The roofs of the riad, the colors of the Tajins and the sunset over Jmaaa el-Fna square: these are just some of the things not to be missed in beautiful Marrakech.
Ready to face a tour of Morocco, our first stop is obviously Marrakech.
Before landing, when I look out of the window of the Ryanair flight from Bergamo, what I see is an expanse of palm and fruit trees, set in the red earth of Morocco.
Marrakech Menara Airport is futuristic: airy design rooms but with notable oriental hints. The airport is located only 10 km from the city, but getting there is often not that easy, due to those who will attack you to offer you fares of any kind.
How to reach the hotels
Very often, as in our case, hotels / riads in Marrakech offer the service of free pick-up and therefore problem solved, otherwise you may have 3 solutions:
Taxi. As soon as you leave the airport, you will see a queue of taxis in front of you and you will be attacked by taxi drivers who want to take you to the city, the journey takes 15-20 minutes and normally the negotiated price is close to € 10 (100 Dhm).
Bus N. 19 commuting airport - Marrakech. The bus is on the left as you exit the airport, at the end of the taxi queue. It costs € 2 (20 Dhm), stops at the main hotels and ends at the famous Jmaa el-Fna square.
Bus N. 11. Exit the airport, cross the car parks and after about 500 meters you will arrive on a large road. A few meters on your left on the opposite side, there is the stop that takes you straight to the city, Jmaa el-Fna too. Cost of € 0,30 (3,5 Dhm).
The city immediately welcomes us with its charm, the oranges along the streets, the palm groves everywhere, the splendid roses, the scooters whizzing through the streets of the Medina. Incredibly charming. Every time you walk in the Medina you are sucked into the narrow, oppressive, claustrophobic alleys and then, suddenly, you find yourself in the central square where everything is played, frank and sincere: Jmaaa el-Fna.
The Riads
Our car takes us immediately to the riad. The Riads are typical Moroccan houses with a square shape. They develop vertically and were once houses inhabited by entire families. The central open-air patio is always adorned with different types of plants and fountains whose water noises have made me sleep for every evening, a pleasure. The people have traditionally been obsessed with their privacy and that is why the riads are located in back streets and nothing is visible from the outside.
At the entrance there is only a super-elaborate door, carved in wood. Once opened, you enter a different dimension from the chaotic Marrakech. Our riad is called Dar Al Kounouz. It is amazing how the sounds and noises change from outside the door to inside. First the chaos, the voices, the spicy perfumes and then the silence, the bright colors of the Moroccan lanterns positioned everywhere and the intense scent of mint tea that is served at all hours with skillful pouring games.
Marrakech is a city that offers interesting tourist ideas, talk to people, observing them live them and savoring their essence remains the most exciting thing to do.
These are the must-sees that in 3 days, enough time for everything you need to see in Marrakech.
1. The Koutoubia mosque
The Koutoubia mosque in Marrakech is the largest mosque in the city. Built around 1150, it overlooks Djemaa el Fna and is an architectural masterpiece of the time. The minaret with its 65 meters in height dominates the panorama and is the oldest of the 3 large remaining Almohad minarets in the world.
2. The Medina and the Souks
A maze of narrow streets and alleys that sometimes give way to small squares. While the tourist spots are accessible independently, I recommend that you tour the medina with a licensed tour guide.
The souks represent the soul of Marrakech, the place where the commercial and artisan life of the city develops. A maze of alleys with shops to the right and left. Large sales of Moroccan lamps, splendid furniture, costume jewelery and textile shops, in the souks of Marrakech you can find everything. Voice of the verb observe, photograph, contract and be calm in doing so. Visiting the souks is one of the main activities in Marrakech. The first hours will be a continuous daze, especially if you begin your approach to the city by visiting the souks because in a short time you will be approached by people who will urge you by offering you guided tours, objects, information.
The initial attitude will be to flee and the feeling will be overwhelming. But already at second day you will realize how fun it is to align themselves with this way of approaching, they themselves will realize that it will not be so easy to "cheat" you and very often extremely pleasant and profound conversations will be established.
3. Jamaa el Fna square
Jemaa El Fna is the main square of Marrakech, you will go through it over and over again. It is a square that undergoes various metamorphoses throughout the day. In the morning there are certain stalls, in the afternoon others and in the evening food food food. Jemaa El Fna is famous for its undisputed charm which can be admired from one of the numerous terraces of the bars adjacent to the square. The most famous one is located at the "Le Gran Balcon du Café Glacier”From which you can see a breathtaking sunset and the Koutoubia who watches over the whole city. The square is a constant thrill, tourists and traders, snake charmers, sunsets. Be aware that everything you see or touch will have a price.
4. The Bahia Palace and the Saadian Tombs
The Bahia palace covers 8 hectares but only a small part of these are open to the public, it was built around 1860 and housed 4 wives and 24 concubines. Stunning decor with a central patio, lots of rooms and lots of heat.
The Saadian Tombs are the royal tombs, a short distance from the Bahia Palace, one is amazed by the luxury of the decorations.
Both at the Bahia Palace and at the Saadian Tombs the entrance cost is 10 dirhams, almost € 1 and always ask for an entrance ticket because they often don't give it to you and this is not good for maintaining the site of interest because that money ends up directly. in their pockets.
5. Jardine Majorelle
Built around 1900 by Jacques Majorelle, in 1980 Pierré Bergé and Yves Saint-Lauren bought the gardens and donated them to the city. The Majorelle Gardens are an oasis within the new city of Marrakech; a path between open spaces of water and plants of all kinds all surrounded by an intense shade of blue that contributes to relaxation. Not being in the city center it takes about 20 minutes to reach them on foot from Jemaa El Fna Square. I went on foot on the way and on the way back, to avoid cooking, I used the taxi.
Do not use the taxis just outside the gardens as they ask for 100 dirhams to the center. I recommend you go back to the main road and hail one of the moving taxis, the price will be lower.
The entrance fee to the Majorelle Gardens is 50 dirhams.
6. Medersa Ben Youssef
The Medersa is the former Koranic school and it is said to be the largest and most beautiful in all of Morocco. I also saw the one in Fez but undoubtedly the one in Marrakech is much more beautiful. Here too, thanks to all the magnificent decorations, you can feel the hidden charm of Marrakech. It is one of those places where you have to stop and simply admire.
Admission costs 20 dirhams, just under 2 €. Also in this case, it is mandatory to ask for the entrance ticket. Study the road well if you go there alone because it is in the center of the Medina and you risk getting lost in the souks.
Ready now to leave for the next stage, what's left of this city?
I think that Marrakech is one of the most beautiful and original cities I have seen so far, I still have the warm evenings spent on the roofs of the riad chatting, the colors of the Tajin and the sunset on Jmaaa el-Fna square. Roses, palm trees around minarets (some fake: repeaters disguised as palm trees), the hour of prayer with the call of the Muezzin at night, and the many talks on Ramadan in progress. Marrakech is a closed city that will hold you hostage, almost like inside an oil lamp ...
