Skip to main content
The full courtyard of the Al-Attarine madrasa: marble fountain, zellige walls and carved cedar galleries

Al-Attarine Madrasa, Fes · Photo: Houssain tork, CC BY-SA 4.0

Morocco travel guides from Fes

Written by our team in Fes to answer what travellers ask before they book: when to come, visas, costs, getting around, food and etiquette, with real numbers and local knowledge.

Plan my tripBrowse the guides
  • 51 guides
  • Written in Fes
  • Updated for 2026

Routes, day by day

The routes we plan most often, from a week in the north to two weeks from Fes to Marrakech and the Sahara.

The full sweep of Fes el Bali from the northern hills, minarets rising from the rooftops2 min read10 days in MoroccoTen days is the sweet spot — long enough to root yourself in Fes and the imperial north, drop south to the Sahara, and finish in Marrakech in one unhurried loop, with Chefchaouen or the coast as an optional add-on.Read the guideA lone old cedar above a mountain road between Timahdite and Midelt7 min readA Morocco road trip from FesA Morocco road trip is one of the great drives of the world, and Fes makes a superb starting point — the imperial-city loop to Meknes and Volubilis, the Middle Atlas cedar forests and Ziz Valley down to the Sahara, and the Rif road north to Chefchaouen all radiate from the city.Read the guideColumns and walls of the Roman basilica at Volubilis, a stork nest on top of a column4 min readMorocco itinerary, 14 daysTwo weeks is enough to cover Morocco's full sweep, starting in Fes: the imperial cities of the north, Chefchaouen, the Middle Atlas, the kasbah road, a night in the Sahara and the High Atlas down to Marrakech — all at a genuinely unhurried pace.Read the guideBarbary macaques in the Azrou cedar forest, one looking up close7 min readFes and Morocco family itineraryA 10-day family itinerary starting in Fes — the imperial-city medina and artisans, the Middle Atlas, the Sahara and on to Marrakech — designed around children's energy and the practical realities of family travel: riads with courtyards or pools, manageable drives and the camel ride that every child remembers.Read the guideRooftops and towers of Ait Benhaddou above the green Ounila valley7 min readMorocco desert tour from MarrakechThe desert tour from Marrakech — over the Tizi n'Tichka pass, through the kasbahs and gorges, and out to the Sahara at Merzouga — is one of the world's great overland journeys.Read the guide

More itineraries

Fes el Bali spread through its valley under a blue sky, seen from the Merinid Tombs hill

Most of our routes start here, in Fes el-Bali.

Fes el Bali from the Merinid Tombs

Before you book

When to come, how long to stay, where each city fits and what the road between them is like.

The Chouara tannery in bright sun, rows of dye pits between the old tannery houses6 min readThings to do in FesFes el-Bali is a UNESCO World Heritage medina still lived in every day: thousands of lanes, 14th-century madrasas, the planet's oldest university and the Chouara tanneries.Read the guideThe sun setting over rippled orange dunes in Erg Chebbi5 min readSahara desert tour guideFrom Fes, the Sahara is a deeply rewarding extension, and Erg Chebbi at Merzouga is the natural choice — the drive south through Ifrane and the Ziz Valley leads to the grandest dunes in Morocco.Read the guideStriped woven blankets hung for sale around a square in the centre of Chefchaouen6 min readThings to do in ChefchaouenChefchaouen — Morocco's famous blue city tucked into the Rif Mountains — is the classic two-night escape from Fes, around 3.5–4 hours north through mountain scenery.Read the guideBab Mansour, the great tiled gate of Meknes, glowing in low evening sun7 min readThings to do in MeknesMeknes — the fourth of Morocco's imperial cities and the least visited — is the classic full-day trip from Fes, just 45 minutes away by train.Read the guideJemaa el-Fna's food stalls lit up at dusk, the Koutoubia minaret against an orange sky8 min readThings to do in MarrakechMarrakech is the natural southern companion to a Fes trip — a louder, more theatrical imperial city with the Majorelle garden, hammam rituals, rooftop dinners and a square that transforms nightly into one of the world's great open-air spectacles.Read the guidePink cherry blossom in spring in Ifrane3 min readThe best time to visit MoroccoSpring (March–May) and autumn (September–November) are the best all-round times to visit Morocco and to base yourself in Fes — warm days, cool evenings and comfortable conditions for long hours on foot in the Fes el-Bali medina, plus easy day trips to Volubilis, Meknes and the Middle Atlas.Read the guideBroad steps between palms climbing to the gate of the Kasbah of the Udayas in Rabat6 min readThings to do in RabatRabat, Morocco's understated capital, is a comfortable 1.5-hour train ride west of Fes and rewards visitors with UNESCO-listed monuments, a royal kasbah, Roman ruins and a genuine daily-life rhythm entirely free from medina tourist pressure — a relaxed addition to a Fes-and-imperial-cities trip.Read the guideVillages along the green floor of a steep High Atlas valley under cloud5 min readTrekking the Atlas MountainsThe High Atlas rises to 4,167 metres at Jbel Toubkal, North Africa's highest peak.Read the guide

More planning guides

One loop from Fes, in four guides

The route most of our travellers take. Each stop has its own guide.

