Travel Essentials
When to go
Morocco recently dropped Covid entry restrictions and with temperatures reaching 25°C this month, its former capital and fourth-largest city makes for an excellent winter sun escape, with the striking backdrop of the snow-capped Atlas Mountains.
The weather is warm year-round, but can get into the high 30°Cs during summer. The wettest time of year is between January and April.
The International Film Festival has just got under way at the Palais des Congrès, and in June, the popular comedy festival Marrakech du Rire takes place. Add in the serene secret gardens, stunning riads and enough shopping to fill a fortnight and the enduring magic of the Red City is as captivating as ever.
Where to stay
Riad Tizwa has a home-from-home feel with its flower-filled courtyard, six comfortable rooms and friendly service in the Dar el Bacha neighbourhood of the ancient walled medina. Doubles from £60, riadtizwa.com.
For a more upscale experience, 72 Riad is decorated with intricate craftsmanship, copper lanterns and banana trees. A breakfast of fresh juices and pastries is served on the rooftop. Doubles from £120, riadliving.com.
Next year will be the centenary of one of the city’s most storied hotels, the five-star La Mamounia Palace, which Winston Churchill once made his winter home and where Charlie Chaplin and Elton John have stayed. Expect exceptional restaurants, 17 acres of tranquil gardens, and a vast underground spa. Doubles from £369 (mamounia.com/en) – but if you can’t stretch to that, visit for a drink and to see the gardens.
How to get around
Airport shuttle bus 19 runs to the ancient medina, taking 30 minutes to reach the main square, the Unesco-protected Jemaa el-Fnaa. Marrakech is a flat city and the medina’s narrow alleys are best explored on foot. The calèche (green horse-drawn carriages) that patrol the streets are a fun way to get around, from around £30pp.
SATURDAY
Start the day
Take a 30-minute drive to the outskirts of Marrakech to discover the 17-acre Cactus Thiemann, Africa’s largest cactus farm. With more than 150 species (the largest being more than 8m tall and 82 years old), this otherworldly garden is a peaceful place to enjoy a quiet stroll along spiky botanicals (closed Sun, MAD80/£7, cactusthiemann.com).
Where to go shopping
The city’s original concept store, 33 Rue Majorelle sells well-edited pieces by Morocco’s up-and-coming designers across textiles, clothing and homeware. Nearby is Moro, another gorgeous concept store and café.
Shkoon, a showroom in the workshop quarter of Sidi Ghanem, is piled high with new and vintage Mrirt rugs woven using traditional vertical wool looms by female artisans in the Atlas Mountains (shkoonshop.com).
In the souks of the medina, seek out Riad Yima, the studio of Pop artist Hassan Hajjaj, who sells slogan T-shirts and upcycled tomato tin lanterns.
Mustapha Blaoui is a grand emporium chock-full of throws, pots and cushions and other traditional wares all concealed behind an unassuming wooden door with no sign. Half the fun is finding it.
Don’t miss
La Maison de la Photographie displays a collection of vintage photographs of Morocco, the oldest of which date back to 1860 (MAD50/£4).
Street theatre has played out in the Jemaa el-Fnaa at sunset since the 11th century. Musicians, acrobats and snake-charmers entertain daily.
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Time for a drink
The leafy Café Arabe is one of the few places in the medina that serves alcohol. Enjoy a strawberry daiquiri while watching the sun sink.
Alternatively, in the south of the medina, Café Clock occupies an old school, where you can enjoy a sweet mint tea with a side of local live music.
Dinner reservation
A twinkly new addition to the city’s dining scene, Le Trou au Mur is part of the five-star riad Le Farnatchi, with a menu drawing on grandma’s cookbook. There’s a tagine of the day, Berber shepherd’s pie and a Moroccan pasta dish called berkoukesh.
SUNDAY
Go for a walk
…through the beautiful Jardin Majorelle, which Yves Saint Laurent bought in 1980, restoring the cobalt blue Moorish Art Deco buildings and luxuriant plants, and living on site.
Afterwards, stroll down Rue Yves Saint Laurent to the arresting, angular brickwork museum dedicated to the Algerian-born fashion designer’s life and work – home to more than 3,500 creations from his 50-year career. Combined tickets are MAD220 (£18), museum closed Weds, museeyslmarrakech.com.
Lunch break
A serene retreat in the medina is the garden oasis setting of Le Jardin. Set in a 16th-century building, it has tables in a tree-lined courtyard and breezy rooftop. The menu includes tasty mezze dishes, Moroccan salads, courgette fritters and bubbling tagine (lejardinmarrakech.com).
Time to relax
Unwind in one of Marrakech’s hammams. The bathhouses demand you strip off and be scrubbed to within an inch of your life, but for first-timers Le Bain Bleu is a more westernised version, from MAD220 (£18). Mouassine Hammam is one of the oldest public baths, open since 1562 and light on tourists. Entry is MAD150 (£13) or just pay MAD10 (90p) and polish yourself.
Have a treat
The old-world neighbourhood café Bacha Coffee has a monochrome tiled floor, giant potted palms and 200 varieties of single-origin coffee. The dainty Parisian patisserie comes courtesy of the former pastry chef at La Mamounia.
Get out of town
Head up to the Atlas Mountains for a day-hike and get a glimpse at traditional Berber life. Trek up to the foot of Toubkal, the highest peak in North Africa, check out the waterfalls at Oued Ourika gorge and stop at roadside souks. Stay the night at a guest house, boutique hotel or tented camp and enjoy the dazzling desert stars. The (yellow) shared cabs by Jemaa el-Fnaa will whizz you up into the mountains in 30 minutes or there are plenty of organised tours.
Ask a local
Thaïs Sala, filmmaker and singer-songwriter says: “Sidi Ghanem, the industrial quarter, is home to some of Marrakech’s most exciting new designers, such as Marrakshi Life, LRNCE and Be The Souk.
“Also, MCC gallery, a very cool art modern space. If you tire of tagines, head to Plus61 for dinner, an unfussy yet refined Australian restaurant. Try the Tamatini cocktail – vodka, lychee and ginger.”