Marvellous Marrakech (Marrakech (Morocco))

Member Name: Vixstar

Product:	Marrakech (Morocco)
Date:	29/08/09 (77 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Amazing sights; Green city

Disadvantages: Possibly not enough for a whole 7 days

I decided this summer to go on a proper holiday somewhere as I hadn't had a real break for a long while. I didn't have a location in mind and through various twists and turns I have recently returned from a relaxing, although very hot, week in Marrakech (for a very reasonable price). I will share some of my experiences in that city in the hope that it may be of use to you when you are trying to decide where to go on holiday.

Marrakech is a city in the North African Kingdom of Morocco located at the foot of the Atlas Mountains, approximately 3 hours flight from the UK. It is a mainly Muslim city to that end female tourists are advised that it is considered respectful to keep their shoulders and legs covered in public. My sister and I wore lightweight trousers and t shirts the whole time; whether this was completely necessary I am not sure as other female tourists were wearing clothes more suited to the 40˚C heat. However, as we were two females holidaying alone we thought it was best to stick to the sartorial guidance. A quick mention about the heat, apparently August is not the best month to be visiting Marrakech and that it is more temperate in the spring and autumn - unfortunately I did not find this out until I had booked my holiday - but we managed to cope with the heat by avoiding wandering round during the hottest part of the day.

Marrakech is composed of two parts, the old walled city - where you find the Kasbah, the souks, the Koutoubia Mosque (the minaret of which is visible from many areas of the city) and the Place Jemaa el Fnaa - and the modern city - where several gardens, the airport and the more modern conveniences can be found.

On our first full day in the city we decided to take an open top sightseeing bus tour round the city's sites. This cost a little over £10 each for a ticket that was valid for the whole day which meant we could hop on and off as we wished. There are two bus routes which your ticket is valid for Marrakech Monumental which runs every 20 mins from 9am (ish) to the early evening and Marrakech Romantique which runs hourly in the afternoons. In my opinion the Monumental tour is the better of the two taking in the theatre, Jardin Menara, luxury part of the new city and Avenue Mohammed V (the main road linking the two areas of the city) before completing a fairly comprehensive tour of the old city. The Romantique tour does not take in so many sites the significant ones being the Jardin Majorelle (which you can't see from the bus as it is actually located down a fairly non-descript looking side road) and the Palmairie, an arid expanse of mostly palms and camel rides with the houses of the rich and famous on the outskirts. If you do decide to get off the bus in the Palmarie (we didn't) please remember that there is not a lot here except palms and camels and the next bus won't be along for another hour. The majority of the stops aren't very well marked however a lot of the unmarked ones are near hotels so the concierge should be able to point out if there is one near your hotel. I would definitely recommend these tours to anyone visiting the city whether for just a few days or a week (and especially if you are just passing through for a day or two) as it's a really good way of acquainting yourself with the city and sorting your geography, also the audio tour on the bus will give you an appreciation of the city's history.

Marrakech is a surprisingly green city considering it is located in a semi arid area of the world all the main roads have trees, quite often fruit bearing, lining them and there are a variety of gardens dotted round the city. We visited two of the most famous ones which are good examples of the two different types of Moroccan garden. Jardin Menara is a more typical Moroccan garden with orchards of fruit tress rather than decorative planting and a pavilion on a pool at the heart of it. It is free to enter and is located on the edge of the city not too far from the station with an open top bus stop nearby. It is worth a visit so that you get an idea of what a typical garden is like however it probably wouldn't take you much more than an hour to have a thorough wander round its paths. On the other extreme of gardens there is the Jardin Majorelle, located down an unassuming side street in the modern part of the city. This conforms more to the European idea of a garden, with a variety of planting and beautiful pools. This was originally created by Majorelle and passed into the ownership of Yves St Laurent. It is now run by a trust and costs around £2.50 to enter. There is also a museum of Islamic art (currently closed for renovation) and a lovely looking cafe (which we didn't visit) and a boutique (full of overpriced Moroccan souvenirs and very little to do with the garden itself or its owners) within the garden. This is definitely worth a visit not only for the beautiful plants and colours but also for the cool shady spaces within the garden. It is not a huge garden but taking into account the museum and the shade I'm sure a couple of hours could happily be spent here.

The old city is definitely worth spending a significant amount of time in. Two of the most well known parts of it are the Place Jemaa el Fnaa and the souks. The Place is a large open space within the old city where you will find small stalls, tooth pullers, snake charmers and so on. Unfortunately due to the time of year and, I think, the time of day we visited (fairly early morning) the Place was quite quiet but it is worth going back at different times of the day as it is a constantly changing place. There is also a multitude of carts selling freshly squeezed orange (and other fruits) juice for around 25p a glass. This was an absolutely lovely, icy cold treat and I don't even normally like fruit juices. At the far side of the Place is the souks, these are a maze of little stalls selling all sorts - leather goods, shoes, clothes, spices - but be warned if you wish to buy something you should haggle unless you want to be severely ripped off. These are not the only stalls in the old city and many more can be found down the myriad of little streets but the souks are worth visiting if only for the experience and the sights.

I felt that Marrakech itself only offered about four or five day's worth of entertainment. However, if you wish to do more all the hotels and tour operators offer tours to other areas at prices from £30 to £60. We did not go on any of these tours as we were on a fairly strict budget, I did think that we may be have been able to find tours on offer cheaper within the city but I could not find any tour operators.

A few other useful pointers for wannabe visitors to Marrakech... The main languages are Arabic and French however a large number of people in the tourist areas speak good English too, although please bear in mind if haggling in the souks make sure you and the vendor both have a common language you are fluent in as you are likely to get a bad deal otherwise. The currency in Morocco is the Dirham with an exchange rate of about 12.50 Dh to £1. Taking Dirham in and out of the country is not really allowed however changing your currency to Dirham in the country is easy with banks everywhere and bureau de changes in the hotels, however you can only change your currency back at the airport, again there are plenty of banks there but allow a little time and make sure you have a receipt from the original exchange. The exchange rate is fixed so you don't have to go searching for the best rate. And finally it is worth checking when the dates of Ramadan are as opening times of many tourist sites change during this holy month and many restaurants seem to close for the whole month.

I thoroughly enjoyed my holiday and the tourist harassment that I had heard about didn't seem to affect us. I would definitely visit again at a different time of year, possibly for a long weekend, as there are a few things I'd still like to see, such as the Place Jemaa el Fnaa at night, the Badii Palace ruins and the tombs, and I'd love to try out some of the local restaurants as we didn't eat out due to staying at a hotel half board.

We'd hoped that our Marrakech would be both relaxing and a mini adventure and it was definitely that. Marrakech is a surprisingly beautiful city with a variety of sights and friendly people.

Summary: Definitely worth a visit if you are looking for a slightly more unusual destination