13/10/2017
CIRCUIT MARRAKECH
First Day: Visit of Marrakech
The city of Marrakech “The Pearl of the South”was founded in the XIth century. The general tour includes avisit of the Koutoubia, Saadian Tombs, the Menara Garden, and the Bahia Palace. Afterwards, you will return to the hotel for lunch. In the afternoon you are going to visit the souks of the old Medina and the Jamaa El Fna square in the evening dinner in a Moroccan restaurant. (Overnight at the hotel).
Second Day: Ouarzazate
After breakfast you will head towards Kasbah of Taourirt it is one of the most impressive of its kind in Morocco. Inside this Kasbah you will be exposed to a multitude of mysterious stairwells leading series of unique pieces in shape and size lit by low windows and the old rooms in Glaoui apartment, harem room and palace kitchens ceilings to cedar wood. Visit Studio Atlas one of the largest movie studios in the world, several of the historical films have been shot there including Asterix and Obelix Cleopatra Mission, Lawrence of Arabia, Kingdom of heaven and Babel. Kasbah has ben Haddou the largest Kasbah in Morocco built by Thami El Glaoui one of the last Berber chiefs during the 18th century, It is the house of Glaoui.After lunch you will pass by Sekoura village through the gorges of Tinghir of Todra the highest and the narrowest gorges in Morocco.
Third Day: Merzouga
After having lunch in Merzouga, in the afternoon you will have a ride on camels for an hour and half, then a walk on foot through amazing sand dunes surrounded by the magnificent sunset in the desert. Afterwards, you will have your special dinner and you will sleep in tents in the core of the desert under the spectacular vault of the stars while enjoying a concert of Gnawa music. In the morning, you will have to wake before the dawn to witness the glorious sun rise between the sand dunes. Next you will go back to the inn where breakfast will be varied. By the afternoon, you will attend free animated evening: Saharian music and mixed music and a dinner in the inn.
Fourth Day: Rissani Erfoud
After breakfast, you will pass over Rissani city for visiting the Touareg and dates market. Then you get to Erfoud and head to a fossil factory to hear the history of the marble of Erfoud region how to cure it. Rissani is a city in ER-Rachidia province in Draa region.
Fifth day: Moyen Atlas
After lunch you will pass by Ifrane, the “Switzerland” of Morocco, in a spectacular course that will lead us through beautiful cedar forests in the region, and across more arid landscapes. Through the Middle Atlas, we will visit the Cedar Forest in the region of Azrou-Ifrane. The Atlas cedar can reach more than 50 meters in height and 10 meters in circumference to the stump.
The Monkey Forest: “Barbary macaque” also called Magot.Barbary macaqueis a Catarhinian monkey of the family of theCercopitcidae. It is the only Macaque living on the African continent in the wild in the relictual forest of Morocco. Lake DaïtAoua or “Lake Dayet-Aaoua” is a lake in northern Morocco in the Middle Atlas at 1,460 m altitude. It is one of the few mountainous wetlands with well-defined habitats (shallow water, wet meadow, emergent marsh, mudflats and forest)
Sixth Day: Fez
Back to the city ofFez,which is a millennial city that has been found by Idriss 1st in 789 A.H. It is unlike any other city because it represents the spiritual and cultural centre of Morocco, and one of the capital cities of the Islamic civilization. The ancient medina is the main place that brings attraction to the city of Fez. Since the Idrisides until the Alaouites, Fez has known the succession of many dynasties that have contributed in the richness of its cultural heritage.
After breakfast, we will start out of the city up on two culminant towers that offer a panoramic view of Fez in general; Southern Borj (Tower) was constructed by sultan Ahmed Al-Mansour and NothernBorj, that has been transformed to a museum of arms. A little bit beneath, there is the grandiose ruin of Merinides graves, which also offers a magnificent view over the entire city. After crossing medina’s defence gates, don’t forget to visit the royal palace, which is the symbol for both the city and the Kingdom as whole. It has a splendid outer door in the front. Just on the next side, there is Mellah, the ancient quarter of Jews that constituted of the synagogue of IbnDandan and numerous houses of special architecture. (Dinner and a night in a hotel)
After breakfast you will visit:
The Fondouks: the city of fez accounts an important number of foundouks that Filled formerly the function of place of commercial exchange, and that contains today many workshops.
