Can you day trip to Ifrane from Fes?

Ifrane surprises everyone. An hour south of Fes — about 60 kilometres up into the Middle Atlas — you arrive in a town of pitched red roofs, tidy gardens, clean wide streets and chalets, built by the French in the 1930s as a hill station. It looks nothing like the rest of Morocco, which is precisely the appeal; people call it the 'Switzerland of Morocco' and on a hot summer's day the cool mountain air alone is worth the drive. There is even a famous stone lion sculpture everyone poses with.

I will be honest that Ifrane itself is a short visit — it is pretty and pristine but small, and an hour wandering the town, the park and the university campus covers it. The reason I still send people is the country around it. Just beyond Ifrane lies Azrou and the vast cedar forest, home to troops of Barbary macaques — wild monkeys that gather near the road and the picnic spots. Watching them in the dappled forest light is a genuine delight, especially for families, and it is the part of the day kids remember.

Transport-wise, this is a private-driver or grand-taxi trip rather than a train one. A driver for the day gives you the flexibility to do Ifrane, then the cedar forest and the macaques at Azrou, and stop wherever the views are good — the drive up through the hills is lovely in itself. Grand taxis run the route too if you are on a budget, but you lose the ability to linger in the forest. There is no rush; the whole loop is an easy half to three-quarter day.

A seasonal note worth knowing: in winter Ifrane gets real snow and even has a small ski area at nearby Michlifen, so it draws Moroccans up for a rare taste of the cold. The rest of the year it is simply a cool, green, refreshing contrast to the heat and intensity of Fes. Pair Ifrane with Azrou's monkeys and cedars, take a picnic, and you have one of the most relaxed and unexpected day trips in northern Morocco.