Travel guides
Plan a better Morocco trip.
Honest, practical guides from a Marrakech atelier — the questions every traveller asks, answered with real numbers and local knowledge.
57 guides available
Itineraries
Itineraries guides
Day-by-day routes our concierge builds, from first-timers to slow travellers.
ItinerariesItineraries · One week
Morocco Itinerary: 7 Days
A week is enough to do the southern desert circuit properly — Marrakech over the Tizi n'Tichka to Ouarzazate, the kasbah road, the gorges and a night in the Sahara — or to trace the imperial cities of the north instead. Here are two proven 7-day routes and how to choose between them.
ItinerariesItineraries · Ten days
Morocco Itinerary: 10 Days
Ten days is the sweet spot for Morocco — long enough to give the southern desert circuit through Ouarzazate the time it deserves, then loop up to the imperial north, with the Atlantic coast as an optional finish.
ItinerariesItineraries · Two weeks
Morocco Itinerary: 14 Days — The Grand Two-Week Route
Two weeks is enough to cover Morocco's full sweep: the imperial cities of the north, the High Atlas, the Valley of a Thousand Kasbahs through Ouarzazate, a night in the Sahara and the wild Atlantic coast — all at a genuinely unhurried pace, with the southern desert leg given the room it deserves.
ItinerariesItineraries · Family
Morocco Family Itinerary: 10 Days with Children
A 10-day Morocco family itinerary built around the southern desert — Marrakech over the Atlas to Ouarzazate and Aït Ben Haddou, the gorges, a Sahara camp, then the Atlantic coast — designed around children's energy and the practical realities of family travel: kasbah stays, manageable drives, the Atlas Studios film sets and the camel ride every child remembers.
ItinerariesItineraries · Trip length
How Many Days Do You Need in Morocco?
The ideal Morocco trip is 7–14 days. Five days is a workable minimum for Marrakech plus the southern desert run through Ouarzazate to the dunes; ten days is the sweet spot that adds the imperial cities and the Atlas without rushing the kasbah road.
ItinerariesItineraries · Road trip
Morocco Road Trip Guide: Routes, Tips & What to Expect
A Morocco road trip is one of the great drives of the world, and its centrepiece is the southern loop through Ouarzazate — the Tizi n'Tichka pass, the Valley of a Thousand Kasbahs, the Drâa palm oases, the Dadès and Todra gorges and the Saharan pre-desert unfolding in sequence. Here is how to plan it, what the roads are really like and which routes reward a self-driver.
ItinerariesItineraries · Desert tour
Morocco Desert Tour from Marrakech: The Complete Route Guide
The desert tour from Marrakech — over the Tizi n'Tichka pass to Ouarzazate, through the kasbahs and gorges, and out to the Sahara at Merzouga — is one of the world's great overland journeys, and Ouarzazate is its pivot point. This guide covers every stage, from day-trip to five-day circuit, with real timings and practical advice.
Planning
Planning guides
When to come, what it costs and how to shape the trip before you fly.
PlanningPlanning · When to go
The Best Time to Visit Morocco
Spring (March–May) and autumn (September–November) are the best all-round windows for Morocco, and especially for the southern desert circuit around Ouarzazate — warm days over the kasbah road, cool nights in the Drâa and Dadès valleys, and dune light at its richest before the summer furnace arrives.
PlanningPlanning · Safety
Is Morocco Safe to Visit?
Yes — Morocco is one of the safest and most welcoming countries in North Africa for travellers, and the southern desert region around Ouarzazate is calmer still: small kasbah towns, low crime and a film-industry economy used to outsiders. The few day-to-day frictions are petty scams in the bigger-city souks, easily sidestepped.
PlanningPlanning · Visa & entry
Morocco Visa & Entry Requirements
Most travellers — including US, Canadian, UK, EU/Schengen, Australian, New Zealand and Japanese passport holders — enter Morocco visa-free for up to 90 days, whether they land at Marrakech, Casablanca or fly straight into Ouarzazate (OZZ) for the desert. You need a passport valid for at least six months beyond arrival.
