Day Trip from Fez to Volubilis

Our Fes to Volubilis day trip is an exciting experience that will enrich your cultural baggage as you visit the Roman ruins in Volubilis, the town of Moulay Idriss, and the Ismaili capital of Morocco, Meknes.

We will pick you up from your hotel at 9 o’clock to start our fantastic Fes to Volubilis excursion, driving first thing through the Saiss Plains to reach the ancient Roman city of Volubilis, which is more than 2000 years old! Volubilis is one of the few places in Morocco where you can still visit Roman ruins that are so well-preserved. Furthermore, the ruins you’ll visit in our Fes to Volubilis day trip are located on a fertile plain among wheat fields, and you’ll get a very daily-life feeling from them, as they include olive presses, mansions, stunning mosaics, magnificent arches and Corinthian columns in a style that will remind you both of the Romans and the medieval Berber towns.

Among other buildings, you will also find the mansions of the city’s elite, where some of the real treasures of Volubilis can be found, such as mosaics and carvings of Greek myths that contribute to making this Roman outpost so special. As soon as you arrive in Volubilis, you will busk in the glory of the old stories told by these mansions, like that of the mosaic of the Labors of Hercules, or the ones told by the remaining fragments of the mosaics of the Baths of Gallienus and of Forum; the House of Orpheus with its Dolphin mosaic and Orpheus Myth; the Cortege of Venus, though many of these will be only be accessible from the outside, but still you will get to see the medallions of Bacchus, Diana and the Abduction of Hylas, the Gordian Palace with the ancient pooled courtyards and its antique bath house; the House of the Wild Beast, the House of Nymphs, the house of the Seasons, the House of Flavius Germanus, the Knight’s House with its unfinished mosaic of Dionysus Discovering Ariadne Asleep, the Triumphal Arch, the Capitol and the House of Ephebus with its pictorial mosaics, particularly that of Bacchus being drawn in a chariot by Panthers.

After busking in the glory of the Roman empire in our Fes to Volubilis day trip, we’ll move just 5km away from Volubilis to reach the town of Moulay Idriss, regarded as one of the most sacred Islamic towns in Morocco, place of pilgrimage (Moussem) for thousands of Moroccan devoted who every August arrive to pray at the tomb of Prophet Muhammad’s descendant (PBUH). The rectangular square will welcome you as the green-tiled pyramids of the Zaouia look down on us with their two conical quarters on both sides. You’ll walk these intricate paths before moving on to the Imperial City rebuilt by Moulay Ismail.

Leaving Moulay Idriss, our next stop is the Imperial City of Meknes (a UNESCO World Heritage Site), whose importance is signaled by the three sets of fortifications cleverly incorporated into the city’s streets. The remnants of the original imperial city conceal the king’s tomb at their very heart, sided by the impressive royal granary, the grandiose Bab Mansour — so stunning that not even Fez can’t compete with it — and the Place El Hedim, where you can find the core tradition of the city in its shops and folklore. Lunch will be in Meknes, then we will depart in the late afternoon for Fes. Once there, our driver will leave you at the hotel/riad, and our unforgettable Fes to Volubilis excursion will end.