Chefchaouen is the famous blue city of Morocco located in the north of the country. We spent 2 days in Chefchaouen wandering through the narrow blue streets, eating incredible food and discovering the beautiful Riff Mountains.
Some of our favourite cities in the world (for example, Vancouver and Seoul) have mountain backdrops just like Chefchaouen so we instantly fell in love with the hilly landscapes!
When we say Chefchaouen is a blue city, it most definitely is a blue city – everything in the medina is painted blue from the walls to the houses, the floor of the streets and the surrounding decor.
Chefchaouen is also incredibly chill compared to the other destinations in Morocco we’d been and there was a relaxed atmosphere in the air.
We’re here to show you there’s much more than the beautiful blue streets of the city. From Chefchaouen we discovered gorgeous waterfalls, mountain views and incredible sunsets. Let’s get into this 2 day Chefchaouen itinerary!
This post may contain affiliate links. We will receive a small commission if you make a purchase using these links, at no additional cost to you.
2 Day Chefchaouen Itinerary: Top Things To Do
Chefchaouen is becoming a popular travel destination due to its photographable blue medina. It’s easy to take a day trip or weekend break from Spain to reach this city as it’s only a few hours away from the port.
We still didn’t find it too busy although there are a lot of people taking photos and sometimes in groups.
If you need travel insurance for your trip – check out SafetyWing! We grabbed a sim card at Marrakech airport when we landed, but you can also get a Morrocan E-sim in advance here on Airalo!
Al Barid Bank is the best bank for getting money out in Morocco as they have no foreign transaction charge for your card (we use Starling UK).
It’s best to base yourself in the medina of Chefchaouen, we stayed at Riad Mauritania during our trip and it was the perfect location! We also have a 2 week Morocco itinerary!
Day 1 – The Blue Medina, Monuments & Sunsets
When arriving into Chefchaouen by CTM bus, we got a first glimpse of just how hilly the city is! The bus station is a 15-20 minute walk away from the medina and some of that is up some steep hills. The best thing to do would be to flag down a taxi, but of course we walked!
Once you’ve dropped your bags off, it’s time to start your 2 day Chefchaeoun itinerary!
Explore the Medina
Chefchaouen Medina is the main area in Chefchaouen and where you’ll spend most of your time. Most of the accommodations are located here and you’ll find shops, souvenirs, restaurants and juice stalls!
The Medina is also the reason Chefchaouen is named the ‘Blue Pearl of Morocco’ and why the city is so popular to visit.
We couldn’t really figure out why the city was painted blue but it’s said that blue is the symbol of God and it was originally the Jews that started painting. It’s very unique and so different to any other place in Morocco!
Bab El Ain is the main gate for entering the Medina, especially if you’re coming from the CTM Bus Station (like we did).
Once you enter the medina, you’ll be greeted by many shops selling clothes, food, fridge magnets and general Moroccan products!
As your day will be spent within the medina, we’ll share the best things to do during your Chefchaouen itinerary. You can also book a Private Walking Tour in Chefchaouen to learn about the city as you explore!
➤ Also visiting Fes in Morocco? Here’s our travel guide on how to spend 2 days in Fes!
Dine in Place Uta el-Hammam
It didn’t take us long to come across Place Uta el-Hammam, the main square in Chefchaouen.
Place Uta el Hammam is where everything happens in Chefchaouen! You really can’t miss it as it’s in the centre of the medina. We ate here every evening during our Chefchaouen itinerary, with our favourite restaurant being Bilmos!
A few of the restaurants in the area have hosts that will try to lure you into their restaurants, which is slightly annoying but expected!
Admire The Grand Mosque
The Grand Mosque is in the centre of the square amongst all the restaurants. Only Muslims can enter the mosque, but it’s lovely to admire from the outside. We watched people go in and out of the mosque whilst we were dining at Bilmos opposite.
Visit the Al Kasaba
The Kasbah is also in Place Uta el-Hammam and is one of Chefchaouen’s beautiful landmarks! We’ve heard that the garden is lovely to visit but sadly it’s quite pricey to enter, so we only admired the building and walls from the outside.
There’s also a tower to head up to see panoramic views of the square and gardens!
The Kasbah is also home to the Ethnographic Museum of Chefchaouen where you can find a variety of artefacts and history.
💰 60 dirham per person
Walk through Place El Haouta
During our 2 day Chefchaouen we came across another square a little bit away from the touristy areas. It seems to be a place for locals to gather and socialise with a few shops and cafes.
We saw the cutest street kittens here and filled up the containers with water. The locals do look after the cats, but there are so many in Chefchaouen, it must be hard to keep up with new cats all the time.
