Morocco and Spain in 10 days
 

Hello! I've also posted this in the Europe forum.
We've taken the first step and bought flights for our dream trip! We've bought a flight that arrives at 1345 in Casablanca on the 12th of June. Our return flight is from Madrid on the 22nd of June and leaves at 1535. We're not sure what will happen in between :) We're mostly interested in nature/scenery and maybe a little culture and history but not too much. Our initial plan is the following:

1. Move right away from Casablanca to Fes (mode of transportation?) unless someone recommends something worth staying for a night in Casa.

2. Stay in Fes for a night then travel to Tangier through Chefchaouen (mode of transport?). Do you propose we stay a night or two in Tangier or Chefchaouen?

3. Take the ferry to Spain. Do you propose we take the ferry to Tarifa or Algeciras?

4. From there we'll most probably rent a car so we can move at our own pace. We'd like someone to propose a route so we can reach Madrid on the 20th or the 21st before our flight on the 22nd. We're interested in seeing parks and nature and some history in Andalusia.

Thanks a million in advance :)

1. Yes, move to Fez directly from Casablanca

2. I would stay at least 2 nights in Fez. I have not been to Chefchaouen or Tangier, but from everything I've read I wouldn't bother spending anytime in Tangier.

3. Rather than taking the ferry to Spain I would recommend flying from Fez to your next destination in Spain

You mention that you are most interested in nature/scenery and not too much culture/history, if that is the case I would have to say that the High Atlas region outside of Marrakech would be my recommendation for nature/scenery. The desert too, but you really won't have time for that. You will be hit straight on with the culture and history of Morocco, it will be difficult to get "not too much".

Here are some links to my trip reports along with pictures from our trip to Morocco and Andalucia
http://www.fromhometoroam.com/catego...frica/morocco/
http://www.fromhometoroam.com/catego...ope/andalucia/

Ultimately, with only 10 days you are short changing both southern Spain and Morocco. Since your flights are set you may want to spend more time in Morocco and just fly to Madrid at the end for 2-3 nights before flying home.

We were in Casablanca, Marrakesh and then in the Sahara in Sept/Oct. We found it worth every penny we paid to hire a driver although we always travel independently. One of the 'don't miss' things we did was take a short camel ride in the desert and spend the night in a Berber tent. Our driver was Ali who was with Desert Majesty at that time. http://www.desertmajesty.com/ He has since gone into business for himself with Morocco Day Trips http://www.moroccodaytrip.com/ . He really knew almost every inch of the entire area and we had a much better vacation as we didn't have to get lost in the desert. We were happy with both Ali and with Desert Majesty if you are interested in having a driver. The traffic in Marrakesh is like nothing you've ever seen, even if you're from NYC. We didn't get to Fes this time, but I understand it is quite different. I've heard various thoughts regarding whether the train service is reliable or not, but there is a train between Marrakesh and Fes.

I forgot to say that the Hassan II Mosque in Casablanca is worth seeing if you haven't been to a mosque. Here's a video that I made there. However, it is a bit time consuming to go to Casablanca and see the mosque and then go somewhere else. That is the only thing we did in Casa.. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CiWTN...re=c4-overview

Thank you for your comments and suggestions :) I realize that I haven't done enough research before booking the flights. Anyhow I'm trying to find the "greenest" route through Morocco and Spain. Aren't there some parks, waterfalls, nature reserves in the North of Morocco and South of Spain?
Thank you!

Yes, there is a beautiful garden in the heart of Marrakesh. Here is a video that I made there in September,2013. The name of it is Majorelle Botanical Gardens. http://www.jardinmajorelle.com/ It is really gorgeous. There is also a restaurant inside the area that is pretty good.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=60Ya1...SNQkjZARMNzQEg

Oops, I forgot to mention the beautiful waterfalls too. The Ouzoud Waterfalls (Cascades d'Ouzou) are located in Azila just northeast of Marrakesh. I made a video there too. There are some really cute monkeys there too and a good restaurant.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M6YR3...re=c4-overview

Thank you Caroline! You have been extremely helpful :)