Marrakech

the thousand and one nights of an imperial city

Marrakech, imperial city millennium, the Holy City to seven marabouts opens the door of southern Morocco and lovers of night life

It is a city of contrasts, where trendy spots, trendy restaurants, major hotels and oversized projects alongside a medina that has preserved its traditions and medieval atmosphere.

Tourist sites abound, historical, cultural or festive. Palaces, museums, gardens or riads and its colorful souks where various trades grouped by sector offer the fruit of the work of many craftsmen of the medina, all combine to surprise and delight the visitor's eye.

Jemaa el Fna Square in the heart of the historic city near the souks, seduced by his drunkenness both human and theatrical excitement and the imprint of a still recent past where the word, storytelling, fables and epic resonated within it. His incessant expansion turns into a huge open-air restaurant at the end of the afternoon, and late into the night.

Like a lighthouse, the Koutoubia eve of its top 70 m of the Imperial City.

The remote palm center houses a number of hotels and upscale restaurants. 70 km north of Marrakech, the High Atlas, the waterfalls in the valley of Ourika welcome people of Marrakech in the heart of the hot summer. Near the snow-capped Oukaïmedene in winter Marrakchis thousand resources practice skiing on its steep slopes.

Activities abound, sports of all kinds, golf courses, spas, high quality, excursions to the peaks of the High Atlas and beyond, barely more than two hours away, the sea. Essaouira deploys its charms, its colors and crisp air.
Neighborhoods across the history of Marrakech



The first foundations date back to 1062 Marrakesh This legendary city as the phoenix has always reborn from the ashes. She radiates precious monuments, palaces and riads, witnesses and sometimes remnants of a eventful history.

The walls, built around 1162, surround the medina, Jemaa el Fna and the souks are the most visited places in the district of Marrakech and the Kasbah adjoining Mellah.

Among the monuments of the Medina to visit the Almoravide Kubba, built in the twelfth century and restored in the early 50s, she remains unique architectural art Almoravide. Facing him, the Ben Youssef Madrasa, built in the sixteenth century by the Saadi, is a marvel of Moorish architecture. The El Badi Palace (XVI century) and that of Bahia (nineteenth century) gives us an idea of what might be missing the glitz and the lives of sultans Marrakech golds. Museums Caravanserais, riads ... continue to amaze the curious visitor.

Outside the city walls, is the modern Gueliz district of Marrakech. Apart from a few new art style buildings dating from the protectorate and the famous Majorelle Gardens, this is not a tourist area. Great restaurants develop there, administrative services are present, and some residential neighborhoods and peaceful contrast to the boiling point of the medina.

Another district, that of the Wintering contained in the triangular avenues Mohammed V, Hassan II and Mohammed VI, is the corner of the large hotels, casinos, and private residences high ranges.

 

The taste buds

The number of quality restaurants in Marrakech and their diversity has nothing to envy to the European cities. Of course, the Moroccan cooking tagines and couscous with many refined or simple it is to honor, both in the palace or small restaurants in the medina in the multitude of restaurants of "Gueliz" or those most selects the Hivernage.

Italian cuisine, pizza, Asian and French cuisine that proposes sometimes pork without forgetting the local fast food and Chawarma well represented through the streets, really Marrakech is a city for all taste buds. If you are staying in a riad, and it is host table, home cooking will be certainly a delicacy.
On the Jemaa el Fna

A must during a stay in Marrakech. It is not for its eating quality as onlookers gather round tables installed, but for its very friendly atmosphere.
Go out and have a drink

It was around midnight when the nightlife begins in Marrakech. Some lively clubs Wintering or Gueliz towards the Boulevard Mohammed V, the palm grove of Marrakech and others outside of the city, competing Drunken nights Marrakchi.

During the day, no problem finding plenty of cafes serving mint tea or orange juice and that, everywhere in Marrakech. If you fancy a cold beer or a cocktail nagging you, a few bars in the district of Gueliz, a predominantly male clientele, serve beer and other alcohols in an often heartbreaking atmosphere. Couples, prefer hotel bars or clubs more suitable.
Turkish baths and spas in Marrakech

It is important to distinguish between the neighborhood hammams most luxurious spas.

The first, often adjacent to mosques, have 3 rooms with different temperature. For a small fee, often Dh 8-10, men, residents, come regularly to relax out of the noise of the city, while the women, they meet there for a private moment away from men .

Tourists are generally welcome. Be aware that some hammams have 2 entries and as many rooms needed while others do not have one. Obviously not mixed, steam is shared. Mornings and evenings are reserved for men and women day. Provide 50 to 100 Dh for a massage.

In a setting often refined, many Spas continue to bloom for a while in Marrakech. Here are often care and massage therapies from East and Asia with essential oils that are available in addition to the sauna and steam room for a higher price.
Organized tours around the city

Most travel agencies have a desk in Gueliz, along and around the Avenue Mohamed V. riads and hotels offer to organize excursions or are related to an agency. The seriousness depends on the service and the speaker.

Suggested Routes mainly lead you through the day to Ouzoud waterfalls or Ourika Valley and Oukaïmedene or Essaouira.

For multi-day trips, you can choose between Ouarzazate and the Draa Valley, the valleys of Dades and Todhra, and of course to spend one or more nights in the desert of Erg chegaga or the dunes of Merzouga.