Splashing Around
AWater sports, Essaouira Wind and water sports around Essaouira, or the beach at Agadir for young children.
AOualidia lagoon Safe, calm waters and a wide, sandy beach.
AParque Marítimo del Mediterráneo Ceuta’s creative maritime park, its pools surrounded by restaurants and cafes.
AJnan Sbil, Fez These shady gardens have plenty of fountains for cooling down amid leafy surrounds.
Fun & Games
AMarrakesh Explore Jardin Majorelle and its collection of desert plants at Djemaa el-Fna, Marrakesh, children enjoy amusements such as the ‘fishing for a bottle’ game.
AOuarzazate The Atlas Film Corporation Studios features sets and props from famous films made in the area.
AFez Cooking classes at Café Clock Good for children of most ages – from making spice mixes to kneading dough and taking bread to the communal oven. Kefta tajine is a good knife-free meal to prepare. There's also a Cafe Clock in Marrakech which is popular with families.
Planning
If you look hard enough, you can buy just about anything you need for young children in Morocco. Before leaving home, think about what you can take with you to Morocco’s various environments; wet-weather gear is vital in the mountains in case the weather turns bad.
Lonely Planet’s Travel with Children has more information and tips.
Accommodation
Some hotels are more family-friendly than others, so check your children will be well catered for before booking.
Like the airlines, many hotels will not charge children under two years of age. For those between two and 12 years sharing a room with their parents, it’s often 50% off the adult rate. If you want reasonable toilet and bathroom facilities, you’ll need to stay in midrange hotels.
Transport
Northern Morocco has a great rail infrastructure and travel by train may be the easiest, most enjoyable option: children can stretch their legs and fold-out tables are useful for drawing and games. Travellers with children can buy discount cards for rail travel.
Grands taxis and buses can be a real squeeze with young children, who count not as passengers in their own right but as wriggling luggage, and have to sit on your lap. The safety record of buses and shared taxis is poor, and many roads are potholed.
Hiring a vehicle – a taxi in Marrakesh or a 4WD to the mountains – is well worth the extra expense. You might bring a child seat, but note that many taxis don't have seatbelts to help attach them. Hire-car companies normally don’t have them; child seats generally cost more in Morocco than in Europe.
Health & Hygiene
Hand sanitiser (alcohol gel) is essential, as children tend to touch everything. Disposable nappies are readily available. All travellers with children should know how to treat minor ailments and when to seek medical treatment.
Make sure the children are up to date with routine vaccinations, and discuss possible travel vaccines well before departure, as some are not suitable for children aged less than a year.
Upset stomachs are always a risk for children when travelling, so take particular care with diet. If your child is vomiting or experiencing diarrhoea, lost fluid and salts must be replaced. It may be helpful to take rehydration powders for reconstituting with sterile water; ask your doctor. Be aware that at roadside stops and cheaper hotels, squat-style toilets are more common than Western-style toilets.
In Morocco’s often-searing heat, sunburn, heat exhaustion and dehydration should all be guarded against, even on cloudy days. Bring high-factor sunscreen with you, and avoid travelling in the interior during midsummer, when temperatures rise to 40°C plus.
Encourage children to avoid dogs and other mammals because of the risk of rabies and other diseases – although there isn’t likely to be a risk on camel rides in the desert, or with donkeys and mules working in places like Fez medina.
Regions at a Glance
Marrakesh & Central Morocco
Marble & Mudbrick Marvels
The skinny lanes of Marrakesh's medina lead to lavish palaces, tombs and religious monuments decked out in marble, tilework and honeycombed muqarnas (ornamented vaulting). While red-earth kasbahs and ksour (fortified strongholds) stand guard over High Atlas valleys and the old desert caravan routes.
Sahara Exploits
The days of the great caravans to Timbuktu are done, but you can still saddle up your camel and trek into the great sand sea of the Sahara, and sleep under the stars in a traditional Berber encampment.
