Self-Launched North Morocco Discovery: 5 Days from Tangier

Arrive in Tangier (ferry from Tarifa or flight to TNG) and make your own way to the CTM or Supratours bus station. If you have an early start, splash out on a petit taxi to Cap Spartel lighthouse and the Caves of Hercules (combined taxi ~£12 return, entry to the caves ~£1) for the Atlantic–Mediterranean meeting point. Then take the afternoon CTM/Supratours coach Tangier–Chefchaouen (~3 hours, ~£6–8); buses are comfortable and run several times daily. Check into a medina riad or guesthouse and spend golden hour wandering the blue-washed lanes and the Kasbah square. Dinner: a cheap plate of kefta tagine or a harira-and-msemen feed for ~£5.

🚌CTM/Supratours coach Tangier–Chefchaouen ~£7; optional petit taxi to Cap Spartel ~£12 shared

🛏Medina guesthouse or budget riad in Chefchaouen (dorm or private room), ~£12–18

• →Cap Spartel lighthouse and Caves of Hercules (optional, self-arranged taxi)
• →Free evening wander of Chefchaouen's blue medina
• →Sunset from the Spanish Mosque viewpoint

Start early with a self-guided or locally hired guide walk of the medina (official local guides cluster at Place Outa el Hammam, ~£20–25 for a 2-hour walk split between a few travellers; otherwise just follow your own nose through the dyers' lane and the kasbah). Grab breakfast of avocado juice and msemen for ~£3, then take the coach or shared grand taxi to Meknes/Moulay Idriss (~£6–8). From Moulay Idriss, a grand taxi or hop-on tour taxi covers Volubilis Roman ruins (~£4–6 each way; site entry ~£6) — 1.5 hours is enough for the mosaics, triumphal arch and Capitol. Continue by local bus or train Meknes–Fes (~£3, ~1 hour). Dump your bags in a Fes medina riad and eat dinner near Bab Boujloud (~£6).

🚌Coach Chefchaouen–Meknes ~£7; grand taxi to Volubilis ~£5 each way; train/bus Meknes–Fes ~£3

🛏Riad or guesthouse inside the Fes medina, ~£13–20

• →Local guide walk of Chefchaouen medina (~£22 split)
• →Volubilis Roman ruins entry ~£6
• →Meknes medina and Bab Mansour gate walk-through
• →Moulay Idriss hilltop viewpoint

Book a licensed medina guide in advance via GetYourGuide or through your riad (~£25–35 for a half/full day, cheaper if shared) — this is genuinely worth it in Fes, since the 9,000-lane medina swallows first-timers. Cover the Kairaouine Mosque and university exterior, the Nejjarine Square and woodwork museum, the Bou Inania madrasa and the tanneries (expect a hard sell at the leather shops — walk past the 'free' terrace entrances and pay the tannery fee of ~£1). Break for a £4 street-food lunch at a medina hole-in-the-wall, then use the afternoon to explore the Mellah (Jewish quarter) and the Royal Palace gates independently. Optional: hammam in the evening ~£8. Eat at a cheap local restaurant off Talaa Kebira, ~£6.

🚌All on foot in the medina; petit taxi from the ville nouvelle ~£1–2

🛏Riad or guesthouse inside the Fes medina, ~£13–20

• →Licensed medina guide (~£30 shared or solo)
• →Kairaouine Mosque and University (exterior)
• →Nejjarine Square and Fondouk museum ~£2
• →Bou Inania Madrasa ~£2
• →Tanneries terrace fee ~£1
• →Mellah Jewish quarter walk
• →Optional hammam ~£8

Take the early ONCF train Fes–Rabat (~£8–10, 3.5 hours) or the CTM coach. Spend the day in Rabat: the Hassan Tower and Mohamed V Mausoleum (free), then the Kasbah of the Udayas and the medina for a £5 lunch. In the late afternoon take the train Rabat–Casablanca (~£3, 1 hour), check into a budget hotel or hostel near the medina and head to the Hassan II Mosque for the exterior at sunset (a fantastic photo stop; interior guided visits only at set times, ~£12). Walk the Corniche and eat at a cheap seafood stall or a Maârif neighbourhood café, ~£7.

🚌Train Fes–Rabat ~£9; train Rabat–Casablanca ~£3

🛏Budget hotel or hostel in central Casablanca, ~£18–25

• →Hassan Tower and Mohamed V Mausoleum (free)
• →Kasbah of the Udayas and Rabat medina
• →Hassan II Mosque exterior at sunset (interior tour ~£12 optional)
• →Casablanca Corniche stroll

Take the morning train Casablanca–Asilah (~£12–15, 4.5 hours) or the CTM coach, and store your bag at the station. Wander the white-and-blue Asilah medina, the 15th-century Portuguese ramparts and gates, and hunt down the street-art murals that cover the walls (free; it's a small town, 2 hours is plenty). Have a long lunch of grilled sardines by the sea for ~£6. Then take the local train or coach Asilah–Tangier (~£3–4, 45 minutes) to finish your loop. If time allows, catch the ferry to Tarifa the same evening or stay over in Tangier's medina for one last mint tea.

🚌Train Casablanca–Asilah ~£13; train Asilah–Tangier ~£3.50

🛏Optional final night in Tangier medina guesthouse, ~£15–20

• →Asilah medina and Portuguese ramparts (free)
• →Asilah street-art murals walk (free)
• →Seafront grilled-sardine lunch
• →Optional Moussem Culturel International d'Asilah (July, seasonal)