PlanningPlanning · Money
Morocco Travel Costs & Budget
Morocco can be done on almost any budget. Mid-range travellers spend roughly US$80–150 per person per day; a private southern circuit from Ouarzazate — driver-guide, kasbah stays and a desert-camp night — typically runs US$200–400+ per day depending on season and the standard of camp you choose.
PlanningPlanning · Ramadan
Travelling in Morocco During Ramadan
Ramadan transforms the rhythm of Morocco in ways that can be unexpectedly wonderful — and in the small southern towns around Ouarzazate the sense of community at the breaking of the fast is especially intimate. Desert camps and kasbah guesthouses keep feeding guests normally; the key is knowing what changes on the road and planning around it.
PlanningPlanning · Solo & Women
Morocco for Women Travellers
Morocco is visited by vast numbers of women travelling solo and in small groups every year. The country is safe, and the quieter southern desert region around Ouarzazate sees noticeably less street hustle than the big-city medinas — knowing what to expect, and where the attention concentrates, makes the difference between a frustrating and a thoroughly rewarding trip.
PlanningPlanning · Family travel
Morocco with Kids: A Family Travel Guide
Morocco works beautifully with children — and the southern desert circuit delivers the moments they remember longest: the Atlas Studios film sets near Ouarzazate, the camel ride into the dunes, a night under a sky thick with stars. Kasbah guesthouses have safe courtyards, Moroccan culture is genuinely warm towards families, and pacing and planning are everything.
PlanningPlanning · Honeymoon
Morocco Honeymoon Guide
Morocco is one of the world's most atmospheric honeymoon destinations, and the south holds its most romantic single night: a candlelit luxury camp in the dunes, reached over the kasbah road from Ouarzazate. Pair it with a restored kasbah in the Skoura palmery and a rose-petal welcome in the Dadès Valley, and you have an unforgettable trip. Here is how to plan it.
PlanningPlanning · Sahara
Sahara Desert Tour Guide: Merzouga, Chigaga & Zagora
Every Moroccan Sahara route runs through Ouarzazate, the door of the desert. From here three dune fields open up: Erg Chebbi at Merzouga for accessibility and grandeur, Erg Chigaga near M'Hamid for remoteness, and Zagora down the Drâa for a shorter excursion. Here is how to choose, what the camps are like, and when to go.
PlanningPlanning · Trekking
Trekking the Atlas Mountains: Toubkal, Imlil & Beyond
The High Atlas rises to 4,167 metres at Jbel Toubkal, North Africa's highest peak above Imlil — but the range also forms the wall behind Ouarzazate, where the M'Goun massif and the volcanic Jbel Saghro offer quieter walking straight off the kasbah road. Whether you want a single-day walk, a multi-day village traverse or a summit attempt, the Atlas rewards it with the right season, guide and preparation.
PlanningPlanning · Surf
Surfing in Morocco: Taghazout, Agadir & Imsouane
Morocco's Atlantic coast offers consistent surf from September to April, warm winters and a relaxed surfing culture centred on Taghazout, with long right-hand points at Imsouane and beginner beaches at Agadir. It pairs naturally with the southern desert: the surf coast at Agadir sits a few hours from Ouarzazate via Taroudant, so many travellers bookend a Sahara circuit with waves before flying home.
PlanningPlanning · Marrakech
Things to Do in Marrakech: The Essential Guide
Marrakech is sensory overload in the best possible way — a medieval medina, world-class gardens, hammam rituals and a square that transforms nightly into one of the world's great open-air spectacles. It is also the springboard for the south: almost every Ouarzazate and Sahara circuit begins with the Tizi n'Tichka road out of the Red City. Here is where to spend your time before you head for the desert.
