Long Weekend in the Imperial City of Fes

A weekend break based in a boutique riad in the Fes medina. Visit the world famous tanneries, indulge in a little light shopping and explore the medina (a Unesco World Heritage site.) Then, head out to the Roman ruins of Volubilis and the Imperial city of Meknes to complete your cultural Moroccan experience!

With direct flights from Stansted, getting to Fes couldn't be easier. This break has been designed to fit in with the Ryanair schedule, flying in on Thursday and out on Sunday. Based in a boutique riad, complete with pool and roof terrace with gorgeous views, you will start your stay with a half-day guided tour of Fes. The medina, a Unesco World Heritage site, is a labyrinth of small streets and high buildings built on the side of a hill and can be quite difficult to navigate, so your guide will help you to get your bearings and will take you to see some of the highlights of the city. The tanneries, using traditional dyeing techniques, are a fascinating site and the medersas Bou Inania and el Attarine will take your breath away with their intricate stone and mosaic work. The afternoon will be at leisure, to explore further, or relax in your riad.

The following day sees you visiting the Roman ruins of Volubilis and the Imperial City of Meknes. The ruins, including well-preserved columns and mosaics, will give you a deeper perspective of Morocco's ancient past and the clash of Roman and Berber civilisation. Meknes, another Unesco World Heritage site, is small, but perfectly formed. You will have the chance to visit the main sites there, including the granary, Mausoleum of Moulay Ismail and the grand gateway to the Imperial city, Bab el-Mansour.

Your flight back home on the Sunday doesn't leave until the evening, so your last day is entirely at leisure to wander the medina, sip mint tea and watch the world go by and indulge in a spot of souvenir shopping.

This is a cultural break, with its fair share of sight seeing, so prepare yourself with some comfortable shoes and a god camera. Fes is on a steep hill and has its fair share of market stalls and tourist based shops. You will, however, find that there is a mixture of tourist and local traffic here, which makes it a little more relaxing than Marrakech. That said, you won't be gone long, before you have young lads following you asking if you're lost and wanting to guide you back to your riad. A kind and firm no is a perfectly adequate response.

Shopping in Fes is always an attraction and there is a great supply of leather goods. As usual in Morocco, you will need to negotiate a price, keep it good humoured and light hearted.