Leave it to Anna: Marrakech Edition
This week I break down where we stayed and what we did during spring break in Morocco. Also, read till the end for my practical packing tips.
Marrakech is a city of contrasts. Majorelle blue flower pots and hot pink bougainvillea framed by the emerald backdrop of palm trees. Dark narrow alleys in the old Medina juxtaposed against sweeping views of the sprawling city from rooftops. Fragrant mint tea poured from silver teapots into a gold leaf plated glasses. Hungry, skinny cats eyeing smelly fish sold on a street corner from a donkey-pulled cart. Saudi royal jets parked at private aviation are one transportation option - a donkey saddled with two woven baskets on each side is another. High and low, shiny and dusty, pungent and subtle - a full immersion into the local smells, tastes, and sites over the course of the week we spent in Marrakech. We stayed in three very different lodgings, which I’ll share with you in this post. Using Marrakech as our base, we spent our days walking, eating, and visiting new places. And shopped, of course, but more on that next week.
Where We Stayed
Riad Ksar Fawz & Spa
The first place where we stayed was the Riad Ksar Fawz & Spa - a traditional Moroccan guest house just outside of the city walls of the Medina (the old town center). It was affordable, clean, and the Berber staff were very friendly. Every morning we had a freshly prepared breakfast with Moroccan bread, pancakes, and crepes served with honey, strawberry and orange jams, and yogurt. Every morning Chef Layla prepared a different cake to be served with either coffee or Moroccan mint tea. My daughter still talks about the chocolate cake that was served on our first morning there. The rooftop terrace had an amazing view of the city and we had fun lounging up there on traditional Moroccan couches while sipping our morning coffee. We also had dinner of couscous and chicken skewers here several nights and it was delicious. There was also a hotel calico cat, Malika (“queen” in Arabic) that loved to bask in the sun on the rooftop terrace and share our dinner from under the table. My daughter and I also took advantage of the rooftop spa and tried traditional North African facials with argan oil to enhance our vacation glow.
Hot Tip: I used the Mr. and Mrs. Smith website to find all of our hotels in Morocco - it’s a hotel repository and search engine that specializes in boutique luxury hotels. You can search by location to find places that go beyond a traditional big chain hotel experience. If you book through the site, you get free perks such as a bottle of champagne upon check-in and airport transfers.
Caravan Agafay by Habitas
After four nights at the riad in the middle of town, we headed to the desert for the “glamping” portion of the trip at the Caravan Agafay by Habitas. Dinner served at the restaurant overlooking the sunset over the dunes consisted of traditional Moroccan dishes, such as chicken and beef tagine and vegetable couscous. There were also plenty of activities to choose from, to include camel rides and horseback riding adventures. Our giant tent came with a king sized bed, a shower, and a toilet. Overall, I am glad that we did it for one night to experience the desert vibes, but not sure there would have been much more to do for much longer than that. My daughter did a horseback ride through the desert with the local knowledgeable guide, which included a stop for mint tea halfway through the journey.
Dar Zemora
For the final portion of the trip, we basked in the luxury of Dar Zemora in Palmeraie, an area of lush palm groves just outside of Marrakech city center. This area is known as the Beverly Hills of Marrakech with spacious private homes behind brick walls decorated by bougainvillea vines and framed by cactus groves. This hotel offered by far the best service that we’ve had - the staff was attentive, thoughtful, and considerate. We were offered water by the pool, mint tea on our suite’s terrace, and freshly prepared Moroccan dishes with a European flavor for lunch and dinner. There is really no need to leave the property with its immaculate lawns, pool, and lounging areas. The staff can arrange any excursion if you want to, but some guests describe this place as the “Venus trap of hotels” where you are hard pressed to leave. There are only five rooms on the property (and a two bedroom pool villa, which would be perfect for a girls’ trip). You truly feel like royalty with you stay here as if you were living in a palace complete with staff, private chef, and butler service. It was the perfect way to end our trip - relaxing and luxurious. Our return flight was later in the day on Saturday, so the hotel staff arranged for a delicious lunch served on our terrace prior to getting a ride to the airport - no rushed checkout here. Every single detail is thoughtful and anticipatory of any future need. A royal experience for sure.
