Archaeology, Palaeontology & Geology Tour 13 Days

You've arrived in Casablanca. Your driver will greet you at the airport and transport you to your hotel, where you can check in. Later that evening, you will be treated to a welcome meal and will spend the night in the hotel.

Your Moroccan adventure starts with a half-day guided tour of Casablanca, which will take you to the most notable landmarks in both the modern city and the medina. The beautiful Hassan II Mosque, the largest mosque in the country and the seventh largest in the world, is included in the trip.

The edifice, built by Michel Pinseau, is a monument to Moroccan architectural craftsmanship, with 35,000 workers working on its carved stucco, zellige tile work, painted cedar ceiling, and marble, onyx, and travertine cladding.

We'll most likely travel by the Royal Palace and the Mahkama du Pacha, a 1941 architectural marvel with a strong Moorish influence. After a delicious lunch in Casablanca (perhaps by the sea), we will drive 1.5 hours to El Jadida and spend the night at a Riad.

Following breakfast, our local tour guide will take you on a walking tour of El Jadida's medina, where the Portuguese settled in 1502 and erected the fortified fortress known as Mazagan. Over time, the town grew into a significant trading center, and ships from Europe and the east docked there to pick up supplies. Sultan Sidi Mohammed ejected the Portuguese, who dynamited it as they left in 1769. At the beginning of the nineteenth century, it was resettled by local Arab tribes and a sizable Jewish community from Azemmour.

El Jadida (The New One) was the town's name at the time, but it was temporarily changed. Mazagan was the original name under the French Protectorate.

On this one-day tour of El Jadida, you'll see the Manueline Cistern beneath the citadel, as well as the Walled Portuguese City. We'll play it by ear when it comes to visiting other attractions. The magnificent old-world construction of the Manueline Cistern, complete with massive arches, columns, and pillars, was featured in Orson Welles' film, "Othello": In addition, the Portuguese Walled City, located in the heart of El Jadida, is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. El Jadida has many beaches, so we might go to one for a seafood meal. El Jadida is where you'll spend the night.

After breakfast, drive to Safi for a one-hour walk through the historic -medina in the town center, which has remains of designs and architecture from the Portuguese occupation. The Portuguese fortress, or kechla, for example, was once a cathedral completed in 1519. We'll take a break and have lunch at one of the beach restaurants - because you can't beat a seaside lunch, can you?

After lunch, we go directly to the archeological site of Jebel Irhoud, which is about 50 kilometers south-east of Safi. Although the site is now deserted, it was here in 1960 that hominid fossils dating back around 300,000 years were unearthed. Originally assumed to be Neanderthal remains, the specimens have recently been attributed to Homo sapiens or Homo helmei (reported in 2017). After this archaeological tour, we drive to Essaouira along the coast via Souiria beach.

We'll eat dinner and spend the night in Essaouira.

Essaouira, originally known as Mogador by Portuguese colonists, is a magnificent coastal city with outstanding architecture that merges the designs of numerous civilisations and cultures. The bustling harbour, undulating sand dunes, and excellent beaches will captivate you, and the Medina, with its alleyways lined by white and blue homes, is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Today, meet your guide at the front entrance of your hotel and explore the low sea walls, where you'll see seaside kiosks serving fried seafood. Close by, craggy-faced old men scale fish for the market in the sun. The walled city, the wild Atlantic Ocean, and the sea's stunning wave motion on the rocky shore are all fantastic photo opportunities.

You may photograph Essaouira's azure blue fishing boats and marvel at the baskets of shining fish, giant crabs, and prawns. You will spend another night in Essaouira.

After breakfast, your driver will pick you up from your hotel and drive you about three hours to Marrakech, possibly stopping at an argan oil cooperative that offers higher quality and less priced oil than those available outside of Morocco. Please keep in mind that the ladies grinding the nuts at the co-op will ask you to photograph them and then demand money.

Marrakech is located on a verdant plain, with the snowy High Atlas Mountains in the background. It was created in 1062 by Almoravids from the Sahara, who carved out an empire stretching from Algeria to Spain. In 1106, Sultan Ali ben Youssef commissioned artisans from Andalusia to construct a palace and a mosque in the city. He also built defenses around the city and khettaras, or underground canals, an amazing irrigation system that provided water to the city's vast palm grove. The medina, or ancient part, was awarded a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1985. You will spend the rest of the day touring some of Marrakech's most important sites, after consulting with your guide beforehand, as there is just too much to see in just one day. These could include the Saadian dynastic tombs from the 16th century, which are located in a beautiful garden complex. They are among the best specimens of medieval Islamic art, not only because of their spectacular stucco adornment, but also because of their exquisitely carved cedar ceilings. Another important site is the Koutoubia Mosque, which is the largest in Marrakech and is famous for its magnificent tower, which is the oldest of the three Almohad minarets still standing today. Its companion minaret is now a part of the Cathedral in Seville, Spain.

