9 Days : Marrakesh – Rabat – Chefchaouen – Ouarzazate – Marrakesh

– Asila (in berber azila) is a fortified town on the northwest tip of the Atlantic coast of Morocco,

The old walled town (medina) of Asilah is well-preserved and dates mostly from the Portuguese occupation (15th-16th century) and afterwards. The medina has been heavily restored

The walls of Asilah were first built by the Almohads and then restored and reinforced by the Marinids and the Wattasids. However, after the Portuguese took the city in 1471 they rebuilt the walls, There are two main gates in the walls, Bab Homar, in the mid-southern part of the walls, and Bab al-Qasaba, at the eastern end of the walls where the kasbah was once located. A rectangular tower in distinct Portuguese style, known as Borj al-Hamra (« Red Tower ») or the Al-Qamra Tower, stands near the kasbah and overlooks an open square.

– Tanger or tangiers (tanja in berber) ; Many civilisations and cultures have influenced the history of Tangier, starting from before the 10th century . Between the period of being a strategic Berber town and then a Phoenician trading centre to the independence era around the 1950s, Tangier was a nexus for many cultures. In 1923, it was considered as having international status by foreign colonial powers and became a destination for many European and American diplomats, spies, writers and businessmen.

The multicultural placement of Muslim, Christian and Jewish communities and the foreign immigrants attracted writer George Orwell, writer and composer Paul Bowles, playwright Tennessee Williams, the beat writers William S. Burroughs, Allen Ginsberg and Jack Kerouac, the painter Brion Gysin and the music group the Rolling Stones, who all lived in or visited Tangier during different periods of the 20th century.

The old town is still surrounded by the remains of what was once more than 1,829 metres  of stone rampart. Most of it dates to the town’s Portuguese occupation, with restoration work later undertaken at different times. Three major bastions were the Irish Tower (Bordj al-Naʿam), York Castle (Bordj dar al-Barud), and the Bordj al-Salam.

Notable landmarks :

Dar el Makhzen (Sultan’s palace), Ancien Palais du Mendoub, Perdicaris Parc, for Jon Perdicaris, Sidi Bou Abib Mosque, Tangier Grand Mosque, Church of the Immaculate Conception, Anglican Church of St. Andrew, Plaza de Toros (bullring arena) on Rue de Tetouan, Gran Teatro Cervantes, Tangier American Legation Museum, Museum of Moroccan Arts and Antiquities, Museum of Contemporary Art, Fondation Lorin, Musée de Carmen-Macein, Grand Socco, the grand souk and square, Petit Socco, the little souk, Casabarata Souk, a giant flea market, Hotel Continental, Rue Es-Siaghine, Parc de la Mendoubia, Charf Hill (Colline du Charf), Café Hafa.

Chefchaouen also known as Chaouen, is a city in northwest Morocco. is noted for its buildings in shades of blue. Chefchaouen is situated just inland from Tangier and Tétouan.

Chefchaouen’s blue walls are a popular subject of interest. There are several theories as to why the walls were painted blue. One popular theory is that the blue keeps mosquitos away. The blue is said to symbolize the sky and heaven, and serve as a reminder to lead a spiritual life.[9] However, according to some locals, the walls were mandated to be painted blue simply to give beautifull icôn .

The beauty of Chefchaouen’s mountainous surroundings are enhanced by the contrast of the brightly painted medina (old town). It is this beauty and the relaxed atmosphere of the town that makes Chefchaouen very attractive to visitors.

The main square in the medina is lined with cafes and filled to the brim with locals and tourist mingling easily. During the summer approximately 200 hotels cater to the influx of European tourists.

