The Mystery of Morocco
A Photographic and Cultural Adventure: Tour Itinerary

Day 1 New York – Casablanca
We will depart from New York today on an overnight Royal Air Maroc flight to Casablanca.

Day 2 Casablanca – Essaouira
On arrival in Casablanca, we will be met by the local guide and board the deluxe, air-conditioned bus we will be using during the tour. Driving south, we’ll pass through the Moroccan countryside, passing through small villages bustling with people, donkeys and bicycles. Lunch will be at an oceanfront restaurant. In a few more hours we’ll arrive in Essaouira, a charming place of white shops and houses, set against a clear blue sky. Over the centuries it has been home to Phoenicians, Romans, Portuguese and a large Jewish population. We may have time in the evening for a leisurely stroll through the town and along the colorful harbor. Dinner tonight will be at the hotel, where we celebrate our first evening in this fascinating country.
Overnight at the HOTEL RIAD EL MEDINA. (b aloft, l, d)

Day 3 Essaouira
Essaouira (pronounced Esa-weera) is the most popular of the coastal towns, with magnificent beaches and relaxed atmosphere. The fortifications of the old city are a mixture of Portuguese, French and Berber military architecture, and their massiveness lends a powerful mystique. You’ll find narrow lanes, whitewashed houses with blue painted doors, tranquil squares, pleasant cafes and artisans in tiny workshops beavering away at fragrant thuya wood. We will spend the day exploring this delightful place, with time to absorb the unique flavor of the old town, the harbor, the friendly people. Essaouira is full of the irresistible angles and picturesque sights that are so attractive to photographers.
Overnight at the HOTEL RIAD EL MEDINA. (b, l, d)

Day 4 Essaouira – Marrakech
After breakfast we’ll continue our exploration of Essaouira, with its ramparts and colorful markets. Taking a picnic lunch with us, we’ll drive west to Marrakech, the fabled gateway to the Sahara. In contrast to the European flair of Casablanca and the Arab flavor of Fes, Marrakech follows the beat of an African drum. Framed by the wall of the High Atlas Mountains, this imperial city has been almost continually occupied since Neolithic times, and was once the Berber capital. We will begin our acquaintance with this enticing city with a visit to the famous Jemaa el Fna Square. Traveling back in time 2,000 years, we’ll see snake charmers, magicians, acrobats and dancers, delighting children and adults alike. At night, the Jemaa el Fna comes to life in a rich and exhausting carnival, where one can see the colors and feel the pulse of Morocco.
Overnight at the HOTEL SHERATON. (b, l, d)

Day 5 Marrakech / Ourika Valley / Marrakech
This morning we will drive into the area outside the city. There will be many photo opportunities as we visit villages, chat with local people, admire the lovely landscapes and learn more about this country of contrasts. The afternoon will be spent exploring Marrakech and its fabulous souk (market), home to a maze of Berber rug vendors, dried fruit and spice stalls, and leather and iron workers’ shops. Strolling through the narrow streets, we’ll get a glimpse of daily life, as we see perhaps a young boy taking his family’s bread to the community bakery, veiled women carrying bags of food for the next meal, or children playing in the streets, while delicious smells waft from the open windows of the living quarters behind the walls.
Overnight at the HOTEL SHERATON. (b, l, d)

Day 6 Marrakech – Ait Benhaddou – Skoura
On the way this morning, we will stop to visit the exquisite Majorelle Garden. It is part of the former residence of French artist Louis Majorelle, now owned and beautifully renovated by couturier Yves St. Laurent. Driving south from Marrakech, we will cross the High Atlas Mountains at 7,400 feet, with panoramic views of arid mountains and lush oases shadowing the rivers far below. We’ll continue on to the celebrated kasbah of Ait Benhaddou. Classified by UNESCO as a World Heritage Site, it is one of the world’s treasures. The rammed-earth fortified village, with splendid views of the countryside seen through crenelated walls, invites exploration. We’ll eat lunch with this incomparable kasbah in view. Reboarding the bus, we will soon arrive at our destination for tonight, a newly renovated kasbah hotel.
Overnight at the HOTEL KASBAH BEN MORO. (b, l, d)

Day 7 Skoura
We’ll spend the day in and around the hotel. A walk through a small palm grove leads to the gorgeous site of Amerhidil, a kasbah located on the opposite side of the river behind the hotel.
Overnight at the HOTEL KASBAH BEN MORO. (b, l, d)

Day 8 Skoura – Tinerhir
A drive along the "Valley of the Thousand Kasbahs" will take us through stony desert landscapes with many villages and kasbahs. On the way we may see Berbers tending their camels or sheep, women swathed in dark haik, embroidered with vivid colors, or children playing soccer in a stony desert field. Turning off the main road, we’ll enter the stunning Dades Gorge, filled with unusual red rock formations and fascinating villages and kasbahs. Our drive will end in Tinerhir.
Overnight at the HOTEL SARHRO. (b, l, d)

Day 9 Tinerhir – Erfoud – Merzouga
After breakfast we’ll walk through one of the most beautiful palm groves in Morocco. Here women tend the fields, and donkeys laden with sweet grasses pick their way along the narrow paths. Resuming our drive, we will arrive at the Todra Gorge, where soaring cliffs and massive walls interrupt the path of the sun. We will have lunch in the gorge beside the sparkling stream. Returning to Tinerhir, we’ll stop at the shop of a merchant who sells fine Berber carpets. Here we’ll learn about the different styles and techniques employed in creating of these rugs, each of which is original and unique. If we want to make a purchase, we will bargain for our choices with the blue-robed Berbers as we sip mint tea, following the ancient Moroccan custom. Then we will continue to Erfoud at the edge of the Sahara, where we will change to Land Rovers and drive into the Sahara to spend the night.
Overnight at the HOTEL BELLE ETOILE. (b, l, d)

Day 10 Merzouga – Erfoud – Midelt
Camels will be waiting early to carry us into the dunes as the sun rises for a most extraordinary and unforgettable desert experience. We may also take a walk through the dunes, the largest in Morocco, surrounded by ever-changing colors playing over rippled sand. Our morning will continue with a visit to a fossil field to discover nautiloidea and trilobites embedded in the rock underfoot. We will also have a chance to buy some of the many varieties of fossils and minerals.