Take Photos of the Blue Streets
It’s not every day you come across streets fully painted in blue – so we went on a little self-guided photoshoot! We also noticed a few professional photoshoots or locals charging for photos on random streets.
If you want to avoid the crowds, you may want to roam the streets before 10 am, although the light won’t be on your side.
Note – Locals live all throughout the medina which means you’ll likely be passing the front doors and windows of houses. If you’re looking for the best photos, just be respectful that someone might live there!
If you’re interested in a professional photoshoot, you can book with a Local Photographer in Chefchaouen to take the best photos!
Admire the views of Chefchaouen
When wandering around the blue streets of the medina, we seemed to end up near the north gate and just kept walking – the views were amazing!
Chefchaouen is truly nestled into a lovely area in Morocco and we spent a while here soaking up the green hills. Here’s the location on Google Maps, so you can visit here too!
➤ Plan the rest of your trip with our 2 Week Morocco Travel Guide!
Drink a Juice at Ras El Ma
Ras El Ma is the place to see the water pouring from the mountains! It’s a small but heavy waterfall leading into a river where locals use it for washing absolutely anything! We noticed clothes hanging from the trees and a guy was cleaning his bike.
This is also the best place in Chefchaouen to get freshly squeezed orange juice and street corn at night. You’ll find many stalls with juice and lots of oranges in tubs filled with fresh water!
Visit the Spanish Mosque at Sunset
Spanish Mosque is also known as Bouzafer Mosque – an active place of worship overlooking Chefchaouen.
The best time to visit the Mosque is at sunset! We watched the sun set over the city and disappear behind the mountains and it was magical! It was one of our favourite things we did during our 2 days in Chefchaouen.
It takes about 20 minutes to reach the mosque from the medina, but the trail is clearly marked from Ras El Ma.
End your day with dinner in the main square and get ready for the next part of your 2 day Chefchaouen itinerary!
Day 2 – Nature & Waterfalls
When I first heard about Chefchaouen, I would have never known you could go hiking nearby! After a bit of research, I quickly learnt that the Riff Mountains are so close but we had no idea how to go hiking from the city.
You’ll need a full day for this trip, especially if you want to hike two trails like we did!
We walked from the medina to the CTM Bus Station where you can find Grand Taxi’s that takes you to Akchour for a fare price of 25 dirhams (if there are 6 people in the minivan).
It takes around 40 minutes to drive from Chefchaouen to Akchour where you’ll then have to walk 15 minutes to the start of the trails. The town itself is geared up for tourism with loads of restaurants, but when we visited, it was really quiet!
There may be locals at the beginning of the trails offering to be your guide. This isn’t mandatory and they will charge you a fee. The trails are marked out on All Trails and the Akchour Falls is easy to follow anyway.
Hike to God’s Bridge
Start your day of hiking with a trail to God’s Bridge. The flow of water has naturally created the bridge but the water is now so low that there’s a beautiful archway in the hills!
God’s Bridge takes around 1 hour 30 minutes with some steeper uphill sections. It’s an out-and-back trail with the main sight being the natural God’s Bridge. The nature and views are incredible, we honestly couldn’t believe we were in Morocco!
It can get super hot though as there’s no shade on this trail. We also noticed that you can walk through the gorge to get a view of God’s Bridge from the bottom, but we didn’t take this route.
The best way to follow this trail is to use All Trails and keep the map open (you can use this without the internet or paying to download it). Just use GPS to follow your marker!
You can also book onto a Group Tour Day Trip to the Waterfalls of Akchour if you’d rather join other people.
Hike to Akchour Waterfalls
We chose to visit God’s Bridge first as it was a shorter hike, but most people start with or only hike to Akchour Waterfalls as it’s the main highlight.
The hike to the tallest waterfall on the Akchour Waterfalls trail will take around 4 hours, but it’s less strenuous than God’s Bridge.
The walk is beautiful, passing through falls, the turquoise river, trees and fields. The trail is covered by trees a lot of the way, so it’s slightly better if it’s a sunny day.
Along the way we saw groups of people bathing in the falls and it looked like the perfect Moroccan day out! Swimming is completely free, but you may have to pay for a drink at the nearby food stalls.
One of the most interesting parts about both of these hikes is that there’s multiple food and drink stalls along the way! Even when we reached the end of Akchour Waterfalls (2 hours of walking), there was a restaurant at the end.
We packed some sandwiches with us for the day and grabbed an orange juice, but you can have food here from any place!
The restaurants are more like wooden shacks but they cook their tagines all day which is quite unique compared to the restaurants.
If you only have time for one hike we recommend visiting the waterfalls! Although it’s longer, the hike has more variation and there are lots of little stops along the way that anyone can enjoy! We’re so glad we added this trip to our 2 day Chefchaouen itinerary!
