All four imperial cities in eight days — Marrakech, Fes, Meknes and Rabat. Pick this when the history is the point rather than the landscape: walls, palaces and medinas almost the whole week.
- Duration
- 8 days / 7 nights
- Route
- Marrakech → Rabat
- Pace
- Short transfers, long days in the medinas
Overview
All four imperial cities in eight days: walls, palaces and medinas almost the whole way through. Pick this when the history is the point rather than the landscape.
Photos
Route
- 1Marrakech
- 2Meknes
- 3Fes
- 4Rabat
Highlights
- Marrakech, Fes, Meknes and Rabat — all four imperial cities
- History and architecture, not scenery, is the point
- Palaces, ramparts and medinas most days
- Weekday pace built around the medinas
Day by day
A representative plan. Every trip is adjusted to your dates, your pace and what you want to see.
1
Day 1
Arrive in Marrakech
You land in Marrakech and the day stays light. Jemaa el-Fna is an easy walk from anywhere in the medina, and the square fills up as the afternoon goes on.
Nothing beyond settling in and getting your bearings. The first proper sightseeing day is tomorrow.
2
Day 2
Marrakech
A full day in the city. The Koutoubia and its square, the Saadian Tombs, and Bahia Palace with its painted rooms and courtyards, all inside one walkable stretch of the medina.
The afternoon goes to the covered souks behind the square, lane by lane, one section to a trade. Spices, lamps, carpenters, and the rest.
3
Day 3
Marrakech, a second day
Medersa Ben Youssef is the older of the two historic madrasas in Marrakech and worth the wait at the door. The Mellah, the old Jewish quarter, sits beside it and reads differently.
Or take the day at a slower speed: gardens, rooftops, a long lunch. The next three days are on the move, so an easy day here keeps the week even.
4
Day 4
Marrakech to Meknes
About five and a half hours north, mostly motorway across the plains with a stop after a couple of hours. It is the longest sit in the car of the week.
Meknes is reached in the late afternoon. Bab Mansour faces the square and holds up well in low evening light, so the first walk happens straight after you arrive.
5
Day 5
Meknes, Volubilis and on to Fes
The morning stays in Meknes: Bab Mansour, the Heri es-Souani granaries and the ramps around the old royal quarter, all covered on foot.
Then Volubilis, half an hour away, where the Roman mosaics are still in place on the plain. Another hour after that puts you in Fes, with two days still set aside for it.
6
Day 6
Fes
A full day in the largest car-free medina in the country. Bou Inania madrasa, the tanneries at Chouara, and the lanes that run between workshops still working.
A guide earns the fee in Fes, since the streets are easy to lose an hour in. The evening ends by Bab Boujloud, where the medina lights up after dark.
7
Day 7
Fes to Rabat
About two and a half hours west, the shortest transfer of the week. Rabat is the capital and the difference shows: wider streets, a calmer medina, and the administration around it.
The afternoon covers the Kasbah of the Udayas and the Hassan Tower, close to each other and to the river. The ramparts look out over the Atlantic at the mouth of the Bou Regreg.
8
Day 8
Departure from Rabat
A last morning on the ramparts or in the medina, then the airport. Rabat-Sale sits across the river and the drive is short.
The week ends in Rabat instead of doubling back to Marrakech, which saves half a day of driving.
Good to know
Best season
Spring and autumn suit the walking. Fes and Marrakech are both uncomfortable in July and August, so the middle of the day goes indoors then. Rabat stays milder than the others because of the Atlantic.
Pace and driving
Three transfers, none of them brutal: about five and a half hours to Meknes, an hour on to Fes, and two and a half to Rabat. Everything else is inside a medina, on foot.
Who it suits
Take it when history is the reason for the trip. Four cities, eight days of walls, palaces, madrasas and ruins, and no desert or mountain crossing along the way. If you want landscape, pick another route.
What's included
- Private vehicle and driver for the whole itinerary
- Accommodation each night, with breakfast
- Airport transfers at the start and end
- A local guide in the medinas where a guide adds most
- A named contact in Marrakech throughout your trip
Not included
- International flights
- Lunches, dinners and drinks unless listed
- Entrance fees to monuments and sites
- Tips for your driver and guides
- Travel insurance
8-Day Imperial Cities Tour of Morocco
Our Marrakech-based team designs tailor-made Morocco trips around your dates, budget and travel style.
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Further reading
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