Immerse yourself in the captivating contrasts that define Morocco on this ten-day adventure. Take in the sights of beautiful art and smells of ancients medinas, visit historical Islamic schools, find serenity in a peaceful garden, and get scrubbed clean in a rejuvenating hammam.

This itinerary showcases the best of Morocco for first-time visitors, weaving through the imperial cities of Marrakech, Fes, and Rabat, fitting in a night out in the desert camp and a day trip to the Instagram-famous blue city of Chefchaouen!

Leave the white-knuckled driving to the locals. I link to trains, tours, and hotels to ensure a smooth journey plus have tips for Morocco first-time travelers below.

Marrakech

2 nights

Begin your trip in Marrakech, a top destination in Morocco known for its hustle and bustle amidst a well-developed tourist infrastructure.

The old medina is a maze of alleyways and souks, which can easily overwhelm with motorbikes weaving through packed crowds and the sheer number of things to see. In my experience the merchants were friendly and not overly pushy, so if you find something you love, don’t hesitate to buy and haggle for a better price on goods with a high markup like rugs. Take an evening walking tour to familiarize yourself with the medina while grabbing a few bites on the way.

Set time aside for quick visits to landmarks such as the Madrasa Ben Youssef Islamic school, and the Moorish place Dar el Bacha. Explore the museum while you wait for a table at the café, which serves more than 100 types of coffee.

In the medina behind heavy doors you’ll often find a riad or dar, traditional homes with rooms looking out to an airy courtyard. Marrakesh has many options for accommodation, but I recommend staying in a riad guesthouse to receive the best introduction to Moroccan culture and hospitality.

Just make your life easier by staying close to the gates of the old town walls, such as the one near Koutoubia Mosque. No cars are allowed in the medina, so staying near one of the gates enables you to come and go as you please:

• $ Hostel Laksour is a well-located hostel with cheap dorm beds.
• $$ Riad les Reves d’Amelie has cheerful decor in a good location, Riad Nelia gets points for the Instagram-famous pool, and Riad Malika mixes modern and traditional touches.
• $$$ Riad Wow for the opulent decor, Riad Alma for contemporary elegance, or La Sultana for five-star luxury

Outside of the medina are the Yves St. Laurent Museum and adjacent Jardin Majorelle. Buy the combo ticket here. The garden is incredibly popular so reserve tickets in advance and avoid peak times for less crowds. You can easily grab a taxi for the trip there; we paid 25-30 dh each way. For a peaceful alternative within the medina walls, visit Jardin Secret.

At night Marrakech has a vibrant tourist scene, and this means a wider selection of restaurants serving alcohol compared to other Moroccan cities. For some destinations going forward, it’ll be harder to find alcoholic drinks, so be respectful and be prepared to BYOB for a nightcap.

For a fun night out head to Comptoir Darna in the glitzy Hivernage area for dinner, entertainment (bellydancing!), and the bar upstairs afterwards.

Agafay

1 night

A night out to Agafay is an escape from urban chaos. Surrounding Lalla Takerkoust, it’s debated whether Agafay is truly a desert, but you’ll sure be able to do desert things—ride camels, rent quad bikes, and visit Bedouin villages—just thirty minutes away from Marrakech.

Request a sunset camel ride and thank me for later. For an easy day trip from Marrakech, book a guided tour that includes camel ride, dinner, and roundtrip transportation. But why not stay in a camp and unplug for a night under the stars? They’ll be able to arrange transport and any other activities for you.

• $ Selina is the only camp offering dorm beds in addition to private rooms.
• $$ The dome tents at Agafay Valley provide the best views. For a luxury experience venture out to Kalyptus.
• $$$ Inara for boho style tents and outdoor space overlooking the dunes

Alternative: Sahara Desert

Instead of Agafay, you can alternatively take a two-night guided tour through the Sahara Desert that ends in Fes. It’s an easy and economical way to get there incorporating interesting stops and including half-board:

• This option includes sunset and sunrise camel rides
• Add on sandboarding
• Add on ATV ride

Otherwise, after a night in Agafay you’ll drive back to Marrakech and take a long but scenic seven-hour train ride to Fes (reserve seats on the right side of the train car for the best views. If you don’t want to spend all day traveling you could book the Marrakech to Fes CTM night bus which departs at 1:45 am and arrives 9 am.

Fes

3 nights

The journey to the artisan city of Fes is a drive through the heart of Morocco through coastal cities then rolling hills. Once there, immerse yourself in the sprawling medina, the largest car-free urban area in the world.

Navigating the bustling marketplace while taking in the historical sites demands at least half a day, and it’s best to get your bearings with the help of a walking tour. What’s tricky is that you want to solicit recommendations and get the best prices, but some guides won’t have your best interests in mind when they earn a commission.

Haggling in the medina is expected but you’ll still have to resist pressure from pushy salesmen. Beware the unsolicited guides that may ask if you are lost; ignore them if they get too pushy.

The Chouara Tannery is a must for a look into one of Fes’ most traditional crafts, leather processing. The smell is an entirely other thing. Observe the extremely manual process, from softening to dyeing, in the balconies of the workshops above. Most shops offer free entry since they want you to buy something, and feel free to say no to the sales pitch but give a small tip for helpful, friendly service. The smell is indeed pungent, not unbearable, but I would hold my breath.

