October 2018 – 7 nights with the family
Morocco is a place where you can smell your way through the colorful spice markets of Marrakech, tasting the exotic flavors of couscous and tagine, and stare up in awe at the stars while sleeping in a Bedouin camp in the middle of the Sahara desert. It is a feast for the senses and emotions. We can’t express enough how much we all loved visiting Morocco. It is unlike any other destination we have been to and is quite possibly our favorite overall trip. While there are many luxury possibilities, Morocco can be also be easily done on a very reasonable budget.
Like the rest of our travel guides, this is not an all-encompassing account of everything we did. We do not want to make a list of ‘Best’ or ‘Must-do’ experiences since we know it depends on your personal preferences. These are only our personal favorites and they are divided into two groups: “Avventura Favves” and “Other Things We Liked”.
Overview
There is a lot to see and do in Morocco. We spent 8 days there and feel like we only got a glimpse of what the country has to offer. We started our adventure in Marrakech, which should not be missed. It can even be visited as a surprisingly quick weekend getaway from Europe. We loved getting lost while wandering the streets and souqs, being pampered by a hammam treatment, and eating our way through a food tour and dinner at Dar Yacourt, all while listening to the mix of Arabic and French voices around us.
From Marrakech, we took a day trip to Atlas mountains to ride donkeys and learn how to make bread and real mint tea from a local family. There was no cancellation policy for rain and a torrential downpour added some extra excitement. On the way back the road was flooded and after waiting for hours we weren’t sure we were going to make it back to Marrakech. Oh, and then a boulder fell and crashed into our van. Thankfully it was the tour group’s van so that part wasn’t our problem.
After another day in Marrakech, we headed to the desert. Since it’s a fairly long drive, we elected to stop at an oasis on the way. The amazing L’Ma Lodge is no mirage, it is a truly remarkable spot worth a stop in the middle of nowhere. We took a cooking class and learned to make tagine, enjoyed an impromptu music night with local musicians, and watched the magical process of turning desert sand into ceramics. And we got to visit a kasbah. Which we learned are old fortresses used by local leaders, not just a catchy lyric from that classic 80s hit song by The Clash.
After few days relaxing at L’Ma, we drove further east into the Sahara desert. Actually, we literally drove into the desert sand and got stuck because Google (and Lynn) told Dave it was the right way to the meeting point for the Bedouin camp. Luckily there were two guys right nearby who worked hard to dig us out. It probably wasn’t the first time they got bottles of water and a tip for helping idiot travelers. It was a frustrating experience at the time, but it has become a favorite family story, and it was easily forgotten when we laid our eyes on the colors and dunes of the vast Sahara around us. It’s hard to describe because the images in movies and pictures don’t fully capture it, and even when you’re there it still does not look real. We spent a couple of nights sandboarding, riding camels, but mostly just staring out into the endless space contemplating the meaning of life.
And just to give some interesting side thoughts about our experiences in Morocco, we were late for everything in this country. Google was way off on timing for driving. And although we felt safe, the quality of the roads (and rental car) were questionable. Also, it was an odd time to be there because the government was in an argument about whether to observe daylight savings. We were super confused and constantly showing up for things at the wrong time. We felt better knowing that the locals and airlines were also confused.
Joy almost got to extend her visit since the officer checking our passport at the airport thought we were smuggling a child out with us. She had short hair at that time which is not typical for Moroccan girls, so he was confused why the passport said she is a girl but the child was clearly a boy. It took about 10 minutes to convince him that Joy is in fact a girl and our child.
Also, not at all is perfect in Morocco. While it is exotic to see the unusual animals like the snakes ‘being charmed’ and monkeys in the middle of the city at the huge Jemaa el-Fna square, they are being abused and it’s sad to see what people will do to make money off of tourists. The camels we rode in the desert seemed healthy, but we saw them being prodded in ways that are much more aggressive than we would treat our animals.
In addition, it’s always best to be safe in any place at night but after dinner, we felt particularly uncomfortable walking back through the dark and quiet streets of Marrakech, so we took a taxi home.
Morocco is a great place to travel as a family since it is one of those places, like Greece and Italy, where kids can do no wrong. We felt like we got more smiles and better service than if we were traveling as a couple. But walking with kids through Marrakech was a little scary trying to keep them to the side to avoid getting run over by the speeding motorcycles. The narrow streets were absolutely chaotic!
Avventura Favves
Food tour with Marrakech Food Tours –
This was definitely the highlight of Marrakech for us. The more we travel, the more we realize just how much we can learn about a country and culture through their food. We ate our way through the back alleys of the medina at dinner time, sampling olives directly from the bowls (we hope everybody washed their hands), watching msemen (a thin pancake-like bread) being prepared, devouring grilled meats from a street vendor, eating Rfisa (the strength-producing dish women are supposed to eat before giving birth), and sampling lots of pastries. We heard about the history of the city and the owner of the tour group’s personal story of living in the US and coming back to Morocco to raise his kids. His wife has a website MarocMama which is a fantastic resource for planning your trip.
Dar Yacourt –
This is an upscale restaurant in Marrakech. We showed up directly from our donkey trip in the mountains (late because of the time change confusion and road flooding) and we were not exactly dressed appropriately. But they still made us feel comfortable and brought us to a private room with a welcome drink before taking us to our table. The restaurant is in a beautiful setting with incredible furnishings, foliage, and fountains. The service is top-notch. They have a set menu of Moroccan classics like couscous and tagine with huge servings.