You could walk by the Royal Palace's entry façade and stop to examine the ruins of the 16th century Badi Palace. Despite being stripped of its finery, enough of the palace remains to appreciate the majesty and scope of the sultan's reign. Koubba Baadiyn is the oldest building in Marrakech and the only Almoravid edifice to have survived intact in Morocco. The ornate art reflects Almoravid art at its peak. If you visit Bahia Palace, you will be transported to the nineteenth century, since it is an excellent example of the style of the wealthy who lived at the time.

Marrakech is also known for its many beautiful gardens. Majorelle Garden, for example, was Jacques Majorelle's creative triumph, and in 1980 the property was acquired to Yves Saint-Laurent, who restored it. You'd walk through the lush vegetation, past streams and waterlily-filled pools framed by azure blue walls, to the Islamic Art Museum, which holds Saint-Laurent's personal collection of North African antiques. The driver will accompany you to your Riad, where you will dine and spend the night in Marrakech.

After breakfast, you will depart from your Marrakech riad for the Imi N'ifri and Geopark M'Goun day tour. It will take somewhat more than two hours each trip. This day trip is optional, so if any of you would prefer relax at the riad in Marrakech, that's OK. Make your first stop at Imi N'ifri Bridge, a natural arch carved in Lower Jurassic limestone by the river Wadi Tissikht 180 million years ago. The bridge and its façade are formed by the precipitation of spring water rich in dissolved calcium carbonates at the source of recent travertine deposits. The wildlife and flora have been identified as biological and environmentally significant.

The bridge is a geomorphological wonder, and numerous birds nest there. It is sought after by both scientists interested in cave development and visitors interested in exploring this fascinating habitat.

Continue into the M'Goun UNESCO Global Geopark from here; its geological history extends back to the Triassic period, 250 million years ago, with the main stages happening around 180 million years ago. The geopark is well-known for its dinosaur tracks, which include well-known and beautiful footprints of sauropod and theropod a dinosaurs, as well as numerous bone deposits. Minerals discovered in the area include copper, zinc, barite, iron, basalt, limestone, and Anda dolomitic Triassic red clays.

Lunch will be served in a gite (a traditional Berber-style mud-brick building) near Ait Blal, one of the dinosaur sites. After lunch, you may have time to admire the verdant surroundings of Ait Blal before returning to Marrakech, where your driver will accompany you to your riad.

After breakfast in Marrakech, you begin your drive to Taroudant by passing via ljoukak Kasbah, which belonged to the Goundafa, a powerful clan who controlled the Tizi N'Test pass and the entire region in the nineteenth century. Continue on to Tin Mal Mosque, which is located in an isolated environment at the foot of the Atlas Mountains and is the final remaining remnant of the Almohad invasion in the 12th century. Tin Mal, a fortified holy town, was built about 1125 by theologian Ibn Toumart. From here, he began a holy war against the Almoravids and was recognized as a religious leader by the High Atlas Berber tribes.

Lunch will be at Tizi N'Test before arriving in Taroudant, Morocco's former capital, in the late evening. You might have lunch and a swim at Sel diallers, a guesthouse near the village of Marigha, instead of Tizi N'Test. If you've been in Theda for a while, you might be able to spend the night there.

Taroudant, surrounded by orchards, orange groves, and olive trees and surrounded by red-ochre ramparts, has all the charm of an old Moroccan fortified town. It was captured by the Almoravids in 1056 and became the capital of the Saadians in the 16th century, who used it as a base to oppose the Portuguese in Agadir. Although the Saadians eventually chose Marrakech as their city, the richness of the Souss plain, which yielded sugar cane, cotton, rice, and indigo, made Taroudant affluent. After breakfast at your hotel, you will go on a guided walking tour of Taroudant's medina. The journey takes you around the 7-kilometer-long ramparts.

A modest tannery located beyond the walls sells goatskin and camel hide sandals, lambskin carpets, soft leather bags, belts, and slippers. You'll walk from here to the souks, passing through the Assaraga and Talmokalt squares. Spices, vegetables, textiles, home products, pottery, and other intriguing items are sold at the daily Berber market. The Araba souk focuses on handicrafts such as terracotta, wrought iron, brass and copper, ceramics, leather items, carpets, and Jewish-style Berber jewelry. Taroudant is known for its carvings in chalky white stone. There is so much to see and learn here. Lunch will be served in one of Taroudant's restaurants. Taroudant for dinner and the night.

