Marrakesh - Family holiday

[IceBoy]

Hi All,

I travel to Marrakesh with Mrs Ice and my two young icicles (boys aged 9 & 13) in a couple of weeks time.

We are staying just outside of the city and are doing all-inclusive.

However, we fancy a little adventure and so far I can only think of haggling in the Jamaa el Fna Square and possibly a trip up the atlas mountains.

Any other recommendations?

We opted for AI for the boys mainly but don't mind eating out and spending a the odd day or half a day away from the resort.

Thanks in advance.
IceBoy

[VEA]

I can't help with recommendations on things to do but, have you ever been before? Enjoy the queue when you land!

[anonymous-user]

Are you in the Riu Tikida Palmeraie? (There are 2 Riu hotels there)

[uk_vette]

Is Marrakesh still in Morocco?

Then avoid like the plague

[VEA]

I can't for the life of me remember the name of the place but we went last year.
Stayed in a hotel about 45 mins outside Marrakech in the foothills. It was lovely, really lovely, run by an english couple from London.

The queue through security when we landed took over 2 hours and was out of the terminal onto the tarmac outside, it was horrendous. It was also incredibly hot!.

Personally, I won't be going back especially with the North African issues at the moment.

[anonymous-user]

uk_vette said:

Is Marrakesh still in Morocco?

Then avoid like the plague

He's already said he's going to Morocco. He's obviously comfortable with going there FFS.

Why do we now have loads of people saying ooh I wouldn't go to anywhere with arabs/muslims/is in N Africa etc etc.

[IceBoy]

I'm sure it is perfectly safe. Or as safe as anywhere else!
IceBoy

[VEA]

IceBoy said:

I'm sure it is perfectly safe. Or as safe as anywhere else!
IceBoy

We didn't see or have any trouble. The Mrs has actually been on 3 or 4 'girls' holidays to Marrakech. She loves it, shopping and eating.

[IceBoy]

VEA said:

IceBoy said:

I'm sure it is perfectly safe. Or as safe as anywhere else!
IceBoy

We didn't see or have any trouble. The Mrs has actually been on 3 or 4 'girls' holidays to Marrakech. She loves it, shopping and eating.

I've just check the .gov site and there is no mention of not travelling there!
IceBoy

[Shaoxter]

Marrakesh is probably the rudest place I've ever been to, and I've been to a few places. Which is a bit of a shame because the city itself is full of character.

[essayer]

VEA said:

I can't help with recommendations on things to do but, have you ever been before? Enjoy the queue when you land!

Flew with BA, didn't notice any difference compared to any European destination.

Keep an eye on your boys when you go into central Marrakech, scooters bomb up and down the pedestrian walkways, and the roads are pretty chaotic. It's also quite easy to get lost in the souk but it's not that big. The square after dark is impressive and the pop up restaurants are an experience!

It never felt dangerous, but standard 'sensible tourist' rules apply.

The El Badii palace ruins are amazing, well worth visiting, also the Bahia and the Saadien tombs are all very close so you could do them in a day/half day quite easily.

The new town area has some great ice cream/gelaterie places which I'm sure everyone will love. Check out 'Patisserie Amandine' - amazing!

Atlas Mountain trip is worth it - we went to Setti Fatma, you can climb up to see the waterfalls, then eat at one of the riverside restaurants. We bought a very nice handmade rug and it wasn't expensive, although take cash, I had to hike up a mountain to use my credit card.

Everywhere you go people will try to sell you stuff, with various claims of provenance , 'this is is Berber' etc; be wise. A lot of stuff is just mass market tat, especially in the main souks. A few things are worth the money and the sellers will usually refuse to budge too much on price.

The macaroons sold by street vendors are amazing!

Edited by essayer on Monday 27th July 12:21

[gareth h]

I've been twice in the last 3 years, first time on an enduro trip with wilderness wheels, was so impressed I took the family back the next year, we had an organised trip with a driver / land cruiser, our itinary was marakesh/atlas/desert camp/coast, was lots of time in the car but it flew by the scenery was very dramatic.
The Atlas mountains are worth a visit and are very close, if you can manage an overnight stay in a tented camp in the desert give it a go, seeing the sun come up / go down in silence over the dunes is an experience not to be missed.

[VEA]

I remembered, this is where we stayed. Lovely place worth popping by for lunch if you're in that area.

http://www.thecapaldi.com/the-capaldi/