We have just came back from amazing holidays in Morocco that exceeded our expetation. We have book the trip with company Your Morocco Tour and had a trip of a lifetime:
Here is a report what we did and where we stay:
Marrakesh - We thought the Riad D'Orient was just brilliant. From the moment we walked in and experienced our first mint tea (we had many many more after this). Syed was there to meet us and we had a fantastic tour of Marrakesh. This can not have been easy for Syed in the heat of the day and being on Ramadan, but he gave us an excellent introduction to the city and we then felt comfortable to explore on our own. Marrakesh was a crazy and vibrant place which has so much to offer, but equally as enjoyable was retreating to the wonderful Riad. Samira, the manager of the riad, was also a great support during our stay, nothing was too much trouble and she even took us around her new Riad she has just completed....it was unreal and I would defiantly recommend that for your company, she has clearly spent much time perfecting the wonderful decor, Steve and I would both have stayed there without hesitation.
Casablanca / Rabat - So we started our long road trip and first stop was Casablanca, an interesting place to see in contrast to Marrakesh but not our favourite city. We then moved on to Rabat which was different again. It was good to see the capital city but we were slightly disappointed to be in a hotel. The hotel itself was OK, i think we just felt a little deflated as it lacked any character like the other places. It was also not as friendly as any of the other places we stayed. It didn't help that they put us next to the building they were demolishing and work on that started at 7am! EEK. The following day we toured around the Rabat area and enjoyed what it had to offer, we particularly loved the Kasbah, we thought this was so quaint and Mediterranean. We wondered if there was anywhere to stay in here for future guests to Rabat? Also realising this may rise the price so only a thought.
Meknes / Vollubilis - We really enjoyed Vollubilis, it was fascinating to see this site and all it had to offer. As soon as we walked in we were keen to pay for one of the guides as otherwise we were concerned we would not see the best it had to offer. The mosaiques were superb and the quality despite how much time had passed was unreal.
Fez - Fez was a wonderful surprise we didn't really know what to expect and my were we amazed. Arriving at Riad Tifalet we were greeting by the lovely Ibrahim, he was so kind and welcoming and nothing was too much trouble. The food we ate at this Riad was also superb. What we particularly liked the roof terrace with the wonderful views over the city. We spent much time up here looking over the crazy city. Halid came to get is the following morning and took us to the Jewish quarter firstly. He then took us all around the streets of Fez, we were walking for hours but lost track of time completely and were just inspired by all we could see. We loved the tanneries and the souks and spent a small fortune. Halid was a wonderful tour guide, we warmed to him instantly and he taught us so much about Fez and Moroccan culture in general. Again to say he was on Ramadan, his service was impeccable and he must have been exhausted having not eaten or drank as we were, despite having been able to do both.
Desert - The desert was an experience of a lifetime. We arrived at Urg Chebbi early enough to have a swim in the pool, which took my mind off the impending Camel Trek (I am scared of Camels), after much winding up from Steve and Brahim (all friendly of course), I got on the camel and loved it. We actually experienced a sandstorm while we were travelling but this in fact made the experience even more special. Especially as it rained. I mean only the English can get rained on in the middle of the Sahra desert!! The camp was great and the receptions from the people so friendly. The only piece of advice we would give people is eat something about 4pm as were were ravenous after the trek and as the food was being cooked fresh we had to wait a while. We then got up at 5 (ahhhh) and trekked back, watching the sunrise was ....well words can't describe it. Something quite unique and special.
Oasis - The Oasis was another experience we really enjoyed. The Kasbah here was great and we have the whole thing to ourselves which was something special in itself.
Imlil - The biggest surprise for us. We have been to many mountain areas in our time but nothing prepared us for this. Arriving at Samra we were amazed by it. As soon as we saw our room with it's own balcony and no electricity we fell in love with it instantly. The views around the area were splendid. The nature of Samra also allowed us to meet some other travellers, something we had not really done up till now. We were able to share our tales of Morocco, this was really interesting as Steve and I were by far having the best experience of Morocco much to the envy of our fellow travellers. We named dropped a lot. We then went for a trek with an unofficial guide in the morning and we loved it. As we signed the guest book we noticed you had not long been there yourself, so you know what a special and unique place this was. One regret of ours was that we did not have longer in Imlil, we will be back here I can assure you.
Essaouira - Again a wonderful place. What lovely staff at Riad Zara especially the manager and his son (well I assume that is who he was). We loved the beautiful beach and spent many hours walking along it. It was nice to stay our of the medina at this point as we were slightly medinaed out by this point, not to say that it was not a beautiful Medina.
So as you can see a truly wonderful 12 days. We actually came up with our top 5 and thought you may find it interesting:
1. The Mountains
2. Fez
3. Vollubilis
4. Ait Ben Adot
5. Marrakesh
Not to say we didn't like the others but these were our favourite.
Finally, non of this would have been possible without our wonderful driver Brahim (we actually called him Ibrahim all week and only when exchanging email addresses, did we realise we had maybe misheard). Firstly his driving was superb, he drove some very long journeys and mastered some very windy roads. He answered our constant questions and laughed a long with us in some of our more random conversations! We felt very safe with him and actually loved having him as part of our tour. As the tour went on we felt we had actually gained a friend. Morocco is special place and all the people we met, Brahim in particular, made it all the more special. Anyone who gets the opportunity to see this fantastic country, with Brahim or anyone else with your company, should consider themselves lucky. As I said when we met fellow tourists in Imlil they were very jealous of what we had in our itinerary.
If you are planning your trip to Morocco, please don't hesitate to use Your Morocco Tour as they are honest and friendly people that will ensure your holiday to be superb!