If you stay in the medina, look for a guesthouse near the gates (Bab Rcif and Bab Boujloud are popular options) so you don’t have to carry your bags too far on foot:

• $ Dar Saida has simple, colorful rooms
• $$ Riad Al Makan or Dar Elinor for traditional spaces with scenic rooftop terraces
• $$$ Riad Fes, Karawan Riad, or Dar Lys to start and end the day in style

You’ll want to stay a couple of night in Fes as a base for day trips, which here are an early bird special – sunrise start, sunset finish. Ultimately they provide a convenient way to get around.

Chefchaouen is the dreamy city up nestled into the Rif Mountains where you’ll find streets painted blue from ground to roof. This tour from Fes is one of the best ways to get there, including shared transport (3 hours each way) and a guided walk in Chefchaouen. Eat lunch quickly so you can wander around the passages and get a fresh-squeezed orange juice.

An alternative tour you can take (with a much shorter drive time) is to the fourth imperial city, Meknes. You can explore the former capital by booking this tour from Fes that adds visits the Roman ruins of Volubulis and hilled town of Moulay Idriss.

Rabat

2 nights

The train ride from Fes to Rabat is three hours, so this itinerary calls for two nights in Rabat in case you’re getting in late. You might only need one night here, and I recommend at least half a day to take in Rabat’s calm city setting especially if you’re shopping.

After a long travel day, settle into your hotel or head out for a night on the town. Rabat is easy and safe to get around on foot. You can start at the Mausoleum of Mohammed V early in the day to avoid tour bus crowds. Afterwards walk past the Hassan II Tower down to the Bouregreg waterfront promenade, heading towards the Kasbah des Oudayas. On the way you can stroll through the Andalusian Gardens and observe the exhibits at the Museum of Adornment should you be curious about caftans (I was!).

On your walk alongside the river, you may have noticed a town across the way. That’s Salé, and if you’re interested in buying ceramics and pottery you have to visit the Complexe Artisanal Oulja. Head there like a local by taking one of the boats docked near the Le Dhow ship, and return by taxi with your new purchases.

On the other side of Kasbah des Oudayas, you’ll emerge at a hillside cemetery. At the water below, you can surf with lessons and equipment rental from Ilyana Surfhouse or Medina Surfing Association.

Before you leave, get a bite to eat and shop in the medina’s old market centered around the Avenue des Consuls, where seafarers and traders of the past handled their daily business. While you won’t find the selection of Marrakesh or Fes, the Rabat medina is much less chaotic so if you want to avoid haggling but still get fair prices, do your shopping here.

Rabat has a mix of chic, lowkey riads and traditional hotels:

• $ Dar Oussama has cheap twin rooms and dorm beds in the heart of the medina.
• $$ Euphoriad for the stylish, modern rooms or NJ Hotel Rabat for the location near museums and the Rabat Ville central train station
• $$$ Tour Hassan Palace offers a grand, old-school vibe from the service to the setting

Casablanca

1 night

Many will find convenient return flights home from Casablanca. Rabat is an hour away by train, but I recommend staying in Casablanca the night before to avoid stress. There’s not too many attractions here so many skip it, but it’s one of the best places to see the remnants of Morocco’s French colonial past.

End your trip by making an afternoon visit to the Hassan II Mosque, constructed in 1993 and the second-largest mosque in Africa capable of holding over 100,000 people. You can visit through a guided tour which by booking at the ticket office, visiting the small museum while you can wait. You can also prebook through a third-party tour with options for transportation.

Get pampered with a traditional hammam treatment at the Mosque’s traditional bathhouse, and afterwards walk out to the sprawling waterfront, a magical place to spend the sunset.

My picks for a stay in Casablanca include:

• $ Odyssey Boutique is centrally located with streamlined rooms near the Art Deco district.
• $$ Balcony suites at CasaEdition or Hotel MellibeR have direct views of Mosque Hassan II
• $$$ Hotel Le Doge in the hip Gauthier neighborhood is funky and vintage, plus there’s a spa.

This brings you to the end of your Moroccan adventure. You can easily modify this itinerary by replacing city time with treks through the Atlas Mountains or a longer desert detour through the Sahara. Craving a beach escape? Try Agadir or Essaouira.

Tips for your first trip to Morocco

• Language: Locals speak Arabic, but some know French, English, and local languages like Berber. It’s not hard to get around.
• Currency: Dinares (dh) is the local currency. While many places take card, always carry cash especially for medina shopping.
• ATMs & credit cards: Morocco might be one of the places I recommend changing currency at the airport instead of using the ATM; the rates are good and one of the ATMs ate my friend’s card when going to retrieve cash. Remember to reject the offered exchange rate when charging with your credit card; travel credit cards will likely offer a better rate and no fees.
• Getting around: To get around cities, you can book tickets on Morocco’s national train ONCF in advance. There’s one high-speed route between Casablanca and Tangier. Using taxis to/from airports is affordable and reliable.
• Local transportation: Taxis are inexpensive, but always negotiate prices beforehand and aim to have exact change (majority of my short rides between attractions/neighborhoods cost 15-50dh). Rideshare services are available, but be aware that taxis are actively hostile towards them.
• Dress code: Locals won’t necessarily be surprised by tourists and their exposed skin but if you can, avoid overly revealing outfits.