PlanningPlanning · Fes
Things to Do in Fes: The Essential Guide
Fes el-Bali is the world's largest inhabited medieval city — a UNESCO medina of 9,400 lanes, 14th-century madrasas, the planet's oldest university and the Chouara tanneries. It is the northern bookend to a Morocco trip whose southern bookend is the desert: many travellers pair Fes with a run down through the Ziz Valley to Merzouga and on to Ouarzazate. Fes demands a good guide, unhurried time and genuine curiosity.
PlanningPlanning · Chefchaouen
Things to Do in Chefchaouen: The Essential Guide
Chefchaouen — Morocco's famous blue city tucked into the Rif Mountains — is the country's calm, blue-washed counterpoint to the ochre kasbahs and orange dunes of the southern desert. Its medina is small, walkable and genuinely beautiful; its mountains reward hikers; its food is distinctively Rifian; and its pace is the slowest in the country.
PlanningPlanning · Essaouira
Things to Do in Essaouira: The Essential Guide
Essaouira is the breezy Atlantic counterweight to the dry heat of the southern desert — a fortified white-and-blue port city with ramparts, a working fishing harbour, outstanding grilled seafood, world-class windsurfing and a calm, liveable medina. Three hours from Marrakech, it is the natural place to wind down after the Ouarzazate kasbah road and the dunes.
PlanningPlanning · Agadir
Things to Do in Agadir: The Essential Guide
Agadir is Morocco's beach resort capital — rebuilt after the 1960 earthquake around 10 km of Atlantic sand, year-round sunshine and package-holiday infrastructure. It is also the coastal end of the southern loop: via Taroudant it links to Ouarzazate and the Drâa, so beach days here bookend a desert circuit neatly, alongside the argan forests and the surf at Taghazout.
PlanningPlanning · Rabat
Things to Do in Rabat: The Essential Guide
Rabat, Morocco's understated capital, rewards visitors with UNESCO-listed monuments, a royal kasbah, Roman ruins and a genuine daily-life rhythm entirely free from tourist pressure. For travellers heading south, it is a calm, civilised start to a trip that ends among the kasbahs and dunes beyond Ouarzazate.
PlanningPlanning · Tangier
Things to Do in Tangier: The Essential Guide
Tangier, where the Atlantic meets the Mediterranean, has transformed from a faded, edgy port into one of Morocco's most interesting cities — kasbah restored, seafront rebuilt, literary history reclaimed. It is the far northern tip of a country whose far southern heart is the desert around Ouarzazate; the two ends of a grand north-to-south Morocco journey.
PlanningPlanning · Casablanca
Things to Do in Casablanca: The Essential Guide
Casablanca is Morocco's economic capital and largest city — a modern, cosmopolitan metropolis built on Atlantic commerce rather than imperial history. Its centrepiece, the Hassan II Mosque, is among the world's most extraordinary buildings. For most desert-bound travellers it is the point of arrival before the long road south to Ouarzazate, but its restaurants, Corniche and Art Deco streets reward a day before you go.
PlanningPlanning · Ouarzazate
Things to Do in Ouarzazate: The Essential Guide
Ouarzazate — 'the door of the desert' and the 'Hollywood of Morocco' — sits at the junction of the High Atlas and the Saharan south, where the Tizi n'Tichka road from Marrakech meets the kasbah country. It is the gateway to Aït Ben Haddou, the Taourirt Kasbah, the Fint Oasis and the Drâa and Dadès valleys, and home to Atlas Film Studios, among the largest in the world.
PlanningPlanning · Meknes
Things to Do in Meknes: The Essential Guide
Meknes — the fourth of Morocco's imperial cities and the least visited — rewards the traveller who lingers: a UNESCO medina, the monumental gates and granaries of Sultan Moulay Ismail's 17th-century capital, and the Roman city of Volubilis 33 km north. It suits travellers on the northern leg of a grand route whose southern climax is the desert beyond Ouarzazate.