What We Did
Hiring a Guide
I did a lot of research ahead of this trip and knew that I wanted to get out of Marrakech to see the surrounding areas, such as the Agafay desert and the Atlas Mountains. The easiest way to do this is to hire a local guide with a driver, who can take you around. It’s possible to do it on your own with a rental car, but having a local guide makes it a lot less stressful. The guide can get you into tourist sites without having to wait in line and they can also facility outings that you don’t have to plan. I ended up working with Chama from Unique Travel Morocco, who is one of the only female licensed tour guides that runs her own business in Morocco. She is definitely plugged into the local industry, so she organized the Atlas Mountains excursion for us and also gave a city walking tour through the Medina. She also introduced us to her favorite restaurants (DarDar Rooftop on our first night in Marrakech was definitely a highlight) and shopping vendors in the market.
Atlas Mountains
On the way to our waterfall hike in the Atlas Mountains, I asked to stop for coffee at Sir Richard Branson’s Kasbah Tamadot hotel with an amazing view over the valley. It was a great pitstop before our hike and lunch at a traditional Berber kasbah in the mountains. I loved seeing apricot, cherry, and apple trees in bloom along the mountainous path that we hiked. I am not an outdoor enthusiast per se, but the hike was not arduous and I was happy to have done it for the views and photo ops alone. For the walk down, our guide arranged for a donkey to take our daughter down while we trekked behind them.
Majorelle Garden
On our last full day of the trip we visited the Majorelle Garden, a large tropical botanical garden in Marrakech. It was created by the French artist Jacques Majorelle over almost forty years, starting in 1923. The special shade of bold cobalt blue, inspired by the colored tiles Jacques Majorelle had seen around Marrakech, was used extensively in the garden and its buildings and is named after him, Majorelle Blue. It was striking to see it juxtaposed against the greenery of palm trees and cacti throughout the garden.
In the 1980s, the property was purchased by the fashion designer Yves Saint Laurent, who worked to restore it to what it looks like today. Yves Saint Laurent visited Marrakech often (he owned a home there) and was inspired to create his fashion collections. When he died in 2008, his ashes were scattered in the Majorelle Garden, a place that he loved.
“Before Marrakech, everything was black,” Yves Saint Laurent once said. “This city taught me colour, and I embraced its light, its insolent mixes and ardent inventions. It was when I discovered Morocco that I realized my own chromatism was that of Moroccan caftans, zelliges, zouacs and jellabas.”
Practical Tips Before You Go
Packing: We only brought our carry-on suitcases and one personal item per person on the plane. We didn’t do laundry on this trip, so definitely needed to bring enough underwear and socks to last the whole trip. Everything else could be reworn at least twice or even three times. I loosely followed the 5-4-3-2-1 rule for packing in my carry-on: 5 tops (2 loose button downs in white and light blue, 2 white T-shirts (long and short sleeves), and 1 blue cardigan sweater); 4 bottoms (white cotton pants, blue linen pants, olive stretchy cargo pants, and wide-leg striped blue pants for lounging); 3 pairs of shoes (gold Sabah slide-ons, silver sneakers, and a pair of Birkenstock sandals); 2 scarves, and 1 crossbody brown leather bag. I also cheated slightly and snuck in 2 additional dresses for fancier dinners and outings and brought my favorite packable straw hat (which was a must for sun protection). I also flew in my white sweatshirt/jacket that was the perfect outer layer for cooler mornings and evenings. Overall, I stuck to the white-blue-gold color palette for my clothes and accessories, so I could freely mix and match all week.
Bring an extra duffel bag: I brought my trusty red Paravel fold-up bag, which came in handy for packing our souvenirs on the way home. We just used it as my daughter’s personal item coming back and put her Longchamp tote that she brought inside.
Stomach meds: I have a medicine pouch that I use during travel, which I keep filled to the brim with various meds that one may need on the road. For this particular trip, the assortment of upset stomach remedies (Pepto, Immodium, Tums) that I loaded up on before leaving definitely came in handy. While all of the food was delicious and fresh, our UK stomachs were not used to the local North African bacteria varieties. These meds definitely came in handy to keep us functioning while on the road. Trust me on this one.
And on that note, hope that you enjoyed this post and I will see you here on the Stack again next Sunday! I will break down my Moroccan shopping finds in great detail, so stay tuned.
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