Cities and the Sea

About This Tour

Cities and the Sea is ten days from Casablanca to the Atlantic, written around a specific traveller: the multi-generational family where the eldest is approaching eighty and the youngest is a teenager. Three nights in Fès for the medina at the pace of the slowest member, two in Marrakech for the imperial city and its souks, two in Essaouira for the wind and the working port. Volubilis on the way, Rabat as the morning stop. The Fès–Marrakech transit is by ONCF first-class train — about seven hours seated, with lunch in the dining car and the country crossing the window, rather than a long road day. The pace is set for the slowest member of the group, not the fastest.

• Day 1

  Arrive Casablanca

  Met at Mohammed V airport (CMN) and transferred to a hotel near the corniche (about 30 minutes). Late afternoon visit to the Hassan II Mosque — the prayer hall opens to the Atlantic, and non-Muslim visitors are welcomed inside. Welcome dinner on the seafront.

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• Day 2

  Casablanca to Rabat

  Morning drive to Rabat (about 1 hour). Hassan Tower and the Mausoleum of Mohammed V with a Rabat-based guide. Afternoon at the Kasbah of the Udayas — the Andalusian gardens and the tea house above the river. Dinner at the riad.

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• Day 3

  Rabat to Fès via Volubilis

  Drive northeast (about 2 hours 30 minutes to Volubilis). Walk the Roman site with a regional archaeologist — pacing chosen to suit the group, with seated rest stops in the shade. Lunch at Moulay Idriss with a view over the white roofs of the holy town. Continue to Fès in the late afternoon (about 1 hour 15 minutes). Dinner on the riad's roof terrace.

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• Day 4

  The Fès medina

  Talâa Kbira walk with the lead guide — Nejjarine, Attarine, the dyers' souk, the Chouara tannery from the leather terraces. The walk is paced for the slowest member of the group, with a long break at a family riad with the chef. Afternoon at leisure — the guide is reachable for a hammam booking, the textile souk, or quiet at the riad. Dinner at a small restaurant inside the medina.

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• Day 5

  A Fès day in your own hands

  The day flexes by traveller. The teenager goes to a calligraphy studio with the lead guide, or to a workshop in brass or leather; the grandparents have a private hammam afternoon at a fourteenth-century site, or take tea on a quiet roof terrace; the parents take a cooking class with the riad chef and bring home the recipes. Everyone meets back at the riad for dinner together.

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• Day 6

  On the train to Marrakech

  ONCF first-class from Fès to Marrakech via the change at Casablanca — about 7 hours, the country crossing the window, dining car onboard. The lead guide is with the group throughout. A considered-pace day rather than a long road one: seats with space, freedom to walk the carriage, time to read and rest. Late afternoon arrival at Marrakech station; transfer to a riad inside the medina, a quiet evening to settle in. Dinner on a rooftop overlooking Djemaa el-Fna.

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• Day 7

  The Marrakech medina

  Walking tour with a Marrakech-based guide — the Bahia Palace and its painted ceilings, the Saadian Tombs, then through the souks (carpets, lanterns, leather, spices). The walk is broken into manageable sections with seated breaks. Late afternoon at Djemaa el-Fna as it changes from daytime market into evening food stalls and storytellers. Dinner at a small place off the square.

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• Day 8

  Marrakech to Essaouira

  Late-morning drive west to Essaouira (about 2 hours 30 minutes). Settle in at a riad inside the medina, near the Skala. Late-afternoon walk to the port for the boats coming in (weather permitting). Dinner at the riad.

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• Day 9

  Essaouira — wind, port, ramparts

  Morning walk with a local guide — the Skala (Portuguese-era ramparts), the kasbah, the Mellah. Afternoon at the guests' own pace — a ride on the beach south of town, a hammam, time to read on the riad terrace. Final dinner overlooking the Atlantic.

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• Day 10

  Until you leave Essaouira

  A morning in your own hand — a final walk on the ramparts, breakfast on the riad terrace, perhaps the hammam before checkout. The driver makes the airport transfer at a time chosen by the guests — to Marrakech Menara airport (RAK, about 2 hours 30 minutes) for the international flight.

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