PlanningPlanning · Winter travel
Morocco in Winter: What to Expect & Where to Go
Winter (December–February) is an underrated season for the Moroccan south — the desert days around Ouarzazate are mild and clear, the dune nights are cold and starry, and the snow-capped High Atlas behind the kasbahs is at its most photogenic. The one catch is the Tizi n'Tichka pass, which can briefly close after heavy snow. Knowing where to go and what to pack makes a winter trip one of the most rewarding.
PlanningPlanning · Summer travel
Morocco in Summer: Heat, Coast & What Still Works
Summer in Morocco (June–August) is brutal in the south — Ouarzazate bakes and the Sahara around Merzouga hits 45–50°C — so the desert is best saved for cooler months. The Atlantic coast, the Rif and Chefchaouen offer genuine alternatives. Know where the heat is manageable, where to go instead, and how to travel the kasbah road smartly if your dates are fixed.
PlanningPlanning · Solo travel
Morocco Solo Travel: An Honest Guide
Solo travel in Morocco is rewarding, affordable and genuinely feasible — and the gentle pace of the southern desert towns around Ouarzazate makes them some of the easiest places in the country to travel alone. It demands a little more awareness than group travel, but the freedom and the encounters on the kasbah road are not available any other way.
PlanningPlanning · Marrakech season
Best Time to Visit Marrakech
March to May and September to November are the best months for Marrakech — comfortable warmth, long days and pleasant evenings — and they happen to be the same windows that suit the southern desert circuit it launches. Summer is hot but workable in the city; winter is mild and crowd-free, though the Tizi n'Tichka road to Ouarzazate can briefly close after snow.
PlanningPlanning · Sahara season
Best Time to Visit the Sahara in Morocco
October to April is the golden window for the Moroccan Sahara — comfortable days, cold clear nights and dunes lit by low golden light. Whether you reach the sand via Ouarzazate and the kasbah road or down the Drâa, the season makes or breaks the trip; July and August are brutal and best avoided.
PlanningPlanning · Beaches
Best Beaches in Morocco
Morocco has over 3,000 km of Atlantic and Mediterranean coastline — from the windswept ramparts of Essaouira to the calm family beaches of Agadir, the surf breaks of Taghazout and the wild southern coves near Sidi Ifni and Legzira. For desert travellers, the southern Atlantic coast is the natural cool-down after the Ouarzazate kasbah road. Here is where to go, and when.
PlanningPlanning · Accommodation
Where to Stay in Morocco: Riads, Hotels & Desert Camps
Morocco offers one of the world's great accommodation experiences — from intimate medina riads to the restored pisé kasbahs of the Skoura palmery and Ouarzazate, and the luxury Sahara camps at the end of the kasbah road. Knowing which type suits each leg of your trip, and what to look for, makes a significant difference.
PlanningPlanning · Baby & toddler travel
Morocco with a Baby or Toddler: A Practical Guide
Travelling to Morocco with a baby or toddler is entirely possible and often surprisingly smooth — Moroccan culture is genuinely warm towards small children. A southern desert circuit is the one thing to temper: the long kasbah-road drives and cold dune nights suit older children better, so base gently and save Ouarzazate and the Sahara for when they will remember it.
PlanningPlanning · When to go
Best Time to Visit Fes: Weather, Crowds & What to Expect
Spring (March–May) and autumn (September–November) are the best times to visit Fes — mild weather, manageable crowds and ideal conditions for the labyrinthine medina. Usefully, they are the same months that suit the southern desert, so travellers pairing Fes with a run down the Ziz Valley to the dunes and Ouarzazate can time both halves at once. This guide breaks down what every season brings to Morocco's spiritual capital.
