Rif Mountains Trekking Tour

Upon your arrival at Casablanca airport, you will be greeted by your Lady tour leader, who will take you on your first journey along the Atlantic shore to the magnificent city of Rabat. Your guide will immerse you in the history of Morocco. This scenic drive of about 45 miles passes through lush farmland and nurseries growing various flowers and exotic plants. After check-in and relaxing in the morning, you may choose to do the half-day city tour of Rabat.

Rabat is laid out in a spaciously elegant European grid style. Slightly self-conscious of its modernity, Rabat and its twin city, Sala Colonia, are separated by only a river. Still, historically, they are worlds apart, with an ancient legacy spanning hundreds of generations. Each civilization inhabited by both cities has left its mark, resulting in various architectural styles, including those from the Phoenician and Roman eras. Your lady guide will also brief you about women’s development and lifestyle in Morocco.

The city tour, which is historical and lively, will start at the Jewish quarter in Mellah. In the Heart of the city at Place Sidi Makhlouf, the 12th-century ramparts are best seen. Next, you will visit Bab Chellah and the medina across from Sidi Fateh Street. This will lead you to the traditional Souk Laghzel (Yarn market). Your guide will introduce you to the importance of the textile guild and its role in Moroccan society. Later, you will cross to the citadel of the Oudaya Kasbah, entering from its 12th-century main gate to explore an extraordinary Medieval Moorish marvel overlooking the delta of the Bouregreg River. You will have the opportunity to visit the Moorish old-fashioned gardens and a traditional coffee house to enjoy the best standard cookies Moroccan ladies fashion in their homes for special occasions.

Your group of women will continue your quest by exiting the Oudaya Kasbah and proceeding up the hill to visit the Hassan Tower and see samples of authentic Moroccan architecture at its best at Mohamed the V Mausoleum. From here, we will drive through the boulevards and Gardens of Rabat, visiting the Saint Pierre Cathedral, the Parliament, the Sunna Mosque, and the Royal Palace through the magnificent Ramparts and by the tower standing proud and glorious to reach the Necropolis of Chellah. (hotel accommodation)

Start your day traveling with your women’s small group tour in Morocco, north to Chefchaouen, the jewel of the Rif Mountains and one of the best blue cities in the Mediterranean Bassin. Travel to Ourzagh in the Jbala mountains to reach the holy city of Ouazzane. After being the only lost village called Dchera Jbal Erihan (the town on the hill of Myrtles), the distinguished Idrissid Sherif Moulay Abdullah Ben Brahim made it a center of Sufism and a place for the Taibia Sufi order. Visit the historic sites with your local guide and proceed to discover Chefchaouen, one of the old Moorish white towns. Your riad is owned by a woman who will greet you with a traditional mint tea and cookies of her own making.

Travel from Chefchaouen on your exclusive women's trekking tour across the beautiful road of the sprawling farming settlement from the Roman time of Fez el Bali. Then, experience the unique Berber and Moorish lifestyles in the Amergou Mountains. This route will be lined by picturesque villages with majestic evergreen forests providing a natural backdrop. Start your afternoon with an excursion to hike in the Tamesnit, in the heart of the Rif Mountains, the Belvedere of Lalla Outka, and the isolated shrine of Moulay Bouchta El Khammar (Master of Music). The shrine is also a pilgrimage destination for Berber musicians who come to pay their respects and seek blessings. The night will be hosted by a Berber family of mountaineers who will share their best natural cooking for a festive tribal dinner with our women guests on tours in Morocco. Enjoy an encounter with Moroccan women in their homes. (Camping night).

Have an excellent homemade breakfast prepared for you by the women’s household. Afterward, we will gather for a travel day, debrief our women’s group travel day, bid goodbye to host Berber ladies and take off to Taza. Drive to Taza in the morning, an ancient city that stands as the gateway of the Middle Atlas. We will cross the Rif Massif surrounded by pine, acacia, and cedar trees, as far as the eye can see. Monkeys and thousands of bird species can also be seen. Enjoy mild hiking in the Jebala Mountains as a group of women. We will also visit a day market in a village to explore women trading in these traditional souks. Most of the crafts in this area are made by women. Dinner and overnight will be in the hotel.

We will meet in the morning for breakfast and travel debriefing. Our women’s group will be introduced to the local guide, who will take you in the morning on a historic visit to Old Taza, then take you on a hiking afternoon to the Friouato Mountains, and also visit the taverns of Friouato. Our group of women travelers will enjoy the breathtaking sceneries and beautiful Berber villages that fill up the vistas of these areas unknown to mass tourists. Your exclusive women’s expedition is absolutely in unchartered tourist areas. You will be pioneers of these ecotourism programs in Morocco, sustaining these rural communities in remote regions of Morocco. This is as exclusive as it gets, especially for women explorers. Dinner and overnight are in the hotel.