Head back to Akchour to catch a Grand Taxi or taxi back to Chefchaouen Medina. The process will be the same at the start of the day. We were lucky and were the last two people to fill up a car of 6, so we left straight away for 25 dirham each!
Admire the White Mosque
Even after our long day in nature, there were a few more things we wanted to see in the medina. Luckily Chefchaouen is small enough to wander around again and the evening was the perfect way to say goodbye to the beautiful blue city!
We stumbled across the White Mosque and it fits the city perfectly! The mosque was built in the early 1900s and is so photographable!
➤ We also visited the Sahara Desert whilst in Morocco! Here’s our guide on what to expect when visiting the Sahara.
Have a Rooftop Dinner
We ended our 2 days in Chefchaouen with a visit to our new favourite restaurant in the medina – Bilmos. They have a rooftop and ground-floor seating! Although you can’t see the sunset from this strip of restaurants, it really is a chill place to unwind after a busy day.
We recommend ordering the Vegetable Tagine as it’s so unique compared to anything we’ve ever tried in Morocco. They also serve the meal with smaller side dishes and the fluffiest bread we had on our trip.
More things to do in Chefchaouen
So that’s the end of your 2 day Chefchaouen trip
- If you adventure outside of the medina you’ll come across Plaza Mohammed V, there’s a high chance you already passed it on your way to the CTM station.
- Only want to spend a day in the city? Here’s a Day Tour from Fes to Chefchaouen!
Where to stay in Chefchaouen
Chefchaouen is a small city with lots of accommodation. During your 2 days in Chefchaouen it’s best to stay in the Medina – here’s a few places we recommend:
Riad Mauritania $ – This is where we stayed in Chefchaouen and it was perfect for us! The breakfast was great and we ate it on the rooftop! There are private rooms and dorms with shared bathrooms – Find on Booking.com here!
Dar Hannan $$ – A beautifully modern hotel in the centre of Chefchaouen with lovely decor and an incredible rooftop – Find on Booking.com here!
Casa Sabila $ – A lovely place to stay with amazing views of Chefchaouen and the mountains – Find on Booking.com here!
➤ Find more places to stay in Chefchaouen!
Where to eat in Chefchaouen
Most of the places to eat in Chefchaouen are located in the main square (Place Uta el-Hammam) so it won’t be difficult to find something to eat! Here’s a few of our recommendations:
- Bilmos $$ – our favourite restaurant in Chefchaouen, serving an amazing vegetable tagine!
- Restaurant Hasma $ – a rooftop restaurant with views of the mountains.
- Cafe Clock $$ – lots of options on the menu (also do a bread-making class)
- Baissara Ansara $ – a local place only serving white bean soup!
How to get to Chefchaouen
Chefchaouen is easy to get to from Fes or Tangier which both have international airports. We recommend using CTM or Supratours to travel from either of these cities to get to Chefchaouen. It’s easy to book your tickets online and the journey will take 2 hours from Tangier or 4 hours from Fes.
We travelled from Fes to Chefchaouen by CTM Bus for 110 dirham per person. We also found out you can get a private transfer for €18.
You can also grab a Rental Car via Discover Cars to discover more of Morocco!
How to get around Chefchaouen
Walking – The only way to get around the medina is by walking! We walked so much during our Morocco trip, it’s honestly the best way to get around Chefchaouen.
Taxi – You won’t need a taxi in the medina unless you plan on travelling outside. You may want to grab a taxi from the CTM Bus Station the Medina as the hills are quite steep. Short journeys should cost around 20 dirham.
Grand Taxi – The best way to get to Akchour (waterfalls) from Chefchaouen. Grand taxi’s will leave once they secure 150, so each person pays 25 dirham each. It’s basically an affordable way to share taxis with other people. Alternatively, you can get a private taxi.
Is Chefchaouen worth visiting?
Yes! Chefchaouen is definitely worth visiting if you’re already travelling around Morocco. Even though it’s quite popular already, we still think it’s a hidden gem as it’s nested into the Moroccan mountains! We’ve only ever heard about the blue streets, but there’s so much more to discover!
Add Chefchaouen to your Morocco itinerary and you won’t regret it!
Have a great trip to Chefchaouen, Morocco! Find us on Instagram (@thesunrisedreamers) if you want to follow our travels! Check out more of our Morocco Travel Guides:
- 2 Week Morocco Travel Guide
- Morocco on a budget: Travel Costs
- 3 Day Marrakech Itinerary
- Sahara Desert Tour: What to Expect
- Vegan in Morocco Travel Guide
- 2 Day Fes Itinerary
LIKE THIS POST? PIN IT FOR LATER & SHARE IT WITH OTHERS!