After breakfast, you'll go to Taliouine, the world's largest saffron-growing region. You will visit a women's cooperative to learn about the benefits of saffron. This group excursion has the advantage of taking place in November, which is saffron harvesting season. Following that, there will be a journey to Tazenakht, which is well-known for its large assortment of Berber rugs. You will visit another women's cooperative here, where you will see how rugs are made and learn about the meaning of Berber symbols in the weaving.

Lunch will be in Tazenakht, followed by a visit to the Draa valley and its wealth of ksours (also spelled "ksars") and kasbahs*Many, including Tamnougalt, are in good condition. It was a former Berber capital with lofty towers resembling truncated pyramids. Berber Accommodation in or near Agdz for dinner and overnight.

After breakfast, enjoy a dusty off-road trek to Ait Ouazik to see local prehistoric rock engravings. These rock sculptures are the relics of an ancient tribe and depict a completely different environment than today's arid dry Sahara. This was formerly a savanna, home to gazelles, ostriches, rhinos, and elephants. The rock carvings also show elaborate interlaced lines and circular designs that look out of place and are perplexing. After listening to your guide's talks about the rock engravings at Ait Ouazik, you'll head straight to Alnif for lunch at a local restaurant. Following lunch, you'll travel to Rissani, which was previously the capital of the Tafilalt region and was erected near the ruins of Sijilmassa. Sijilmassa is supposed to have been created as an independent kingdom in 757 AD, eventually becoming an important halting point on trans-Saharan caravan routes. It prospered over the centuries due to trade in gold, slaves, salt, weaponry, ivory, and spices, reaching its pinnacle in the 13th and 14th century. In Rissani, you'll explore the souk, one of Morocco's most famous markets. Corrals contain donkeys, mules, sheep, and goats. Stalls are stacked high with gleaming pyramids of dates ranging in color from masses of gold to cocoa brown, as well as vegetables and spices. Jewellery, daggers, rugs, woven palm-fibre baskets, pottery, and distinctive native leather products made from goat skins tanned with tamarisk bark are on sale beneath palm-matting roofs and in tiny winding passageways. The day concludes with dinner and an overnight stay in Erfoud.

Sijilmassa is supposed to have been created as an independent kingdom in 757 AD, eventually becoming an important halting point on trans-Saharan caravan routes. It prospered over the centuries due to trade in gold, slaves, salt, weaponry, ivory, and spices, reaching its pinnacle in the 13th and 14th century. In Rissani, you'll explore the souk, one of Morocco's most famous markets. Corrals contain donkeys, mules, sheep, and goats. Stalls are stacked high with gleaming pyramids of dates ranging in color from masses of gold to cocoa brown, as well as vegetables and spices.

Jewellery, daggers, rugs, woven palm-fibre baskets, pottery, and distinctive native leather products made from goat skins tanned with tamarisk bark are on sale beneath palm-matting roofs and in tiny winding passageways. The day concludes with dinner and an overnight stay in Erfoud.

Paleontological studies indicates that the Ergoregion was once a seabed with several sorts of marine animals, many of which are no longer found. Their existence, however, is clearly preserved in the fossils that founded this region. Geologically, there are numerous mines and quarries where fossils are lodged in massive rocks, with each quarry having its own age features. There have been discovered fossilized remains of ancient molluscs such as ammonites, goniatites, and Orthoceras dating back 370 million years. Today, after breakfast at our Erfoud lodging, our driver and guide will take us to the outskirts of Erfoud to examine the vast quantity of fossils embedded in the stony desert. Following that, you'll go to the souk at the southern end of town, where farmers sell fresh dates and other local products. If you plan this journey in late October, you might be able to attend the three-day festival celebrated in Erfoud shortly after the date harvest. After meandering through the souk, you'll pay a visit to Brahim Tahiri's private museum to learn about Moroccan fossils. Scientifically noteworthy specimens are shown alongside lesser samples available for purchase in their shop. Brahim's efforts to increase awareness of Morocco's rich geological heritage have even resulted in the name Asteropyge tahiri being given to his own trilobite. Lunch will be served in a traditional eatery. After lunch, you'll visit the photogenic historic Ksar Maadid, which is near to the auberge. ksar Maadid is claimed to be the greatest fortified settlement in southern Morocco. You will walk through its narrow alleyways and take in the authentic ancient ambiance. If you want to see it, there are a couple videos on YouTube. The journey continues with a trip to one of the underground irrigation channels, known as khettaras. Access to water in Morocco's desert regions was challenging a few centuries ago, not as straightforward as it is today. Residents in the south-east of Morocco used to build akhettaras, an archaic irrigation system designed to transfer water without active pumping, to irrigate plots of land. Finally, return to your lodging in the late evening for dinner. Dinner and an overnight stay.

After a leisurely breakfast at your hotel, your driver will transport you to Errachidia airport for a 7.30 a.m. flight to Casablanca.