After a good night’s sleep and a hearty Moroccan breakfast we will head off on special day trip including more of Tangier and another small coastal town called Asilah.

This will include a nice drive through the Ville Nouvelle that was built by the eight international powers. The new town is divided into districts and named after the countries that were behind their construction.

We’ll drive through the Iberia district where Mohammed V Grand Mosque is noticeable from afar. You’ll see fancy villas, mansions and palaces including where the Royal Palace is today.

We will head along the coast seeing where the Mediterranean and Atlantic oceans converge.

We’ll visit Hurcules caves and spend time seeing the majestic views around us.

Asilah was built by the Portuguese so you will see a huge Portuguese influence here.

The Medina is something to see and once a year there is a festival where artists from all over the world come and paint on the walls of the Medina. We will get to meaner around these beautiful painted streets.

back to Tangier for lunch and then we get to walk around the bustling Souks, selling antiques, crafts, vegetables, fish, fruit, olives snd much more.

I’m excited as we get to visit a communal bakery and learn how water was brought in to the neighbourhood.

So much to experience today then back to our accommodation for a rest or walk around and then Cherif will pick us up around 8pm to go down to the harbour to an amazing restaurant called Tangerino where the fusion of Spanish tapas will be the theme. Spain is only a 20 minute boat ride across the ocean so we will feel like we are there tonight.

(B, L)

Today we start at a slower pace. Take your time enjoying the Hotel, maybe have a morning swim in the pool, have breakfast and if anyone wants to take a walk in the Old town for a little bit you’re most welcome.

We leave the hotel today and head to a very special place for lunch.

I have been here twice now and it never disappoints.

Today is about tranquility and so we are booked in at Villa Josephine for lunch.

Villa Josephine is French inspired with beautiful tropical gardens that give you panoramic ocean views as you overlook the city of Tangier.

The food and view are delicious. You will find Morocco is a melting pot of many mixed races including Spanish, Arabic, Berber, French and so you will see many diverse cultures, food, languages, architecture and landscapes.

I hope by today you will start to see you’re in for one magical adventure using every one of your senses.

After lunch it’s on to Chefchoaen (the blue city) which will be another beautiful place to relax and explore.

(B + D)

Today will be a blue day. You are now in the beautiful blue city of Chefchoaen and after a delicious breakfast we have a 3 hour walking tour of the city so you can get your bearings and then after lunch together you can do as you please.

This city is very safe and people are friendly. There are shops to check out or walk to the town square and see what’s happening there.

You can find the little waterfall just outside the town or even watch the ladies washing and beating their rugs down by the creek.

Or maybe spend some time enjoying your Riad.

Relax and soak it all in.

We can all meet up later and head down in to the square to grab dinner and see the night entertainment 

(B)

Today after a hearty Moroccan breakfast we are going to go on a day trip to the beautiful coastal city of Tetouan.

Tetouan is a small city in northern Morocco with a unique heritage of Andalusian and Arab cultures making this green and whitewashed city one of the jewels of Morocco.

Situated in the middle of a belt of orchards that contain orange, pomegranate, almond, and cypress trees, Tetouan is picturesquely perched on the northern slope of a fertile valley down which flows the Martil river with Tetouan harbor at its mouth.

The streets in Tetouan are wide and straight and many of the houses belong to aristocratic families, descendants of those expelled from Al-Andalus by the Spanish Reconquista. These houses boast marble fountains, orange groves, exquisitely carved and painted ceilings in Hispano-Moresque designs, similar to those in the Alhambra in Granada.

This charming northern region of Morocco is a melting pot of culture.

We will visit the Big Mosque, the Spanish Cathedral, Babu Saidi, the Kasbah, the Medina, and Hassan II Square. Then tour the old Royal Palace, a 17th century building, at Place Hassan II. Hassan II Square is a reflection of the Hispano-Moresque architecture of Tetouan. The palace is closed to public entry but its main ornate gate Bab Er-Rouah is magnificent. Place Hassan II, where the old and new town meet, is the dynamic heart of Tetouan.

Next, we’ll explore Tetouan’s old medina, a UNESCO World Heritage site. The old medina in Tetouan was once a pirate hub and the capital of Spain during colonial times. The Romans destroyed Tetouan and it was repopulated in the 16th century. Tetouan was a refuge for Jews, Moors, and Moriscos who escaped the Spanish inquisition and many people in the city still speak Spanish.

Lunch in Tetouan of local Moroccan fare and then explore Tetouan’s winding streets and alleys on your way to the fort.

Visit the Jewish mellah, the Berber market, and the Andalusian sector. The Jews of Tetouan once lived in its mellah that was separated from the rest of the town by gates that were closed at night. Tetouan was once home to an important Sephardic Jewish community, which immigrated from Spain after the Reconquista and the Spanish Inquisition. This Jewish Sephardic community spoke a form of Judeo-Spanish known as Haketia. There are very few Jews left in Tetouan today.

