Morocco: What to Expect / Highlights

Cultural Influences

This intriguing country has a mix of African, Islamic, Arab, Berber & European influences.

Scenery

An astonishing variety of environments and glorious scenery, from spectacular red-rock canyons to the Atlas Mountains to the vast sand dunes in the Sahara Desert.

Marrakesh

The "red city" is framed by its own wall and the grander wall of the High Atlas Mountains. It is a city rich in cultural heritage and history, has many interesting sites, colorful souks (markets), and is considered a city of gardens. The center of the marketplace is filled with snake charmers, storytellers and acrobats during the day and transforms into a vivid carnival of musicians, clowns and street entertainers and vendors in the evening.

Todra Valley

A highly dramatic, severe cleft cut from sheer rock that towers hundreds of feet high.

"Trail Of A Thousand Kasbahs"

The driving route from Skoura to the Dades Valley - for over 40 miles you pass hundreds of ancient kasbahs, evidence that this was a very busy part of the old-world salt and gold trade route from Timbuktu.

Fez

Renowned as one of the best preserved medieval cities in the world and recognized as Morocco's intellectual and spiritual nerve center, Fez seems to exist suspended in time somewhere between the Middle Ages and the modern world. UNESCO has declared the medina one of the world's cultural World Heritage treasures.

TIME TO GO:

On the coast the weather is tourist-friendly pretty much all year round, although winter can bring cool and wet conditions in the north. In the lowlands, the cooler months from October to April are popular among visitors. This time of year is pleasantly warm to hot (around 86F) during the day and cool to cold (around 60F) at night. Winter in the higher regions demands lots of warm clothing.