Fes ; It is the second largest city in Morocco after Casablanca, Fez was founded under Idrisid rule during the 8th-9th centuries CE. . It initially consisted of two autonomous and competing settlements. Successive waves of mainly Arab immigrants from Tunisia , egypt and al-Andalus (Spain/Portugal) in the early 9th century gave the nascent city its Arab character. other empires came and went, 11th century when the Almoravid Sultan Yusuf ibn Tashfin united the two settlements into what is today’s Fes el-Bali quarter, the Marinid era (13th-15th centuries), regaining its status as political capital. Numerous new madrasas and mosques were constructed, In 1276 the Marinid sultan Abu Yusuf Yaqub also founded the royal administrative district of Fes el-Jdid, where the royal palace is still located today, to which extensive gardens were later added. During this period the Jewish population of the city grew and the Mellah (Jewish quarter) was formed on the south side of this new district

Places to visit :

– Madrasas :

The city has traditionally retained the influential position as a religious capital in the region, exemplified by the Madrasa (or University) :

–Qarawiyyin which was established in 859 by Fatima al-Fihri originally as a mosque

— The Saffarin Madrasa in Fes el Bali by Sultan Abu Yusuf in 1271. Sultan Abu al-Hassan was the most prolific patron of madrasa construction.

— Cherratine Madrasa commissioned by the Alaouite sultan Al-Rashid in 1670, which is the only major non-Marinid foundation besides the Madrasa of al-Qarawiyyin.

– City walls and gates :

The entire medina of Fez was heavily fortified with crenelated walls with w atchtowers and gates ,The gates of Fez, scattered along the circuit of walls, were guarded by the military detachments and shut at night. Some of the main gates have existed, in different forms, since the earliest years of the city. The oldest gates today, and historically the most important ones of the city, are Bab Mahrouk (in the west), Bab Guissa (in the northeast), and Bab Ftouh (in the southeast).

– Forts and kasbahs

– Along with the city walls and gates, several forts were constructed along the defensive perimeters of the medina during the different time periods. The military watchtowers built in its early days during the Idrisid era were relatively small. 13 kasbahs were constructed surrounding the old city. Among the most prominent among them is the Kasbah An-Nouar, located at the western or north-western tip of Fes el-Bali, and the Kasbah Cherarda, built by the Alaouite sultan Moulay al-Rashid just north of Fes Jdid, Other kasbahs include the Kasbah Tamdert, built by the Saadis near Bab Ftouh,

– Tanneries :

– Since the inception of the city, tanning industry has been continually operating in the same fashion as it did in the early centuries. Today, the tanning industry in the city is considered one of the main tourist attractions.

– Gardens :

The Jnane Sbile Garden was created as a royal park and garden in the 19th century by Sultan Moulay Hassan between Fes el-Jdid and Fes el-Bali.

Other gardens also exist within the grounds of the historic royal palaces of the city, such as the Agdal and Lalla Mina Gardens in the Dar al-Makhzen or the gardens of the Dar al-Beida (originally attached to Dar Batha)

– Funduqs/foundouks :

The old city of Fez includes more than a hundred funduqs or foundouks (traditional inns, or urban caravanserais)

— The Funduq al-Najjariyyin, which was built in the 18th century by Amin Adiyil to provide accommodation and storage for merchants and which now houses the Nejjarine Museum of Wooden Arts & Crafts.

— the Funduq Shamma’in (also spelled Foundouk Chemmaïne) and the Funduq Staouniyyin (or Funduq of the Tetouanis), both dating from the Marinid era or earlier, and the Funduq Sagha which is contemporary with the Funduq al-Najjariyyin.

– Historic palaces and residences

Many old private residences have also survived to this day, in various states of conservation. private houses include the Dar al-Alami, Dar Saada (now a restaurant), Dar ‘Adiyil, Dar Belghazi, Dar Batha is a former palace completed by the Alaouite Sultan Moulay Abdelaziz (ruled 1894-1908) and turned into a museum in 1915.

Through the middele atlas montains  and many berber villages and cities , we note the Atlas cedar , Barbary macaque  and important for biodiversity ;

Along the  Ziz river include Er Rachidia, Erfoud and Sijilmassa ; there is typically a common water rights rule, wherein each village and villager is entitled to a fair use and extraction of Ziz waters. Characteristically water is diverted in flatter areas to form a canal that irrigates palm groves and other crops as well as supplies domestic use.