High Atlas Trails
The High Atlas mountains are a destination tailor-made for trekking. Hike for an afternoon or a week, or take the option to tackle Mt Toubkal, North Africa's highest peak.
Regions at a Glance
Atlantic Coast
Seaside Breaks
This stretch encompasses the aptly named Paradise Beach, a bus-ride from Asilah, and Sidi Kaouki, a top surfing and windsurfing spot. In between, Temara Plage and Haouzia beach are near Rabat and Casablanca, and laid-back Oualidia has a sand-fringed lagoon, while the beach at Moulay-Bousselham is a gorgeous stretch of golden sand.
Mauresque & Medinas
Gems include Essaouira, a fortified seaside town with wave-lashed ramparts. Hispano-Moorish Larache recalls its two spells under Spanish rule and murals decorate nearby Asilah’s medina. Mauresque beauties are found in Casablanca, along with the world’s third-largest mosque, and Rabat, also home to a superb kasbah.
Birdwatching
Beaches and coastal wetlands offer excellent birdwatching, particularly around Moulay Bousselham: Merja Zerga (Blue Lagoon) attracts thousands of birds. Lac de Sidi Bourhaba is one of the last places to see large numbers of marbled ducks.
Regions at a Glance
Mediterranean Coast & the Rif
Beaches
From beaches near Tangier – such as bracing Plage Robinson – the Mediterranean coast ripples east. Top beaches include Oued Laou, Cala Iris, Al-Hoceima and Saídia, all unruffled in comparison with Europe’s Mediterranean beaches.
National Parks
Two stunning national parks offer the best of the region’s coastline and mountains. Talassemtane National Park encompasses green mountains, tiny villages, an eco-museum and the God’s Bridge rock formation. The Al-Hoceima National Park’s great mesas, dry canyons and thuya forests lead to limestone sea cliffs.
Riffian Trekking
Trekking through the Rif Mountains in Talassemtane National Park is superb, and the park is largely undiscovered compared with High Atlas routes. From Chefchaouen, multiday trails lead through forests of cedar, cork oak and fir.
Regions at a Glance
Fez, Meknès & the Middle Atlas
Handicraft Shopping
Fez medina includes the Henna Souq, the recently restored Dyers' Souq and the Carpenter's Souq, with thrones built for weddings. Meknès has souqs devoted to textiles, jewellery, carpets and embroidery, and Middle Atlas souqs are piled with local produce and the occasional Berber carpet.
Minarets & Mosaics
Fez medina is the world’s largest living medieval Islamic city, and the Fès Festival of World Sacred Music showcases Sufi music. Elsewhere, memories of Meknès’ past glories remain; Volubilis was a Roman outpost; Moulay Idriss is dedicated to its 8th-century namesake; and an 11th-century minaret overlooks oasis town Figuig.
Street Eats
The Fassi cuisine of Fez is the envy of Morocco, while the Middle Atlas is Morocco's bread basket: seek out homegrown delights such as Sefrou cherries, the olive oils of Moulay Idriss and Meknés wines.
Regions at a Glance
Southern Morocco & Western Sahara
Coastal Hideaways
En route to the Sahara, remote seaside escapes offer empty beaches and dilapidated charm. Mirleft is a favourite hang-out with its cafes and boutique accommodation; art-deco Sidi Ifni is as perfectly faded as a sepia photo; and Tarfaya’s colonial Spanish relics peel between the eddying sands.
Palmer
aies
Beneath ochre cliffs, palms worthy of Lawrence of Arabia nestle in the Aït Mansour Gorges and Ameln Valley. Palms also line the winding road through Paradise Valley, and refresh Saharan travellers around Tata and Tighmert.
Sand & Surf
Taghazout is Morocco’s premier surf spot; the sun-and-sand fun continues year-round in Agadir; and Mirleft and Sidi Ifni offer wind and water sports. Inland, the Anti Atlas is a trekking and mountain-biking playground, and Tata is an emerging destination for desert excursions.