PlanningPlanning · Desert activities
Morocco Camel Trekking: How to Plan the Perfect Sahara Ride
A camel trek in the Moroccan Sahara is one of the most iconic experiences in North Africa, and the trail to it runs through Ouarzazate, the door of the desert. This guide covers the best dune fields — Erg Chebbi and Erg Chigaga — what to expect physically, how long to book and what a night in a desert camp really feels like.
PlanningPlanning · When to go
Best Time to Visit Chefchaouen: Season, Weather & Practical Tips
Chefchaouen is beautiful year-round, but spring (March–May) and autumn (September–October) deliver the best mix of mild weather, manageable crowds and perfect light for the blue-washed medina — the same shoulder seasons that suit the southern desert, so the blue city and the ochre kasbahs of Ouarzazate slot neatly into one north-to-south trip. Here is what each season brings.
Practical
Practical guides
Safety, visas, money, packing and the ground-truth that makes a trip seamless.
PracticalPractical · Packing
What to Pack for Morocco
Pack light, modest and layered. A southern trip swings from a hot Ouarzazate afternoon to a cold night on the Erg Chebbi dunes and a chilly dawn over the Tizi n'Tichka in a single day, so breathable layers, broken-in walking shoes and one genuinely warm top cover almost everything.
PracticalPractical · Transport
Getting Around Morocco
Morocco has good trains between the northern cities, comfortable intercity buses — and for the south, where the railway never reaches, private drivers. Ouarzazate, the gorges and the Sahara sit well beyond the rail map, so the kasbah road is a driver's-and-bus country. The right mix depends on your route and pace.
PracticalPractical · Connectivity
SIM Cards & Internet in Morocco
Staying connected in Morocco is cheap and easy. A local SIM or eSIM from Maroc Telecom, Orange or Inwi gives you fast 4G in Ouarzazate and the kasbah towns for a few dollars — though out on the dunes and the high Atlas passes the signal thins to nothing, which is part of the appeal.
PracticalPractical · Getting there
Marrakech to Merzouga: Routes, Times & Transport Options
Merzouga and the Erg Chebbi dunes are roughly 550 km from Marrakech, and almost every route passes through Ouarzazate — the door of the desert and the natural overnight pivot on the journey. It is a long drive whichever way you go, but one of the most rewarding in North Africa. Here are the options, the route differences, realistic timings and how to choose.
PracticalPractical · Pre-trip checklist
Morocco Travel Checklist: Everything to Do Before You Go
A complete pre-departure checklist for Morocco, with the southern desert circuit in mind: documents, bookings, money for the cash-only kasbah road, health, connectivity that fades on the dunes, and packing for hot days and cold desert nights — everything to confirm before you board so nothing is left to chance.
PracticalPractical · Airport transfers
Getting from Casablanca Airport (CMN) to Your Destination
Casablanca Mohammed V Airport (CMN) is Morocco's busiest international gateway and a common arrival point for desert-bound travellers. The Al Boraq high-speed train connects it to the northern cities; for the long haul south to Marrakech and on to Ouarzazate, a private transfer takes you door-to-door without hassle.
PracticalPractical · Insurance
Morocco Travel Insurance: What You Need & Why
Travel insurance matters more on a southern desert trip than almost anywhere in Morocco: the kasbah road, the gorges and the Sahara around Ouarzazate are far from major hospitals, and evacuation is costly. Here is what to look for, what it costs, and which activities — camel trekking, gorge walking, quad biking — need specialist cover.
PracticalPractical · Connectivity
eSIMs for Morocco: The Traveller's Guide to Staying Connected
An eSIM lets you activate a Moroccan data plan before you land, skip the airport queue and keep your home number live. For a southern trip it pays to choose a plan that routes through Maroc Telecom, which holds the best signal on the kasbah road and at the Merzouga dune edge. Here is how eSIMs work, which providers to use and where coverage fades.
PracticalPractical · Health
Is Tap Water Safe to Drink in Morocco?