Returning to Erfoud, we will reboard the bus and drive to Rissani, where we will stroll through the ksar (walled village) and see women weaving baskets and chatting in the narrow streets, children playing, and other vignettes of daily life. The play of light and shadow within the walled town are a photographer’s dream. After lunch we’ll drive along a road that winds through the spectacular Ziz Valley. Often called the "Grand Canyon of Morocco," it offers sweeping vistas and fascinating rock formations. As we leave the desert behind, the terrain continues to change. Finally, we’ll arrive at the small hotel in Midelt where we will be staying tonight.
Overnight and dinner at the HOTEL KASBAH ASMAA. (b, l, d)

Day 11 Midelt – Fes
Leaving Midelt, we’ll climb into the Middle Atlas, where, remarkably, the landscape changes yet again. Here the moorlands, granite outcroppings, brooding skies and sheep pastures may put you in mind of the British Isles. We will walk through majestic cedar forests, where troops of Barbary apes forage and bird songs fill the chilly air. Driving into the town of Bhalel, we’ll visit its unique troglodyte dwellings. After a short drive, we will find ourselves in Fes, the most completely Islamic medieval city in the world.
Overnight at the HOTEL LES MERINIDES. (b, l, d)

Day 12 Fes
Today we will enjoy a full-day guided tour of Fes, Morocco’s oldest imperial city and the center of religious learning. The intricacies of the medina, the brilliant colors used by the dye makers, hills of spices, vats of tanners, and palaces of merchants beckon us. During a visit to a Berber pharmacy we’ll learn of the ancient curative practices, medicines and spices used even today. After lunch in the medina, we’ll continue our explorations, with time to shop for beautiful crafts and caftans.
Overnight at the HOTEL LES MERINIDES. (b, l, d)

Day 13 Fes – Volubilis
Today we’ll drive west to nearby Volubilis, considered the best pre-Roman ruins in Morocco. We will have lunch at the Hotel Volubilis, which has a grand view of the ruins. The site was inhabited during the Neolithic period, then occupied by Carthaginians and finally Romans, who developed a thriving oil trade around 40 B.C. Gorgeous mosaic floors are visible, which depict daily life and mythology. We’ll wander through the forum and admire the remains of patrician homes and the triumphal arch. There will be stork nests on the columns and wildflowers abloom among the fallen pillars.
Overnight at the HOTEL VOLUBILIS INN. (b, l, d)


Day 14 Volubilis – Casablanca
This morning we may revisit the ruins, shimmering in the early light. We’ll then go on to the weekly market in Zegota where a medley of fresh vegetables, donkeys, sheep, honey, couscous and household goods vie for attention with barbers, bicycle repair shops and mounds of fragrant spices. The sound of friendly bargaining and the bells of water sellers fill the air. Reboarding the bus, we’ll drive west through rolling fields and cork-oak woodlands reminiscent of southern Spain. We will arrive in Casablanca in time to freshen up before enjoying a farewell dinner. Overnight at the HYATT REGENCY. (b, l, d)

Day 15 Casablanca – New York
After an early breakfast, we’ll leave for the airport for the flight home. (b)


Casablanca Pre-Trip Extension

Pre-Trip Day 1 New York – Casablanca
We will depart from New York today on an overnight Royal Air Maroc flight to Casablanca.

Pre-Trip Day 2 Casablanca
The local guide will meet us on arrival in Casablanca, and we will board the deluxe, air-conditioned bus that will take us to our accommodations at the Hyatt Regency. We will then proceed to a lovely seafood restaurant, after which we will have our first photography session outside the King Hassan II Mosque. North of the medina and rising up on a point above the Atlantic Ocean the mosque is the largest religious monument in the world after Mecca. Overnight at the HOTEL HYATT REGENCY. (l, d)

Pre-Trip Day 3 Casablanca
Today we will return to King Hassan II Mosque, the building cost has been estimated at $750 million, entirely funded by citizen donations. Finished in 1993, after 6000 Moroccan craftsmen worked on it day and night for five years. The 200m high minaret of this vast new mosque floats above the skyline of Casablanca, the sun glancing off its façade of pale marble and glazed tile and from the three gilded balls at its summit. The tower is offset from the enormous rectangular 22-acre prayer hall, three times the size of St. Paul’s Cathedral. Our guide will have to negotiate access to the interior, so that our group can have a limited photography experience. After lunch today our group will enjoy a city tour of Casablanca. In North Africa, only Cairo can compete with Casa in growth, verve and vibrancy, but it is this city facing out to the Atlantic that seems the more oriented to the international pattern of trade and sympathetic to Western influences.
Overnight at the HOTEL HYATT REGENCY. (l, d)

Pre-Trip Day 4 Casablanca
We will join those taking just the main portion of our journey and drive South to our destination for the evening, Essaouira.


Note: This itinerary has been carefully constructed to assure participants the best Morocco has to offer. However, should events arise that are beyond our control, itinerary, activities and hotel arrangements are subject to change without notice. Be assured that we will make substitutions that are as similar in quality and interest as possible.

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