~£3). Stay inside or just outside the Fes medina.

🚌Bus Chefchaouen-Meknes ~£9, grand taxis ~£13, train Meknes-Fes ~£3

🛏Riad or guesthouse in Fes medina, ~£20

• →Volubilis Roman ruins entry (~£6)
• →Meknes: Bab al-Mansour, granary, stables, Moulay Ismail Mausoleum (mostly free)
• →Spanish Mosque viewpoint at sunrise

Book a licensed Fes medina guide through your riad or GetYourGuide the night before (~£25-30 for 3-4 hours, price per group so it halves if you pair up with other travellers from your hostel). The medina is a genuine maze — a guide is the single best-value spend on this trip. Cover Bab Boujloud, the Bou Inania medersa (~£2), Najjarine fountain, the Chaouwara tanneries (view from the terrace, tip ~£1 for the mint sprig), the Kairaouine mosque courtyard (exterior only for non-Muslims) and the Mellah. Climb to the Borj Sud or a medina rooftop for the panorama. Afternoon free for the Dar Batha museum or pottery shopping. Dinner: a cheap tagine at a locals' spot in Ville Nouvelle.

🚌Walk; petit taxis ~£3 total

🛏Riad or guesthouse in Fes medina, ~£20

• →Half-day licensed medina guide (~£28, shared)
• →Bou Inania medersa and Najjarine fountain (~£2)
• →Tanneries terrace and Borj Sud viewpoint

This is the long transfer day. The cheapest independent option is the CTM/Supratours coach Fes → Rissani or Merzouga (~7-8h, ~£18), or a shared grand taxi via Meknes and Midelt. Break the journey at Ifrane's alpine-style streets, the cedar forest near Azrou (Barbary macaques), and the Ziz Gorges viewpoint on the way into the desert. Pre-book a standard desert camp including camel trek and dinner via GetYourGuide or direct with a Merzouga camp (~£45-60 in a shared tent; luxury camps with en-suite tents cost £90+). Ride a camel into the Erg Chebbi dunes for sunset, eat a tagine dinner around the fire, and sleep under the stars. Do not pay for a 'private driver' — the coach plus camp transfer is the same route for a fraction.

🚌CTM/Supratours coach Fes-Merzouga ~£18; camp 4x4/camel transfer included

🛏Shared tent at a standard Erg Chebbi desert camp (dinner and breakfast included), ~£50

• →Ifrane and Azrou cedar forest stops
• →Ziz Gorges viewpoint
• →Camel trek into Erg Chebbi at sunset (included in camp)
• →Desert camp dinner and drumming

Wake for sunrise on the dunes, take the camel or 4x4 back to Merzouga village, and shower at a café or your camp before leaving. Shared grand taxi or a local bus Merzouga → Tinerhir (~3-4h, ~£8-10). In Tinerhir, hire a grand taxi for the afternoon to the Todgha Gorges (~£12 shared return) — walk the canyon floor between the 300m walls, watch the climbers, and have lunch at a riverside café. Continue up to Boumalne Dades and the Dades Valley (shared taxi or bus, ~£5), where the switchback road and rock formations are best seen in late-afternoon light. Sleep in a valley guesthouse with a terrace.

🚌Shared grand taxi Merzouga-Tinerhir ~£9, taxi to gorges ~£12 shared, local transport to Dades ~£5

🛏Family guesthouse in Dades Valley, ~£18

• →Erg Chebbi sunrise
• →Todgha Gorges canyon walk
• →Dades Valley viewpoint and switchback road

Local bus or shared taxi down the valley to Kelaat M'Gouna (~£4) — the rosewater cooperatives let you see the distillation and buy directly (much cheaper than Marrakech). Then onwards to Ouarzazate (~£4) and take a shared grand taxi or local bus the last stretch to Aït Benhaddou (~£3). Entry to the ksar is free; a local guide at the gate costs ~£8 shared and adds a lot. Climb to the agadir at the top for the classic view. Cross the Tizi n'Tichka pass towards Marrakech — the CTM coach Ouarzazate → Marrakech (~4h, ~£9) is comfortable and cheap, though the shared taxi option (~£12) is faster. Arrive Marrakech in the evening and head straight for Jemaa el-Fna at dusk.

🚌Local buses/shared taxis ~£11, coach Ouarzazate-Marrakech ~£9

🛏Riad or hostel in the Marrakech medina, ~£22

• →Kelaat M'Gouna rosewater cooperative
• →Aït Benhaddou ksar and granary climb (free entry)
• →Tizi n'Tichka pass
• →Jemaa el-Fna at night

Do Marrakech under your own steam with a combo ticket: Bahia Palace (~£6), the Saadian Tombs (~£6), and the Koutoubia gardens (free). Book the Majorelle Garden timed slot online in advance (~£13) — it sells out days ahead. A half-day medina guide, if you want one, runs ~£25 per group through GetYourGuide. Spend the afternoon getting lost in the souks (haggling is expected — start at a third of the asking price), then eat at a cheap terrace restaurant off the square rather than on it. Optional: a hammam or a rooftop sunset drink.

🚌Walk; occasional petit taxi ~£3

🛏Riad or hostel in the Marrakech medina, ~£22

• →Bahia Palace and Saadian Tombs (~£12 combined)
• →Majorelle Garden timed entry (~£13)
• →Souk browsing and Koutoubia gardens
• →Optional hammam (~£15)

Take the CTM or Supratours coach Marrakech → Essaouira (~2.5-3h, ~£7 each way; book the return in advance in high season). Spend the day inside the UNESCO-listed fortified medina, walk the ramparts and Skala du Port, watch the blue fishing boats being built, and eat fresh grilled sardines at the port for a few pounds. Browse the art galleries and thuya-wood workshops, and if it's April-November and windy, windsurfing or kitesurfing lessons can be booked on the beach for ~£30. Either stay the night in a cheap medina guesthouse (the original tour's version) or coach back to Marrakech in the evening — the direct Marrakech option saves a night's accommodation and makes a shorter final transfer.

🚌Coach Marrakech-Essaouira ~£7

🛏Budget guesthouse in Essaouira medina, ~£20

• →Medina ramparts and Skala du Port (free)
• →Port fish market lunch
• →Optional windsurf/kitesurf lesson (~£30)

Coach Essaouira → Casablanca (~3.5-4h via Marrakech or the coastal CTM route, ~£10), or train from Marrakech if you opted to return the night before (~£8, 3h). Leave a buffer of at least 4 hours before an international flight, then take the ONCF train from Casa Voyageurs to Mohammed V Airport (~£4). If your flight is late, spend the spare hours at the Hassan II Mosque esplanade or the Central Market for a final cheap lunch.

🚌Coach Essaouira-Casablanca ~£10, airport train ~£4

🛏None (departure day)

• →Central Market lunch
• →Final medina wander in Casablanca