Riad Sekkat –
We were excited to say in this classic Moroccan-style home with a central outdoor courtyard. The house manager, Siham, was a lovely host who showed us around the city through the various souks, including the spice market, and watched the kids while we went to the hammam.
Les Bains D’Orient –
And speaking of a hammam, we decided the parents couldn’t miss this unique experience of getting a massaging bubble bath. We thought those were only for our kids, but we happy to be proven wrong.
Imlil Mountain Tour –
We also booked this day trip tour through Marrakech Food Tours. The weather in Morrocco, in general, was perfect, except for this one day in the mountains. We experienced so much rain and sleet that we could barely make out the nearby peak of Mt Toubkal, the highest peak in the Atlas Mountains. Since they didn’t have a rain cancellation policy and we really didn’t have that much flexibility in our schedule, we decided to continue with our trip up the mountainside on donkeys. The guides had to provide us with ill-fitting jackets, particularly for the kids, but they were troopers despite the awful conditions. We were shaking and freezing but warmed up in the house of a local family while they taught us to make bread and their famous mint tea.
The storm the previous day had caused quite a bit of flooding on the roads outside Marrakech and we showed up very late to this boutique hotel, and to our surprise Vanessa and her team had a warm and delicious dinner waiting. We spent our days there waking up to an incredible breakfast spread, learning how to make tagine in an amazing cooking class, and exploring their beautiful gardens. The kids loved the little spot meant for them to play as well as the farm animals. Dave loved the donkey. The pool had just closed for the season, which made it a little easier to convince the kids to spend a day exploring around Skoura with a local guide (organized by the hotel). We visited the nearby Kasbah Amridil and watched local artisans beat desert sand with a bat and then turn it into functional and beautiful pottery.
It was hard to get Lynn to leave this literal oasis. But to encourage her we stopped at a gas station down the road that Vanessa told us about where a lady makes fresh bread/pizza out of her little shack. How could something so warm and delicious only cost about 50¢?!
Riding Camels and Sandboarding in the Sahara –
This is the part of the trip that we’re sure our children will never forget. The vastness and peacefulness of the desert were so impactful. We loved sleeping in the desert camp. We picked a group with solid reviews on Booking, but we could have chosen better (we had a much more organized and refined experience in Jordan). Regardless, we loved the stars at night…just WOW. The kids’ having to pee in the middle of the night finally proved to be a benefit.
A highlight of traveling is always the people you meet. At the camp, we met a lovely British family and got to swap ex-pat stories since they were living in Spain. We also went for tours of the surrounding area where we listened to music and ate Berber “pizza” from a nomadic family. It was so interesting that these nomads live in the desert with no utilities, but that the teenage daughter had a cell phone and solar-powered charger. The world is truly changing everywhere. When planning the trip we debated about which area of the desert to visit since many people have good experiences at M’Hamid and it is a bit closer to Marrakech, but the dunes are taller and more vast in Merzouga.
Shopping –
We’re not a family of shoppers, but we could not resist the locally made artisan products at such inexpensive prices. We came home with all kinds of spices, a tagine pot that we still use (for $5), a ceramic lantern, some handmade scarves, and a teapot with glasses for our mint tea.
Other Things We Liked
Riad Konouz –
We didn’t get to stay very long, but this is a very colorful riad within the old city (medina) of Marrakech. It is run by a nice family who warmly received us even though we arrived late at night and graciously packed us up breakfast the next morning since we had to leave early. The prices are very reasonable.
Ksar Ait Ben Haddou –
It’s clear why this stunning fortified UNESCO village is a favorite location for various films and tv shows like Game of Thrones, but with way too many tourists and buses and touristy restaurants we would recommend spending your time elsewhere.
Logistics and Miscellaneous Notes
- We took an Easyjet flight direct from Milan to Marrakech. As the name says, easy.
- Rental car – While many people don’t choose to drive in Morocco, we were glad we did. We just kept laughing through the hours-long delays due to flooded roads, falling boulders, high mountain roads with snow and insufficient barriers, and getting stuck in the sand. For us, it’s all part of the adventure and we’re used to driving in Italy. We brought a physical map since we weren’t sure about cell coverage. We ended up not using it, but we were glad to have it. Tip: always download Google offline maps as a backup when on trips. You never know when you might not have cell coverage.
- The drive from Marrakech to Merzouga in the Sahara takes about 9 hours, assuming you don’t experience multiple roads being flooded and having to wait hours while they fix the roads to make them passable. On the way to the desert, we stopped at the L’Ma Lodge which is about halfway between the two. On the way back to Marrakech we did it all in 1 day.
Next Time We Go
- Fez – the next time we go to Morocco we will check out this city, not for the namesake hats, but to see its large medina (historic city center) including the oldest university and library in the world at the University of al-Qarawiyyin.
- Essaouira – looks like an amazing spot on the coast to take up surfing and stroll through the souks and fish markets.
- There’s still more to experience in Marrakech. We would like to see the more modern side of the city by strolling through the Jardin Majorelle and its Yves St Laurent museum, the House of Photography museum, and the art gallery of Riad Yima. Lunch with a side of art at Cafe Clock seems like a good way to spend an afternoon. We still won’t be able to afford to stay at the Royal Mansour, but maybe we would go for the high tea.
- Hiking – As long as the weather was better, we would like to explore the mountainous area around Imlil and Mt Toubkal again, or even better, stay at the L’Ma Lodge again and do a hike through the Dades Gorges.
The Avventura 