Tap water is treated to national standards in Morocco's major cities, but travellers — particularly on short visits — should drink bottled or filtered water. This matters most on the southern desert circuit, where village and oasis water along the kasbah road is less consistently treated and pharmacies are sparse between Ouarzazate and the dunes.
PracticalPractical · Dress code
What to Wear in Morocco: Dress Code for Travellers
Morocco has no legal dress code for tourists, but dressing modestly — covering shoulders and knees — is respectful and practical, and matters most in the traditional Berber villages of the south around Ouarzazate, the Drâa and the Dadès. Here is exactly what to wear, where, and why, including layers for hot kasbah-road days and cold desert nights.
Culture
Culture guides
Food, etiquette, craft and the customs worth knowing before you arrive.
CultureCulture · Food
Moroccan Food & Drink
Moroccan cuisine is one of the world's great food cultures, and the pre-Saharan south has its own register: slow-cooked tagines scented with Drâa Valley dates, Berber bread baked in the sand, couscous Fridays in the kasbah villages, and the endless ritual of sweet mint tea poured in the shade of a palmery.
CultureCulture · Etiquette
Morocco Etiquette & Customs
A little cultural awareness goes a long way in Morocco, and even further in the conservative Berber villages of the south. Dress modestly, greet warmly, ask before photographing people, use your right hand, and embrace the unhurried Amazigh pace of mint tea and conversation that governs life along the kasbah road.
CultureCulture · Photography
Morocco Photography Guide
Morocco is among the world's great photography destinations, and the south is its most cinematic stretch — small wonder Hollywood films it constantly. Aït Ben Haddou's pisé towers, the Atlas Studios sets, the Fint Oasis, the gorge walls and the Erg Chebbi dunes give you blockbuster backdrops within an hour of Ouarzazate. Knowing where to stand, when, and how to engage respectfully makes all the difference.
CultureCulture · Language
Moroccan Arabic & French Phrases for Travellers
Morocco runs on Darija (Moroccan Arabic) in daily life and French in business and signage — but in the Berber south around Ouarzazate, the Drâa and the Dadès, Tamazight (Amazigh) is the mother tongue of most villages. A handful of phrases in any of them opens doors that money alone cannot.
CultureCulture · Shopping
Shopping in the Souks: What to Buy, Fair Prices & Tips
Morocco's souks are among the world's great shopping experiences — but they reward preparation. The south has its own specialities: the bold flat-weave kilims of Taznakht near Ouarzazate, Berber silver, fossils from the Erfoud beds and Drâa dates. Knowing what to look for in rugs, silver, ceramics and argan products, what fair prices look like, and how to bargain and ship makes the difference between a satisfying haul and buyer's regret.
CultureCulture · Festivals & events
Morocco Public Holidays & Festivals
Morocco's calendar blends shifting Islamic holy days, fixed national holidays and a rich festival programme — and the south has two of the best: the Rose Festival at Kelaât M'Gouna in the Dadès Valley (May) and the Marriage Moussem at Imilchil. Knowing the calendar helps you plan around closures and time a trip to catch the country's most vivid cultural events.
CultureCulture · Souvenirs
Moroccan Souvenirs: What to Buy & Where
The best Moroccan souvenirs are made by Moroccan hands and earn their place at home — not plastic camels. The south adds its own: Taznakht kilims woven near Ouarzazate, Berber silver, Erfoud fossils and Drâa Valley dates and rose water. From hand-knotted rugs and Fes leather to argan oil and ceramics, here is what to buy and where to find the real thing.
CultureCulture · Culinary
Moroccan Cooking Classes: What to Expect & Where to Book
A Moroccan cooking class is one of the most immersive ways into the culture — shopping for saffron and preserved lemons, then slow-cooking a tagine over charcoal. In the south, classes in the kasbahs around Ouarzazate add a Berber and pre-Saharan register: bread baked in sand, Drâa dates and oasis vegetables. This guide covers what you learn, how to choose a class and what the experience involves.