Medieval traveller Ibn Batuta wrote about visiting Sijilmasa (near Tafilalt) in the fourteenth century on his journey from Fez to Mali, « the country of the blacks ». It was later destroyed in 1818 by the Aït Atta, but its ruins remain, including two gateways

Erfoud is  an oasis town in the Sahara Desert  famous for its fossilized marbles, Due to its proximity to Merzouga desert village in the Erg Chebbi Dunes, Erfoud has developed tourist-related infrastructures to facilit acces to big desert.

Tradition asserts that Merzouga once flourished as a tropical jungle until it was turned into a desert environment when God punished families who refused offerings to a poor woman and buried them in the sand dunes of Erg Chebbi ; It has been described as « a desert theme park »,

the Erg Chebbi   » wonderland of sand » is ideal place for camel trekking ,hiking ; visit souk and ksars , visit tafilalt pal grove , Arenotherapie cure .

If you are in the middle of the desert, it’s worth getting up early to enjoy watching the most spectacular sunrise ever seen on top of a dune near the camp and enjoy this landscape that is a gift of nature.

This is a full day desert. . After sunrise, we return to Merzouga on camels, where a good breakfast awaits us. After all go around the Erg Chebbi   » wonderland of sand » is ideal place for camel trekking ,hiking ; visit souk and ksars , visit tafilalt pal grove , Arenotherapie cure, a large expanse of sandy desert where the Great Dune of Morocco, which has more than 250mts high. Then continue along the road formerly used for “Paris – Dakar” and ends in the mountains bordering Algeria. Then continue down a path in which we can see nomadic settlements and learn their secrets and customs. The next stop will be at  Khamilia then people originally from Mali, where we can have a cup of tea while relaxing heard a concert of spiritual music Gnawa. Transfer your accommodation and free afternoon to enjoy the city or nearby dunes to the hotel to see the sunset.

Medieval traveller Ibn Batuta wrote about visiting Sijilmasa (near Tafilalt) in the fourteenth century on his journey from Fez to Mali, « the country of the blacks ». It was later destroyed in 1818 by the Aït Atta, but its ruins remain, including two gateways

Erfoud is  an oasis town in the Sahara Desert  famous for its fossilized marbles, Due to its proximity to Merzouga desert village in the Erg Chebbi Dunes, Erfoud has developed tourist-related infrastructures to facilit acces to big desert.

Through t tinjdad a bérbér village to arrive to tinghir, Visit the Gorges du Todra and green gardens their flocks of goats and sheep.

Visit the Gorges du Todra and green gardens their flocks of goats

The Dadès Gorges are a series of rugged wadi gorges carved out by the Dadès River, overnight in calm atmosphére .

The Dades Valley has a wild landscape, with snow on one side and semi-desert on the other, its savage grandeur and unearthly silence can be equalled only by the Grand Canyon. The Berbers erected hundreds and hundreds of Kasbahs in this valley.

we arrive to roses valley , stop  photos  in mgoun river (kasbahs,gardens,bérbér daily…..), River flows through the valley quenching a miraculous, winding path of fruit, walnut, wheat, silver birch and almond trees

through  skoura(Skoura is a fertile oasis lined with immense palm groves. The Kasbah Amerhidil is part of Skoura palm grove alongside more),  we continue to ouarzazate,felming location and the official residence of the Glaoui family (cinema studios , kasbah taourirt).

The Ksar of Ait-Ben-Haddou is an eminent example of a ksar in southern Morocco illustrating the main types of earthen constructions that may be observed dating from the 17th century in the valleys of Draa, Todgha, Dadès

the Ksar Aït Benhaddou in Ouarzazate is one of the most extraordinary Kasbahs in Morocco Centre where movies such as Gladiator and Jesus of Nazareth were filmed.)

through ounila valley where  the river has transformed the landscape. A rich variety of green crops line the valley floor, contrasting with the rusty red rock of the canyon-like walls, We arrive to famous kasbah telouat the ancient residence of el glaoui familly(the lord of atlas)

we continue across the Tizi-n-Tichka Pass (2260m). Stopping along the way for photos and enjoying the panoramic views of High Atlas Mountains along with Berber villages located alongside the road.

Ovrnight in Marrakesh