Self-Launched Northern Morocco: Tangier, Chefchaouen, Fes, Rabat, Casablanca & Marrakech

Arrive in Tangier (ferry from Tarifa or flight into TNG). Drop bags at a medina riad/guesthouse or the well-run Tangier youth hostel. Get lost in the medina alleyways, find Petit Socco for mint tea, then climb to the Kasbah and the Faro Square cannons for harbour views. Walk out through Bab Haha and Rue de la Liberté to Place de France, and finish with the local paseo along the Corniche de Tanger at sunset. Optional: a shared taxi or bus to Cap Spartel and the Cave of Hercules (allow 2-3 hours round trip).

🚌On foot; petit taxi in town ~£1-2

🛏Medina riad or hostel dorm/private room, £12-22

• →Self-guided medina walk
• →Kasbah & Faro Square
• →Rue de la Liberté shopping street
• →Corniche sunset stroll

Take a CTM or Supratours coach from Tangier to Chefchaouen (~2.5-3 hrs, £5-7) — book online a day ahead. Check into a small guesthouse in the medina. Spend the afternoon wandering the blue streets: Plaza Uta el-Hammam, the restored kasbah and gardens (entry ~£1.50), the souks around the plaza, and the Grand Mosque exterior. In the late afternoon walk up to Hotel Atlas viewpoint, then continue 30 minutes past it to the Spanish Mosque for sunset over the Rif Mountains.

🚌CTM/Supratours coach Tangier–Chefchaouen ~£6

🛏Chefchaouen medina guesthouse, £10-18

• →Blue medina wander
• →Kasbah & gardens
• →Hotel Atlas viewpoint
• →Spanish Mosque sunset hike

Early coach or grand taxi to Meknes via Ouazzane (~3 hrs). Drop bags, then take a shared taxi or local bus out to Volubilis (UNESCO Roman ruins, entry ~£6) for 1.5-2 hours among the mosaics and merchant houses. Back in Meknes, walk the compact medina: Medersa Bou Inania, Dar Jamaa, Bab al-Mansour, the Ville Impériale, Moulay Ismail's mausoleum and the Royal Stables. Late afternoon train or coach from Meknes to Fes (1 hr, ~£3-5). Optional dusk detour to the Marinid Tombs for a panorama of Fes.

🚌Coach/grand taxi + shared taxi to Volubilis + train Meknes–Fes ~£12 total

🛏Fes medina riad or guesthouse, £12-22

• →Volubilis Roman ruins
• →Meknes medina & Bab al-Mansour
• →Moulay Ismail mausoleum
• →Marinid Tombs viewpoint (optional)

Join a small-group GetYourGuide walking tour of the Fes medina (roughly £20-25, 3-4 hrs) — usually including Bab Boujloud, the souks, Chouara Tannery terrace, Al-Qarawiyyin, Bou Inania or Al Attarine Madrasa and the Mellah. Alternatively guide yourself with a map and a good pair of shoes. After lunch, take the ONCF train from Fes to Rabat (~3.5 hrs, ~£10-13, book at the station or on oncf-voyages.ma). In Rabat, take an evening walk around the Hassan Tower and Mausoleum of Mohamed V, the Kasbah des Oudaias and the Andalusian Gardens (free/cheap entry).

🚌ONCF train Fes–Rabat ~£11; trams/taxis in Rabat ~£2

🛏Rabat medina guesthouse or hostel, £12-20

• →Guided Fes medina tour
• →Chouara Tannery
• →Al-Qarawiyyin & a madrasa
• →Hassan Tower & Kasbah des Oudaias

Morning ONCF train Rabat to Casablanca (~1 hr, £3-4). Take the tram or a taxi to the Hassan II Mosque for a guided interior visit (timed slots ~£12, book ahead or on arrival), then wander Quartier Habous and, if time and weather allow, hop a taxi to Ain Diab's seafront. Mid-afternoon take the train from Casa Voyageurs to Marrakech (~3 hrs, ~£10-12). Evening: Koutoubia gardens and then Jemaa el-Fna at sunset — watch the performers and food stalls from a rooftop café terrace first.

🚌Trains Rabat–Casa (~£4) + Casa–Marrakech (~£11); tram/taxi ~£3

🛏Marrakech medina riad or hostel, £12-22

• →Hassan II Mosque interior tour
• →Quartier Habous
• →Koutoubia Gardens
• →Jemaa el-Fna at sunset

Start early at Bahia Palace (entry ~£6; go at opening to dodge crowds), then Koutoubia exterior. Dive into the medina souks — Souk el Attarin spices, Souk Smata slippers, Souk des Teinturiers dye pits. Afternoon at the Jardin Majorelle (book a timed ticket online, ~£13, often sells out), including the Berber Museum and the Yves Saint Laurent Museum (~£10, or combined ticket). Finish with grilled skewers or a tanjia from the Jemaa el-Fna food stalls, or a rooftop dinner overlooking the square.

🚌On foot; occasional petit taxi ~£2

🛏Marrakech medina riad or hostel, £12-22

• →Bahia Palace
• →Medina souks self-walk
• →Jardin Majorelle & Berber Museum
• →YSL Museum
• →Jemaa el-Fna food stalls

Slow breakfast on a riad terrace, last souvenir sweep through the souks or a hammam if you have a late flight. Bus 19 or a taxi to Menara Airport (RAK) — bus ~£2.50, taxi ~£8-12.

🚌Bus 19 or taxi to RAK ~£3-10

🛏—

• →Last souk shopping
• →Optional hammam (~£12-20)