The souks:Fezis a city of handicraft par excellence. These souks are crowded of handicrafts which compete in ingenuity and expertise in souvenirs to bring back, such as poetry, and as some ceramic or still jewels …
The Karaouiyine mosque: it is the oldest university in the world. Its founder is a woman Fatima Al Fihriya. At first, this mosque played only one religious role; afterwards, certainly, under the ring of the marinides, it has become an exceptional building and an essential intersection for people and scholars of the Islamic world. It was recognized in the whole world for the quality of its teaching and teachers.
The Madrases ; a madrasa is an ancient coranic school, which acts as residency for students. There are plenty of madrases, but the famous one is Madrasa Bou ‘Inania, which is the only madrasa in the city that has minaret, and as all the merinid constructions, the decoration is particularly rich and fine.
The leather tanners: visiting the tanners is unavoidable pleasure during a stay in Fez. In the heart of medina, discover hundreds of tanks where the skins of animals are soaked, totally an amazing show.
Seffarin place: this place is consisted of the biggest attractions of Fez because it contains one of the oldest trades in the city: the brassware.
The museums: many museums trace prestigious past of the city. The main and the most interesting museum in Fez, maybe the most beautiful one in the country. That is museum Dar Batha. It is full of treasures that reflect the traditional art of the city of Fez and the region around. (Dinner and a night in a hotel or a Riad)
Seventh Day: Meknes
After breakfast you will visitMeknes,which is city located in the heart of Morocco. Its name originates from barbarian name Meknassa, which is the name of the founding tribe of Meknes. It is a member of four imperial cities of the kingdom of Morocco. By the 17th century the sultan Moulay Ismail, the founder of morocco, has made Meknes as the capital city of Morocco.
According to world heritage of the UNESCO, Meknes city is considered as one of the remarkable destinations in Morocco for discovering the historical heritage of the country.
In its architecture Arab-Islamic and Spanish-Moresque, the city is teeming of the historical monuments. The majority of this legacy can be found in shields in the high defensive bulwarks, drilled by nine gates. The most celebrated and majestic among these gates is Bab Mansour.
Details about the excursion of Meknes:
You excursion will start by the visiting the imperial palace, which was once again the palace of Moulay Ismail. Now, it is the shrine which bears the name of the latter and shelters his grave. HriSouani : the most esteemed building of Meknes. It is remarked by his impressive dimensions, formed in two parts: the water house and the part covered with the monument and the attics. Not very far, you can find Habs Kara «Kara Prison» constructed by Moulay Ismail. This building is endowed with impressive and unique architecture in Morocco. By roaming in alleys of the medina, you will discover numerous wonders, which are: Nejjarin mosque, the biggest mosque with its eleven gates and its 143 arches, the Madrasa Bou ‘Inania, and the regional museum of ethnography
Eighth Day : Chefchaouen
ChefchaouenorChaouen is a beautiful city in the northern-west of Morocco. Mainly, it exists at the altitude of 600m of Kelaa and Meggou on the Rif mountains. It is the administrative centre of the eponym province. Its population is about 42786 habitants. Its name originates from the barbarian word achawen«the horns» because of the mountain summits which dominate and surround it. Once it was a Spanish colony. Now, it is celebrating by its blue colour on the houses and magazines. Chefchaouen was founded in 1471 then finally existed in 1480 by cherif Ali IbnRachid Al-Alami. The majority of the contemporary city is composed of population of Andalusia including the Moorish who were deported under death threating by the Christians. Only until the explorer Charles Foucault defied the prohibition in 1883.
Between 1471 and 1561, the city was under the ring of BanouRachid dynasty. Descendants of its founder, nominally vassals of sultans Wattasside are going to be reunited in Morocco by Saadines. In 1920, the Spaniards seized Chefchaouen, who will then be bombarded by the troops of Franco. The city was returned to the Moroccan territory in 1956 after the repeal of the protectorate.
