This walled medieval city of the Berber Empire was once an imperial city and still a destination for mosques, palaces and gardens. We had a regrettably short visit to Marrakech after arriving via Lisbon.

EXPERIENCE

Marrakech is ranked among the best cities to visit while in Morocco, unfortunately we did not have nearly enough time to explore thanks to some overly ambitious planning on my part. We landed via Lisbon in the impressive Arrival terminal of the new International Airport a little later than expected, which meant a trip through the surprisingly modern city to our Riad deep within the walled Medina. The Gueliz is the modern portion of the city, which caught us quite off guard in its cleanliness and calm orderly vibe. At the Riad, we were welcomed warmly with cookies and mint tea before taking a tour of the surprisingly large hidden gem. We walked around the city after a rooftop dinner serenaded by prayer calls echoing in the background.

The alleys where thriving souks (marketplaces) sell traditional textiles, pottery and jewelry make for an interesting route to explore the inner city. Our destination as we walked, was Djemaa el-Fna Square. This square is called “the greatest open air spectacle in the world” but was more of a giant football party during our stay, as the local team had just won a game and was one step closer to the World Cup. We still took in the scenes and stopped for more tea along the mosque and minaret lined streets. One place I had really hoped to see, but we arrived too late for is the Majorelle Gardens. Photos of these gardens remind me of the Frida Kahlo house I just visited in Mexico City, guess I will be saving this for a next visit.

We got an early start after to breakfast, with our local driver through the Atlas Mountains in pursuit of Dades Valley. This is a lengthy day trip that we broke up with several vista stops as well as lunch and the attraction of Ait Ben Haddou. Ait Ben Haddou is most exotic and well preserved Kasbahs style architecture in the Atlas Mountain Region. Nearly twenty films have been shot here including Indiana Jones, Gladiator and Game of Thrones. Here we took a brief walking tour to the top of the village to take in the desert views and see artists working paintings of local indigo and saffron dye. We spent the second night in Morocco in a Riad build right into the wall of the valley, in true kasbah style.

STAY

In Marrakech we stayed at Riad Kniza which was a very impressive hotel! The hotel has been in the family for over one hundred years and run by Haj Mohamed. He is one of the most renowned antique dealers in Marrakech, has been a professional guide for the past 34 years and has shown the best of Marrakech to many celebrities including U.S. Presidents, Brad Pitt, Tom Cruise, Nicole Kidman and Jennifer Aniston. I can attest to outstanding hospitality with rose petals adorning everything in our room and to the wonderful Moroccan gastronomy we enjoyed for both breakfast and dinner.

Our second hotel was Hotel Babylon Dades in the Dades Valley. This hotel was more basic than the first, but still very nice. This hotel included both breakfast and dinner as there were no other dining options around. They also welcomed us warmly with cookies and mint tea, and made a handsome effort to ensure a comfortable short stay for us.

EAT

While in Marrakech we had a wonderful dinner right on the rooftop of our hotel, Riad Kniza. This was probably one of the best meals of the trip- romantic, authentic, and completely private. The impressive spread of spiced Moroccan salads followed by chicken and lamb tagine prepared with olive oil, lemon and olives were very regionally relevant and made for the perfect welcome to Morocco. Lamb is a staple in Morocco and although I am not a fan, by husband enjoyed it very much. As mentioned earlier, we only had one night to dine, but Dar Cherifa, Le Jardin and Dar Yacout were at the top of my list should our stay have been longer. I would recommend making reservations in advance if you plan to try one of these on a weekend night as they were all booked up by midday the day we arrived in town.

In Morocco breakfast is included with the stay at all riads and it is generally coffee, eggs of some sort along with various breads and a spread of butters, creams and jams. We were really impressed with the mint tea and fresh squeezed orange juice at both of our riads.

All in all, we enjoyed this portion of Morocco. The patterns, textiles and unique landscapes were probably the highlight for me.