Road Scholar Morocco Reviews: An Immersive Educational Experience

Nov 06, 2025 0

Road Scholar, formerly known as Elderhostel, has been providing enriching travel experiences since 1975. With a focus on cultural immersion and education, Road Scholar offers unique "programs" designed for lifelong learners aged 60 and above. If you're considering a trip to Morocco with Road Scholar, here's what you can expect.

Chefchaouen, Morocco.

What is Road Scholar?

A Road Scholar trip is designed like a study abroad experience for 60+ travelers. Road Scholar creates their itineraries to encourage learning - both in a scholarly way: from knowledgeable guides, scholars and experts in various fields; and in a holistic way: from the accommodations, meals, and transportation. Instructors accompanying Road Scholar trips are experts in their fields, delivering lectures and leading field trips.

Tours are referred to as “programs”, guides, tour directors, and leaders are “faculty” and they even have an online “campus store”. Programs are designed to be immersive, exploring a destination in depth, with the focus often on a niche subject. Don't expect to spend 5 minutes at a tourist attraction and then move on.

Road Scholar has recently added special grandparent-grandchild trips and programs for three generations traveling together. Walking trips, train treks, small ship cruises, and riverboat voyages are among the options for trip style. They offer a very wide range of physical levels as well as many different trip styles.

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Who Will Enjoy Road Scholar?

Open minded, active, and worldly life-long learners who have a sense of adventure and willingness to try new things, will love the cadence of a Road Scholar trip. Perhaps in your younger days you loved going it alone, planning out your itinerary, and loved the spontaneity of traveling off the beaten path.

Road Scholar in Morocco: A Glimpse into the Culture

A Road Scholar trip to Morocco offers a deep dive into the country's rich history and culture. On a Road Scholar tour you can expect a lot of unique cultural, artistic, historic, and local insights. Centuries of living mere miles from Europe and the Iberian Peninsula impressed upon the indigenous Berber people of northern Africa the imprint of a long parade of invaders, settlers and colonists.

Sample Activities and Itinerary Notes:

Lectures: Expect lectures in air-conditioned conference rooms, lasting about 1.5 hours with a 20-minute coffee break.
Chefchaouen Field Trip: Explore the hilly town of Chefchaouen on a 3-hour walking tour with stops at various sites.
Travel Between Cities: Enjoy comfortable 1.5-hour drives between cities with rest stops.
Fes Exploration: Immerse yourself in the city of Fes with a 5.5-hour field trip, including stops and lunch.
Volubilis Visit: Discover the ancient Roman city of Volubilis during a 2-hour visit.
Marrakech Orientation: Begin your journey with a morning field trip through Marrakech.

Accommodation and Dining

Accommodation Style: Value (3 star) or Premium (4 star) range. Evening, dinner and private live musical performance in the camps; night under nomadic comfortable tents in double and single accommodation as requested for the whole program. The experience is unique in the setting of tents, the natural environment, the meeting with the locals and the magical rhythms of the gnaoua genre inspired from Sub-Saharan origins.

Here are some of the hotels that Road Scholar uses in Morocco:

Cantor Hotel Terminus (Rabat): A century-old architectural marvel constructed in 1902, the first hotel built in Rabat.
Hotel Riad Chaouen (Chefchaouen): Offers a fantastic panoramic view of the surrounding mountainous town.
Merinides Hotel (Fes): Located near the Merinides dynasty tombs and other main sites.
Ibis Moussafir Ouarzazate: Located in the center of Ouarzazate, close to the desert and 10 minutes from the airport.

Hotel Riad Chaouen.

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Group Size and Savings

Group sizes with Road Scholar vary, but many small group study tours are limited to 10-24 participants. Road Scholar offers may ways to save on their trips.

Flexibility and Peace of Mind

You may enroll in future trips with the offer of a full refund with cancellation up to 90 days prior to the trip departure. Given the Road Scholar traveler age range, the health risks could be severe.

Reviews and Ratings

Road Scholar is consistently well reviewed, and they have a 4.7/5 rating on Travelstride.

Here are a few snippets from Road Scholar reviews:

"A taste of Costa Rica tripAirline delayed. Costa Rica airports closed over 5 hours, and then United delayed and then canceled. Road Scholar advised join next day. So if I got flight next d..."
"Wasteful org with zero environmental senseRS is a very wasteful organization with no environmental conscience. Twice now I have seen them waste money ($7+ per traveler) sending out an unnecessary envelope b/..."
"I used Road Scholar to book my airline to Rome, ItalyI used Road Scholar to book my airline flights to Rome, Italy& then onto to Naples for an Amalfi Coast trip on September 30, 2025."

Additional Options

Want a tailor-made trip instead? Tell us what you love. Prices may vary due to local taxes and trip seasonality.

Road Scholar offers may ways to save on their trips.