You will understand by the end of the day why they call this city “the white dove”.

Then back to Chefchoaen for the night. Maybe dinner at our Riad or a wander in the streets again.

(B)

Today we head to Fes or Fez whichever way you’d like to spell it.

Fès is a centre for trade and traditional crafts, and until the late 19th century it was the only place in the world where the fez (brimless red felt hat in the shape of a truncated cone) was made. Most of the city’s traditional crafts, such as leatherwork and pottery making, are practiced in the narrow, winding streets of the old city and are sold in that section’s traditional marketplaces, or sūqs. Tourism is a major industry in Fès. The old city was named a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1981.
The 1200-year old walled medina of Fez, with its 9454 cobbled alleyways and 300 mosques, is both the world's largest living medieval Islamic city and its largest pedestrian zone. No cars at all in the Medina and we’ll have our beautiful local guide Fatima help us navigate the alleyways so we don’t get lost.

But for today we will arrive after lunch and settle in to our stunning Riad El Amine Fes. You will want to soak this in for awhile.

Tonight we will be spoilt by having dinner with Fatima’s family. Her mother is going to cook up a feast for us to enjoy with them. This will be a night you’ll treasure.

(B + D)

Be ready for a big day, walking and exploring the Medina here in Fes.

Fez or Fes is famous for its ancient walled city Fes El Bali, the best - preserved Medina in the Arab world and home to the Worlds oldest University. A city many compare to the old walled city of Jerusalem. Covering an area of approximately 2.8 square kms, with an estimated 9500 streets. It is one of the worlds most significant car free urban areas. So, this is why we need a guide.

Too easy to get lost here.

We will see the main sites, visit the Medina and Markets and also explore the Art and Craft side of Fez.

Fes is known for its Leathework, Pottery, Mosaics and Metal Etchings. We will visit some of the work places where they create these masterpieces and see how they make them by hand.

We will also visit the tanneries and see how they dye and colour their leather, clothes and rugs. Very fascinating.

Fatima will also take us to a historical building for lunch and you wont believe how beautiful it is while you’re served Moroccos famous Mint tea (you will have lots of this on the trip, so fascinating seeing them pour from a height too)

Maybe after all that walking we might like to stop by a supermarket and grab some cheese and crackers/nibbles and wine and sit up on the roof of our Riad and end our day listening to the call to prayer as we look out over this amazing city.

(B)

Today after we say goodbye to Fes we are going to meander our way across to the Capital city of Morocco, Rabat, where the King resides.

But before we get there, Cherif our driver is going to stop in at the City of Meknes. one of the 4 imperial cities. We will wander a little a see a few attractions and then head towards Volubillis, Morocco's most famous Roman-era site and one of the top historic tourist attractions in the country. It’s amazing how far Rome expanded. (Cost to get in to sites not included, you’ll just pay around 20-30 Moroccan Dirham at the sites, roughly $5 AUD)

Cherif will find a nice place to stop and have lunch together and then on to Rabat for the night.

We will be staying at Dar Shaan here.

The difference between a Dar and a Riad is  a Riad usually has an open roof with a garden and fountain in the courtyard, a Dar can still have a courtyard but closed in.

They are both beautiful and I look forward to experiencing this tonight.

We’ll try one of the many restaurants in the city tonight.

(B)

This morning we’ll do a little sightseeing of Rabat, we’ll have a 3.5 hour walking tour and see Chellah Or Sala Colonia a necropolis and complex of ancient Roman Mauritania Tingitana and medieval ruins at the outskirts of Rabat, it is the most ancient human settlement on the mouth of the BouRegreg River.

Then we’ll see :

  • Mausoleum of Mohammad V Located on the opposite side of Yaakub Al Mansour esplanade. It contains the tombs of the Moroccan king Mohammed V and his two sons, late King Hassan II and Prince Abdallah. •Hassan Tower It’s the minaret of an incomplete mosque, the tower was intended to be the largest minaret in the world along with its mosque but the work stopped just after the death of Yaakub Al Mansour. 

 •Kasbah des Oudaias The Kasbah is located at the mouth of the Bou Regreg River, built in the twelfth century by the Almohads who called it “Al Mahdia” in reference to their leader Al Mahdi Ben Tumurt. Originally this Kasbah was a Ribat (a military defense). And later the kasbah gave its name to the whole city. Kasbah Oudayas is a city within a city, a little city apart in Rabat. In 2012 it was inscribed on the list of World Heritage of UNESCO as a cultural asset along with other sites in the city.

We’ll grab some lunch in town before we head off on a 4 hour trip to our next destination, another major Imperial city, Marrakech.

We will be staying here for 4 nights at Riad Dar El Medina where we have the place to ourselves.

Be ready to be treated like royalty and maybe even try a Hammam treatment while here. Lots of fun to have here.

We’ll have dinner in our Riad tonight and relax a little before we start exploring Marrakech tomorrow.

(B,D)