Start in Fes

Things to do in Fes

Two full days at least in Fes el-Bali, with a licensed guide for the lanes most maps get wrong: the Chouara tanneries, the Bou Inania and Al-Attarine medersas, the Kairaouine. Read the guide

North, 3.5–4 hours

Things to do in Chefchaouen

Two nights in the blue city of the Rif: the small medina, the Spanish Mosque at sunset and a day for the Akchour waterfalls. Read the guide

South through Ifrane

Sahara desert tour guide

Erg Chebbi at Merzouga, reached through Ifrane and the Ziz Valley. Go between October and April, and pick your camp with care. Read the guide

Finish in Marrakech

Things to do in Marrakech

Two nights at the end: Jardin Majorelle, the Bahia Palace, and Jemaa el-Fnaa as the square fills at night. Read the guide

Practical answers

Safety, visas, money, phones, water and what to pack, checked against what our travellers actually need.

An ONCF diesel locomotive and train at the Fes station platform in morning light3 min readGetting around MoroccoFes sits squarely on Morocco's best rail line, so trains link it easily to Meknes, Rabat, Casablanca, Marrakech and Tangier.Read the guideFront of Mohammed V International Airport (CMN), Casablanca, with palm trees and the AEROPORT sign6 min readCasablanca airport (CMN) to Fes and beyondCasablanca Mohammed V Airport (CMN) is Morocco's busiest international gateway and a common arrival point for Fes — though a direct flight into Fès–Saïss (FEZ) is simpler if available.Read the guideThe Fes-Saïss airport terminal with its geometric screen facade and flags, the kerb in front5 min readeSIMs for MoroccoAn eSIM lets you activate a Moroccan data plan before you land at Fès–Saïss, skip the airport SIM queue and keep your home number available on the same device — handy the moment you reach the Fes medina gate and want maps and WhatsApp.Read the guideThe road winding in hairpins over the Tizi n'Tichka pass in the High Atlas6 min readMarrakech to MerzougaMerzouga and the Erg Chebbi dunes can be reached from Fes (about 470 km south through the Middle Atlas and Ziz Valley, the shorter run) or from Marrakech (about 560 km via the High Atlas and the kasbah road, the more scenic run).Read the guide

More practical guides

Food, craft and custom

What to eat, what to buy, how to bargain and the customs worth knowing before you arrive.

Food stalls along a covered lane of the Fes medina, olives and sweets in glass counters2 min readMoroccan food and drinkFes is widely considered the culinary capital of Morocco — the refined home of pastilla, slow-cooked tagines, couscous Fridays and a deep repertoire of medina street food, all washed down with the endless ritual of sweet mint tea.Read the guideCoppersmiths' cauldrons and pans stacked in the metalworkers' square of Fes el Bali7 min readShopping in the souksFes is Morocco's artisan capital, and its souks are among the world's great shopping experiences — but they reward preparation.Read the guideCones of spices and sacks of grain at a spice stall in the Fes medina6 min readMoroccan cooking classes in FesA cooking class in Fes — widely regarded as the culinary capital of Morocco and the home of pastilla — is one of the most immersive ways to connect with the country's culture: shopping the Fes el-Bali souks for saffron and preserved lemons, then slow-cooking a tagine over charcoal in a riad courtyard.Read the guideA tanner lifting a pile of hides beside the dye pits of the Chouara tannery5 min readMorocco photography guideFes is one of the world's great photographic cities: morning light falling into the tannery vats, intricate Marinid zellige and carved cedar, the labyrinth of Fes el-Bali, and craftsmen at work in the artisan quarters.Read the guidePainted ceramic tagines and water jars outside a shop in the Fes medina7 min readMoroccan souvenirsThe best souvenirs from Morocco are things made there, by Moroccan hands, that you will actually use at home — not plastic camels.Read the guide

More on food, craft and custom

Tell us your dates. We'll plan it with you.

  1. Tell us what drew you in. Your dates, who is travelling and what you want to see.
  2. A person reads it. We write a day-by-day plan for your group, private or small-group.
  3. You change anything. Then we confirm the guides, drivers and riads.
Plan my tripAsk a question first
Plan this with us