Chefchaouen counts an important religious heritage: 20 mosques and oratories, 11 Zaouias, and 17 shrines. This has earned it the name Al-madinaEs-Saliha (the saint city). The great mosque of chefchaouen, El-Masjid El-Aadam, was built in 969 in the Hegira, 1471 of the Christian era by the city’s founder Ali ibnRachid El-Alami. This mosque was charged, besides the celebration of the cults, of teaching of human and Islamic sciences. The province has, in the field of tourism, important and diversified potentialities constituted of historical monuments, numerous sandy beaches and vast forests with a very varied fauna and flora. The main touristic places in the province are:
The city of chefchaouen
Ras El Maa source( on 3 km away from the city of Chefchaouen)
The ancient medina with Kasbah
The waterfalls and Cherafatmosque
Talassemtan forest
Toughoubite cave
The bridge of god inAkchoure
Outa Lhammamplace
Ras El-Ma and Kasbah Ali ben Rached
( dinner and overnight in a hotel)
Ninth : Rabat
Rabat is an imperial city located on the coast of Atlantic Ocean. It is has been found in 1150 by the great sultan AlmohadAbdalmu’min. It is the political and administrative capital of the Moroccan kingdom since 1912. Rabat represents an essential stage during a visit to Morocco, once you are there, the list of the places to visit is crowded. Your tour in Rabat will start in Chellah spot. With no doubt, it is the most ancient human agglomeration on the mouth ofBouregreg River. It has been found by Phoenicians and the Carthaginian and afterward by the Romans till the Merinides. Also, the necropolis reveals the vestiges of an extraordinary city whose major secrets have not been revealed yet.
Rabat, the same as its name indicates the fortified city, shelters one of the most important fortresses, which is the Kasbah of Oudayas that was originally a small fortresses set by Almoravides to fight against Berghouatas, but only knew a development by the coming of Almohades and the Mrisques of Andalusia that has reborn after abundance. Not very far from the Kasbah of Oudayas, has Hassan tower arisen as an uncompleted historical minaret, which was constructed in 1196 on the initiative of sultan AlmohadeAbou Youssef Yaacoub Al Mansour. This building had to be not only the biggest mosque, but also the biggest historical monument in the world in 7th century. Then, you are going to visit the royal palace.
Rabat is not only a city thatabounds of the historical monuments, but also a cultural city par excellence due to its museums of archaeology that records a high number of visitors; comes next, ceramic museum and earth science museum… the enclosure doors of the city also make a part of curiosity that is the most appreciated as far as is these real architectural (cultural) identities. Rabat also has a modern side which allows varying the pleasure during one travels in the city.
Here, this day comes into its end. You will have dinner and spend the night in hotel till the coming day.
In the evening you go for a ride on the coast for a drink mint tea and your return will be through the highway for a change of view.
Tenth: Casablanca
After your arrival, you will start your visit to Casablanca; the economic capital of the kingdom. Casablanca is the city with the largest number of people in Morocco and in all the Maghreb. It is a city of affairs par excellence.
Casablanca is a citywith a double identity. It is both; western by its brand new buildings and affair quarters, as well as its cornice that is appreciated by the amateurs of the night-life (night clubs, hotels; mauls, cafés, and the luxurious restaurants …), and oriental by its famous mosqueHassan II, which is the city’s symbol. This titanic project was founded in 1986. It was arranged upon nine hectares most of which is on the ocean. MosqueHassan II is considered the biggest and the most beautiful mosque in Africa. It is equipped with a gigantic hall for prayers Quranic School, and a museum. Not forgetting the ancient medina in Habous was destroyed during the earthquake of Lisbon but reconstructed by sultan Sidi Mohammed Ben Abdallah in 1770.
After the tour of Casa you will have your diner and overnight at the hotel. Unfortunately, that is going to be the end of your journey, after breakfast you will head to the airport.