Marrakesh & Central Morocco مراكش وسط المغرب
Marrakesh & Central Morocco Highlights
Marrakesh
Around Marrakesh
The High Atlas
The Southern Oases
Draa Valley
Dades Valley & The Gorges
Ziz Valley & The Tafilalt
Rissani to Zagora
Marrakesh & Central Morocco مراكش وسط المغرب
Why Go?
Marrakesh is most people's first taste of Morocco and what an introduction it is. Somewhere between the donkey-cart swerving souq action, the tilework and marble monument overload, and the hundredth time you find yourself lost amid the medina's doodling alleyways, this great city of the Maghreb will work its magic on you. But when you've finally found your way out of the old city, Marrakesh is a jumping-off point to some of Morocco's most stunning landscapes, set against the soaring peaks of the Atlas mountains.
Hike along craggy clifftops to tiny Berber villages in the High Atlas, or amid orchards and wind-whittled rock formations inside the lush Dadès Gorge. Then explore the palm-studded Drâa Valley and its slumping mudbrick kasbahs and ksour on your way east to the Sahara. Sitting atop a sculpted sand dune at sunrise is the perfect orange-hued curtain call to this extraordinary region.
When to Go
AMar–Apr Mountains thaw, wildflowers bloom. Though skip Easter holidays in Marrakesh when prices jump.
AMay–Jun Pull on your hiking boots and hit the High Atlas trails.
AOct–Nov Dune escapades beckon. Prime desert time with gentle breezes and dates galore.
Best Places to Eat
A Amal Center
A Al Fassia
A Douyria
A Chez Pierre
A Dar Anika
Best Places to Sleep
A Riad Azoulay
A L'Ma Lodge
A Tizouit
A Maison Merzouga
A Riad Bledna
A Riad Dar Sofian
Marrakesh & Central Morocco Highlights
1 Marrakesh Succumbing to the Djemaa's all-out chaos then throwing away the map to meander medina lanes.
2 Aït Bougomez Valley Walking through Morocco's stunning and secluded Shangri-la.
3 Dadès Gorge Descending into this valley of timewarp villages and crumbling kasbahs, framed by wacky, weathered rock.
4 Erg Chigaga Absorbing stark Saharan beauty and star-filled nights amid rolling dunes.
5 Ahansal Valley Fuelling your adventure-itch by hiking, rafting or climbing off the beaten trail.
6 Skoura Slowing down to stroll amid swaying palms in this Unesco-protected oasis.
7 Drâa Valley Following this ancient caravan route dotted with slumping ksour and kasbahs.
8 Glaoui Kasbah Witnessing a troubled history and impeccable artistry at this historic site in Telouet.
9 Ouirgane Joining weekending Marrakshis for lunch and lounging at a countryside retreat.
Marrakesh مراكش
Pop 1,323,005
Prepare for your senses to be slapped. Marrakesh's medina, wrapped within powder-pink pisé (rammed earth) ramparts, is a show-stopping muddle of crowded souqs where sheep carcasses swing from hooks next door to twinkling lamps, and squiggling ochre-dusted lanes lead to nowhere. The main artery into this labyrinthine web is the vast square of Djemaa el-Fna, where it's carnival night every night and musicians, acrobats, and slapstick acting troupes tap into the old city's frenetic pulse.
Raised, razed, and then raised again; almost 1000 years after its founding, Morocco's Red City continues to evolve. Today its caravanserai culture and craft heritage lay alongside a contemporary arts scene that brings festivals and design initiatives to its door. Chi-chi boutiques sit next to bazaar-stalls within the souqs, and the traders of old have long since been swapped for groups of tourists goggling at palace and mansion frippery where the one percenters of past centuries once lived.
Rapid growth though, has brought its attendant problems. Congestion, pollution and creeping urbanisation have become environmental issues while the recent economic downturn has exposed the fragility of tourism-driven economy. But this is a city that refuses to sit still and it's that abundant energy that will help steer Marrakesh forward.