Return in time, crossing one of the most remote Berber nomadic territories. Meet with the packing mules and hike across the Jbel Tichchoukt. Encounter Berber shepherds in their pasturing migration. Travel through the ranges of Sebou. Stop at Ribat al Khayer to explore a typical Berber village of the region, and proceed later to Sefrou, an ancient trade outpost from the Phoenician time and a center of Jewish heritage from the dawn of time. Visit villages and souks to Fez. Dinner and accommodation are in the hotel.

You will spend the entire day exploring the Medina of Fez and discovering its fascinating Souks. Fez stimulates the senses with its haunting yet beautiful sounds, visual splendor, and evocative smells. The most ancient of imperial capitals and the complete medieval city of the Islamic world, Fez is reminiscent of a city suspended in time. It is unfazed by the constantly evolving world outside its walls and owes nothing to the Western world save electricity. Time spent in Fez will reveal much about the sophistication of the Moroccan artisan, providing an unparalleled learning experience to those who cross its path.

Our specialized guide will take you on a historic discovery of the city of Fez, starting at the King’s Palace and its Meshwar with ramparts and majestic gates in the Jewish quarter, a 15th-century citadel with its Moorish maze architecture and medieval glory. Visits to Sephardic synagogues and mausoleums of holy Rabbis will be the highlights of this part of town. Then we will drive to Merinids Hill to visit their cemetery, where you will enjoy the best panoramic view of the Old Walled Medina, brimming with all its countless minarets calling the faithful to prayers in a city that has responded to these calls for 12 centuries. Drive down the hill to the gate of Bab Guissa to leave your vehicle and enter a world that belongs to an ancient time. Fez has conserved its integrity, and the Medina is still as it was centuries ago. Not even a bicycle can be used as a tool of transportation. Only donkeys, mules, and horses can help move everything the city produces and needs as supplies. The first guilds you will immediately encounter are the cobblers. The saddlers and blacksmiths were interlaced by some caravansaries for tribespeople who came from the surrounding areas to trade and supply their needs.

Down the hill to Juteya, you will encounter all sorts of crafts, but noticeably carpenters and leather workers as one of the traditional tanneries is pretty close. This walk will lead you to El Ashabine Square, which has different activities. From there, we will wind our way to the Sgha square, leading us to Attarine, Souk el henna, and the Mausoleum of Moulay Idris, the founder of Fez. Next to it, you will visit the Nejjarine Square with its famous fountain, its guild of carpentry, the museum of folk arts at the Fondouk, the tannery, and on to see the great Mosque University of Al Quarrawiyyine. You will then pass by the market of dried fruits, the Medersa Attarine to the Sbetryyine bookbinders, the Seffarine Square, where the tapping of metalworkers is still deafening to passersby as it has been for centuries. You will break for lunch and then continue exploring the marvels of the Fez Medina. These will be highlighted by the Dyers souk, Foundouk Tetouani, the shrine of Sidi Ahmed Tijani, and then on to Foundouk Lihoudi, where a family will host you for a traditional mint tea in their home. Return to your hotel for dinner and accommodations.

After breakfast in the morning, you will depart for Casablanca, which is about a 2.5-hour drive. However, the whole day will be spent touring significant points of historical interest between the two cities. You will travel first to Meknes on an excursion that embodies a large part of Morocco's early history. En route to Meknes, you will travel through the Zaer confederation, where fertile, large-scale farms and vineyards are abundant. You will also see the Zemmour Berber tribes starting at Tifelt, known for wearing their colorful Moroccan hats as a sign of wealth among farming communities. You will then see the hills of Zemmour starting at Khemisset, a city known for its exquisite Kilims. You will proceed to Meknes, a city created to rival Fez. Meknes is what Moroccans call the Versailles of Morocco.

Ten miles outside this city, you will find the ruins of Volubilis, Morocco’s Roman provincial capital. It is a Roman city that survived in its authentic style until the 17th-century earthquake in Lisbon. It is still one of the world's largest and most complete Roman sites. Less than a mile east on the other side of the hill, you will discover the gem of Morocco, Moulay Idris, a creation of the country's premier Arab dynasty. It is an 8th-century town that has stayed faithful to its existence. If it is of interest and time allows, you will also visit the highlights of Casablanca with your guide. Dinner is at the Hotel.

Transfer in the morning to the Airport to connect with your international flight to your next destination.