Fes with kids: tanneries, riads and a camel at sunset

Fes el-Bali is the natural base — endlessly interesting and rich enough to hold attention for two or three days. Children are spellbound by the working crafts: a coppersmith hammering at Place Seffarine, the colour of the Chouara tanneries from a terrace above, a zellige cutter chipping tile to shape. The carved courtyards of the Bou Inania and Al-Attarine medersas read as treasure houses to young imaginations. The deepest lanes are best tackled with a guide and children who can keep pace.

Volubilis, Meknes and Moulay Idriss make an easy day out from Fes. Children clamber happily among the standing columns and mosaics of the Roman city, and the hillside town of Moulay Idriss and the great Bab Mansour gate at Meknes break the day into manageable stops with plenty of open space to run.

The Sahara is the trip highlight for most families. The drive south from Fes through Midelt and the Ziz Valley to the red dunes of Merzouga is a proper road journey, and children who have ridden a camel at sunset and slept in a canvas tent under Saharan stars tend to talk about it for years.

Chefchaouen, the blue town in the Rif north of Fes, is a calmer counterpoint — cool mountain air, easy lanes and blue-washed walls that delight children, with an unhurried pace that suits families who want breathing room between busier days.

The most common mistake in family travel here is over-programming. Fes rewards slow movement. A family with children under ten does well with two to three nights in each base, one active outing a day, and one long unhurried afternoon back at the riad. We usually build in a courtyard or terrace afternoon every second day; children need the decompression after the intensity of the medina.

For a ten-day trip: three nights Fes, a day at Volubilis and Meknes, two nights Sahara via Midelt, then back through the Ziz Valley before a night in Chefchaouen on the way north. This works well with children aged six and above. Younger children suit a simpler shape: four nights Fes with day trips, two nights Chefchaouen, then a return to Fes — less driving, more depth.

Fes riads — the traditional courtyard houses that now serve as boutique hotels — are ideal family accommodation. The interior courtyard shuts out the medina's noise; the architecture is naturally child-friendly, with corridors to explore and roof terraces to breakfast on; and the staff-to-room ratio is typically high, which means attentive service. Look for a family suite with connecting rooms, a kitchen willing to adapt menus, and — if there is a plunge pool — a cover or enclosure for toddlers. We pre-inspect every riad we recommend. See our destinations guide for our current shortlist.

Fassi food is broadly child-friendly. Chicken tagine with olives and preserved lemon; couscous with seven vegetables; harira soup; kefta (spiced minced lamb) grilled on skewers; and msemen (griddle-fried flatbreads) with honey and argan oil are all approachable, lightly spiced and freshly made. Fes is also famous for its sweet almond pastries — a reliable crowd-pleaser. Most riads will prepare simpler dishes on request — grilled chicken, plain rice, eggs — for young children.

Water: drink bottled water only. Tap water in Fes is chlorinated and technically safe, but the mineral balance is unfamiliar to foreign digestive systems and upsets a fair number of visitors. Fresh-squeezed orange juice from the medina stalls is safe and excellent. Avoid ice in cafés unless you are sure it is made from bottled water.

• Book private transport throughout — shared taxis and buses are fine for adults but exhausting with children and luggage.
• Carry a child-specific sun cream rated SPF 50+. Moroccan summers are intense; spring and autumn are more forgiving.
• Pack oral rehydration sachets as a precaution; Fes pharmacies stock them, but having your own is reassuring.
• A lightweight or structured backpack carrier beats a pushchair on the medina's stepped, uneven lanes.
• Brief children aged five and up on bargaining before entering the souks — it removes confusion and turns it into a game.
• Carry small MAD notes and coins (10 and 20 dirham) for children to hand over during transactions — it gives them agency and makes the experience tangible.