More than anywhere else in Morocco, this is where tradition and modernity merge. Marrakesh will dazzle, frazzle and enchant. Put on your tassle-toed babouches (leather slippers) and dive right in.
Spices & herbs in a Marrakesh market | SYLVIA KANIA/SHUTTERSTOCK ©
History
The Berber Sanhaja tribe founded the Almoravid dynasty in the 11th century and swept through the south of Morocco, demolishing opponents as they rode north. They pitched their campsite on a desolate swath of land that would become Marrakesh.
Almoravid Berber leader Youssef ben Tachfine and his savvy wife Zeinab recognised its strategic potential, and built ramparts around the encampment in AD 1062. The Almoravids established the city’s khettara (underground irrigation system) and signature pink mudbrick architecture.
At the age of almost 80, Youssef ben Tachfine launched successful campaigns securing Almoravid control of Andalucia. Marrakesh, once just a patch of dirt, became the operational centre of an empire that stretched right up to Barcelona’s city limits.
Almohad warriors stormed the city in 1147 and left only the plumbing and the Koubba Ba’adiyn intact. Almohad ruler Yacoub al-Mansour remodelled Marrakesh with a fortified kasbah, glorious gardens, qissaria (covered markets), a rebuilt Koutoubia and a triumphal gate (Bab Agnaou). But the Almohads lost their showpiece to the Merenids in 1269, who turned royal attention to Meknès and Fez.
After centuries of playing second fiddle under Merenid rule, Marrakesh regained it's crown in the 16th century, when the Saadians established their dynasty in the city. Marrakesh thrived as the crux of lucrative sugar-trade routes, and a trading centre for Christians and a protected mellah (Jewish quarter) were established in 1558. Ahmed al-Mansour ed-Dahbi (the Victorious and Golden) paved the Badi Palace with gold and took opulence to the grave in the gilded Saadian Tombs.
The Saadian dynasty crumbled in the 17th century, paving the way for the Alawites to seize the reins. Alawite leader Moulay Ismail preferred Meknès to Marrakesh, and moved his headquarters there – though not before looting the Badi Palace. Stripped of its role as the imperial base, Marrakesh entered its Wild West period with big guns vying for control. Those who prevailed built extravagant riads, though much of the population lived hand to mouth in crowded fondouqs (rooming houses).
After 1912, when Morocco was handed to the French protectorate, Thami el-Glaoui was installed as pasha of Marrakesh. While he went to work terrorising southern Morocco, French and Spanish colonists were busy building themselves a ville nouvelle (new town) outside of Marrakesh's city walls.
After independence in 1956, Marrakesh was left without a clear role and resumed its fallback career as a caravanserai – becoming the nation’s breakaway success. Roving hippies built the city’s mystique in the 1960s and ’70s, and visits by the Rolling Stones, Beatles and Led Zeppelin gave the city star power. In the 1990s private medina mansions were converted into B&Bs, just as low-cost airlines delivered weekenders to brass-studded riad doors.
Marrakesh
1Top Sights
1Jardin MajorelleC1
2Koutoubia MosqueE4
3Musée BerbèreC1
4Saadian TombsF6
1Sig
hts
5Bab Debbagh TanneriesG3
6Bab el-JedidD5
7Bab N'kobD4
8Badi PalaceF5
9CyberParkD4
10Menara GardensA6
11Miaâra Jewish CemeteryG5
2Activities, Courses & Tours
12Hammam Bab DoukkalaE3
13Hammam Dar el-BachaE4
14Heritage SpaE3
15Sultana SpaF6
4Sleeping
16Dar ZamanE2
17Riad Al MassarahE3
18Riad HelenE3
19Young & Happy HostelF5
5Eating
20Aswak AssalamD2
21Babouche CaféE2
22Cafe ClockF6
23Henna CafeE3
24I LimoniF2
25La Maison ArabeE3
26Latitude 31E2
27Panna GelatoA2
28Plats Haj BoujemaaA1
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