Wild Morocco
9-Day Morocco Nature Tour: Agadir to Fes
Nine days from Agadir to Fes, for the birds, the forest and the desert between them
- 9 days · 8 nights
- Agadir → Fes
- About 32 hours over 9 days. driving
Morocco is the last country in the world with a wild population of northern bald ibis, and they're forty minutes from Agadir airport. Almost nobody who comes here to look at wildlife knows that, and almost nobody local is set up to take them. This route runs from the Atlantic estuaries up through argan forest, across the pre-Sahara, and finishes in the cedar forest of the Middle Atlas where the Barbary macaques are. It's a genuine wildlife trip rather than a scenic one that happens to pass some animals, which means early starts, patient sitting, and days shaped around when things are actually moving. Bring binoculars. I'll bring the patience.
Why I run it this wayWildlife doesn't take bookings. I'll get you to the right places at the right hours and we'll wait — and I'll tell you honestly what the season makes likely rather than what would sell the trip.
The things worth stopping for
- Souss-Massa, the last place on earth with wild northern bald ibis
- The Oued Massa estuary at dusk, when everything comes down to the water
- Desert wildlife around Merzouga, and the lake when there's water in it
- Barbary macaques in the cedar forest above Azrou
Where this trip takes you
Straight lines between stops, not the exact roads — the driving is the winding version of this.
How the trip goes
-
Day 1: Souss-Massa, and the estuary at dusk
Driving: About 1.5 hoursStraight out of Agadir into Souss-Massa National Park. The Oued Massa estuary in the late afternoon, when the herons, spoonbills and waders come down to the water and the light does what it does over an estuary.
-
Day 2: Bald ibis at Tamri
Driving: About 3 hoursNorth to Tamri and Cap Rhir, where the bald ibis feed on the coastal steppe — the only wild colony left anywhere. Argan forest on the way back, goats in the branches included if they feel like it.
-
Day 3: Paradise Valley, then inland
Driving: About 3 hoursThe palm gorge in the morning while it's cool, then east away from the coast to Taroudant, which still sits inside its full circuit of walls.
-
Day 4: Saffron country
Driving: About 4 hoursUp onto the Anti-Atlas plateau through Taliouine, where the saffron is grown, and on to Taznakht for the night.
-
Day 5: Into the kasbah country
Driving: About 4 hoursEast to Ait Ben Haddou and the Ounila valley, finishing at Ouarzazate where the desert properly begins.
-
Day 6: The gorges
Driving: About 4 hoursRose Valley and Skoura's palm groves, then up into the Dades and across to Todra, where the walls close to a few metres apart and the birds nest in them.
-
Day 7: Out to the dunes
Driving: About 3 hoursEast to Merzouga. If there's water in Dayet Srji, the flamingos are on it — that depends entirely on the season, and I'll tell you before we go. Desert dusk, camp, and whatever the night brings.
-
Day 8: North into the cedars
Driving: About 6 hoursDesert dawn, then a long drive north up the Ziz to Midelt and on into the cedar forest above Azrou, where the macaques are. Late afternoon is when they come down.
-
Day 9: Lakes, and into Fes
Driving: About 3 hoursThe Middle Atlas lakes in the morning — different birds again, and quiet — then down through Ifrane into Fes.
I'll email you this itinerary — every day, what's included, what it costs — so you can think it over and share it.
One email with the itinerary. No account, and I don't pass your address to anyone — see the privacy policy.
What's included
Included
- Private air-conditioned van with me driving
- 8 nights accommodation including 1 in a desert camp
- Breakfast each morning, dinner at the camp
- Park access arranged where it's needed
- Fuel, tolls and parking
- Agadir pickup, Fes drop-off
Not included
- Flights and visas
- Travel insurance
- Lunches and dinners unless listed
- Entrance fees to monuments and museums
- Local guides inside the medinas
- Tips
Read more about where you'll be
A closer look
Other routes worth a look
2 Days · 1 Nights2-Day Zagora Desert Tour from Marrakech
Two Days to Zagora$230–$310 per person · accommodation included
3 Days · 2 Nights3-Day Merzouga Desert Tour from Marrakech
Three Days to the Dunes$390–$530 per person · accommodation included
3 Days · 2 Nights3-Day Marrakech to Fes Desert Tour via Merzouga
The High Atlas Crossing$420–$580 per person · accommodation includedTell me when you're coming
Every route bends: more time somewhere, a different start, a night added. Send your dates and I'll plan it around you.