Where to Go in Morocco: The Best Places for a First Trip

The imperial cities

Fez

Fez el Bali is one of the largest car free medinas in the world and a UNESCO World Heritage site since 1981. This is my city. Come for the tanneries, the madrasas, the artisan quarters and the food. Two full days is the minimum. Read how many days you need in Fez.

Marrakech

Busier and more theatrical than Fez, with Jemaa el Fna square, the souks, the Bahia Palace and the Majorelle Garden. It is the natural start or end point for the south. If you are choosing between the two, see Fez or Marrakech.

Meknes and Rabat

Meknes is calm and grand, and sits next to the Roman ruins of Volubilis. Rabat, the capital, is the easiest city in Morocco to walk around, with the Hassan Tower and the Kasbah of the Oudayas above the ocean.

The Sahara and the south

Erg Chebbi near Merzouga has the highest dunes in Morocco and the best range of camps, from simple to luxury. Erg Chigaga, beyond Mhamid, is wilder and less visited but needs a four by four drive across the desert. On the way you pass the Ziz Valley, the Todra and Dades gorges and the kasbah of Ait Ben Haddou.

From Fez the desert is a two or three day trip. Read Fez to Merzouga and see our desert tours from Fez.

The north

Chefchaouen, the blue town in the Rif, is about four hours from Fez and deserves a night. Tangier and Tetouan add Mediterranean history, and Asilah is a quiet white town on the Atlantic. Our Northern Morocco tour links them, and Morocco Off the Beaten Track adds the small towns most visitors miss.

Mountains and countryside

The High Atlas south of Marrakech is the place for village walks and treks, from Imlil below Mount Toubkal, at 4,167 metres the highest peak in North Africa. The Middle Atlas near Fez is gentler, with cedar forest, Barbary macaques and Ifrane. Near Fez, my home village of Bhalil has houses built into caves. See Sefrou and Bhalil.

The Atlantic coast

Essaouira has a walled UNESCO listed medina, a working fishing port and steady wind, which keeps summer cool. El Jadida has its Portuguese Cistern, and Oualidia is known for oysters and a calm lagoon. The coast is a good way to end a trip after the heat of the south. See Coastal Winds and Desert Dreams.

Putting it together

Trip length	A route that works
7 days	Fez, two nights in the Sahara, Marrakech
10 days	Casablanca, Rabat, Chefchaouen, Fez, the Sahara, Marrakech
14 days	The 10 day route plus the Atlas and Essaouira

More detail is in how many days in Morocco, and every route is on our tours and itineraries page.