My Top 10 Marrakech, We have just returned from a short trip to Marrakech, Morocco… it was our first visit to the city and we all loved it! Definitely somewhere we will be going back to soon! So here are our 10 favourite experiences from the trip:
Rather than booking into a fancy hotel (which are the same wherever you go!), stay in a traditional Riad in the old part of Marrakech. We stayed at the beautiful and friendly Riad Viva, which had a lovely rooftop pool and eating area, as well as a pretty courtyard with a fountain…
When you think of Marrakech, what is the first image that comes to mind? I suspect it is the bustling Djemma el-Fna square, full of juice stalls, snake charmers and henna painters… And the best time to visit? Just as sun is setting is when the square starts to really come alive! Wander around and then head to one of the many restaurants surrounding the square to enjoy a drink (non-alcoholic!) or a meal with a bird’s eye view of the action!
The pretty Jardin Majorelle is an oasis from the heat and chaos of Marrakech. It’s a lovely garden with lots of tropical plants and water features which should definitely be on your list of places to visit…
If you love history (and ornate tiles!) you’ll enjoy visiting the fascinating Saadian Tombs, the final resting place of the members of the Saadian dynasty…
Head into the souks and just wander around and see what you come across… you will inevitably get lost, but that’s part of the fun, isn’t it? And you can buy pretty much everything you could want (as well as lots you wouldn’t lol!).
I’m not normally a fan of bus tours as I think you see much more exploring a place on foot, but on this occasion due to the fact we only had 5 days and the oppressive heat, we decided to give it a go! And I was so glad we did as we saw a lot of Marrakech that we probably would never have seen travelling independently… and we learnt a lot too due to the informative audio guide on the bus.
Spend an hour or two exploring the beautiful Palais Bahia, which was built in the late 19th century. You can do both the Saadian Tombs and the Palais Bahia in one morning as they are close together and only take an hour or two to explore.
I’m not a big fan of camels if I’m honest but it was difficult to avoid taking a ride on one during our visit… so I gave in! And, I enjoyed it – we rode in the forests outside Marrakech so the climate was much more pleasant and the mountain views were stunning. My camel wasn’t the best behaved of the three so I had to keep a tight grip so as not to end up in an undignified heap on the floor!!
If you want to escape the heat of Marrakech, taking a day trip into the Atlas Mountains is a great option. You hire a guide who leads you up a mountain trail, through stalls selling jewellery, rugs, etc and past several small waterfalls… it’s great fun and the views as you descend are beautiful!
My favourite food from our trip was definitely the traditional Moroccan tagines… they were absolutely delicious!
So these were our favourite activities/experiences from our brief trip… have you been to Marrakech? If so, what did you enjoy? If not, is it on your bucket list of places to go?
Credit ©katelovestravel©
The contrast of magnificent architecture and unforgettable history makes Casablanca a fascinating place to visit. It is the amazing city that is gaining in popularity every year as it becomes cheaper to fly to Morocco.
Morocco had always been a country I was curious about. It’s blend of North African and Arabic influences gave it this air of mystique that drew me in. Plus, you know, I like couscous. So I had high expectations when I decided to pop over from Spain and explore the country for three weeks.
