Self-Launched Morocco: Casablanca to Marrakech via the Sahara

Start early: take the tram or a petit taxi to the Hassan II Mosque for the 09:00 or 10:00 guided interior visit (about £12, book a slot online). Then walk 10 minutes to Casa Voyageurs station and catch a train to Rabat Ville (roughly 1 hour, £3-4). Spend 2-3 hours on a self-guided loop of Rabat: Bab Challah, the Mausoleum of Mohammed V and Hassan Tower, the Royal Palace gates, then down into the Kasbah of the Udayas for the blue-and-white alleys and Atlantic views. Late afternoon, take a CTM or Supratours coach from Rabat to Chefchaouen (about 4 hours, £10-12) — book the 16:00-ish departure in advance at ctm.ma. Check into a medina guesthouse and eat dinner in Plaza Outa El Hammam (tagine and mint tea, £8).

🚌Train Casablanca–Rabat ~£3.50; CTM coach Rabat–Chefchaouen ~£11

🛏Medina guesthouse in Chefchaouen, twin/dorm (£12-18 pp)

• →Hassan II Mosque guided interior visit (£12)
• →Self-guided Rabat heritage walk (Bab Challah, Mausoleum of Mohammed V, Royal Palace gates, Kasbah of the Udayas)
• →Evening in Chefchaouen's Plaza Outa El Hammam

Get up for the blue streets before the day-trippers arrive — the Spanish Mosque viewpoint above town is a free 20-minute climb and the best photo spot. Wander the medina at your own pace, duck into the Kasbah museum (£2), look at the octagonal minaret of the Grand Mosque from outside, and pop into the small weaving and leather workshops around the souk (free to look, buy direct if you like). Mid-afternoon catch the CTM or Supratours coach to Fes (about 4 hours, £8-10); some services route via Ouazzane. Arrive Fes in the evening, check into a riad-style guesthouse inside the medina walls, and take a cheap orientation stroll, or join a free/£5 evening walking intro if one is running.

🚌CTM/Supratours coach Chefchaouen–Fes ~£9

🛏Guesthouse/riad in Fes medina, twin/dorm (£12-18 pp)

• →Sunrise-ish viewpoint at the Spanish Mosque
• →Chefchaouen Kasbah museum (£2)
• →Medina workshops and souk browsing
• →Arrival orientation walk in Fes

Do a short morning in the Fes medina — Bab Boujloud, the Bou Inania madrasa (£2) and the tanneries viewed from a terrace — or book a 2-3 hour small-group medina walking tour on GetYourGuide for £15-20 instead of a private guide. Note that a full Fes→Merzouga crossing in one day is long: the cheapest reliable option is the CTM coach Fes–Rissani/Merzouga (about 8 hours, £12-15, leaving early morning). If you'd rather break it up and see Ifrane, the cedar forest with its Barbary macaques, Azrou and the Ziz Gorge, look for a shared 4x4/minibus transfer advertised by Merzouga camps (typically £45-70 pp) — some camps also arrange Fes pickup. Arrive Merzouga late afternoon; your camp arranges the camel ride over the Erg Chebbi dunes for sunset, mint tea on arrival, Berber dinner and drumming under the stars.

🚌CTM coach Fes–Merzouga ~£13, or shared minibus transfer ~£50 pp; camel trek included with camp

🛏Merzouga desert camp, standard/shared tent with dinner & breakfast (£20-30 pp)

• →Fes medina walk or GetYourGuide small-group tour (£15-20)
• →Ifrane, cedar forest and Azrou (if on shared transfer route)
• →Sunset camel trek on Erg Chebbi (included with camp)
• →Berber dinner and stargazing at camp

Sunrise over the dunes, then a traditional Berber breakfast at camp. Head out via Rissani and its lively souk (Tuesday/Thursday/Sunday are market days), then get to Tinghir by shared grand taxi or minibus (roughly £8-10, about 3 hours). Walk the Todra Gorges — the canyon floor path is free and spectacular — before catching a local taxi or minibus on to Boumalne Dades (about £5-7). Settle into a budget guesthouse at the top of Dades Valley and walk out to the Monkey Fingers rock formations for sunset; dinner at the guesthouse is cheap and home-cooked (£6-8).

🚌Shared grand taxi/minibus Merzouga–Tinghir ~£9; local taxi Tinghir–Boumalne ~£6

🛏Guesthouse in Dades Valley/Boumalne Dades, twin (£10-15 pp)

• →Erg Chebbi sunrise
• →Rissani souk
• →Todra Gorges canyon walk (free)
• →Monkey Fingers viewpoint in Dades Valley

Take a morning minibus or shared taxi down the Road of a Thousand Kasbahs to Kalaat M'Gouna (£6-8) — stop at the rose cooperative to see rose water being made. Continue to Ouarzazate and on to Ait Ben Haddou (shared taxi or minibus, £8-10 total); entry to the ksar is £3 and the climb to the granary at the top is a must. From Ait Ben Haddou or Ouarzazate, catch an afternoon CTM/Supratours coach over the Tizi n'Tichka pass to Marrakech (about 4 hours, £8-10). Arrive in the evening and stay in a medina riad-guesthouse; if time allows, swing past an argan oil cooperative en route for a look at how it's made.

🚌Shared minibus/taxi Dades–Ait Ben Haddou ~£15 total; coach Ait Ben Haddou/Ouarzazate–Marrakech ~£9

🛏Budget riad/guesthouse in Marrakech medina, dorm or twin (£12-20 pp)

• →Kalaat M'Gouna rose cooperative
• →Ait Ben Haddou ksar (£3)
• →Tizi n'Tichka pass drive
• →Argan oil cooperative stop

A full day on foot in the medina. Start at the Koutoubia Mosque gardens (free), then the Saadian Tombs (£3.50) and the Bahia Palace (£3.50) — go early to dodge queues and midday heat. Wander the souks, grab a £2 fresh juice and a £4 street lunch, and if you're not flying out tonight finish with the Jemaa el-Fnaa spectacle at dusk. Buses/taxis to the airport cost £3-5; trains and coaches onward to Casablanca or Fes are £8-12.

🚌Walking; petit taxi within medina ~£2-3; airport taxi ~£5

🛏Not included (or one more medina night, £12-20 pp)

• →Koutoubia Mosque and gardens
• →Saadian Tombs (£3.50)
• →Bahia Palace (£3.50)
• →Souk and Jemaa el-Fnaa wander