The Best and Worst of Marrakesh

The highs and lows of a few days spent with our children in Morocco’s number 1 tourist city

Background

We first visited Marrakesh 10 years ago, long before having any children. I remember having a bit of a love-hate relationship with the city back then – enchanted by the hustle and bustle and feast for the senses, but irritated by the constant hassle and misinformation – so much so that, during this 1 month tour of Morocco, we initially hadn’t planned to go back.

However, we kept meeting people along the way and telling them, despite my reservations, that they should definitely go. Marrakesh is pretty unique and shouldn’t be missed. Well, I couldn’t keep telling others to go and miss it out myself, so we decided to return to see what had changed in the last 10 years and to see if I still felt the same about the city now as I did back then.

Here, rather than write a comprehensive tour guide (there are no shortage of those already), I have attempted to draw attention to some of the best bits of Marrakesh, along with some of its less desirable attributes, including some scams and dangers you need to watch out for when visiting. Remember, we have a part to play as visitors as well – by trying to ensure that our holidays to Morocco are taken in a sustainable way, so that the local economy can best benefit from foreign tourists.

10 years later…

Looking back at my photos from 10 years ago, my first impression now is that not a lot has changed – horse and donkey carts are still used to transport goods around the old central medina (market area), locals are still wearing their traditional djellabas (long hooded robes), and the central Jemaa el-Fnaa square remains the heartbeat of the city.

However, you can now see everywhere the explosion in tourism that has occurred. There are visitors of all nationalities everywhere. I mean everywhere. The old town medina is very crowded, with large tour parties trooping around (and this was visiting in January). It must be absolutely crazy during peak holiday seasons.

There was a time not so long ago that the traditional riad houses surrounding the central medina tended to be run down and some of the cheaper to buy in the city. Not any more. The demand for conversion into guesthouses, especially by foreign buyers keen to capitalise on this seemingly insatiable year-round demand, has pushed the prices of these houses through the roof. There are now thousands of such guesthouses to be found. You wonder where it will all end. On a positive note, it does ensure an unbeatable range of accommodation is on offer for visitors.

The Good…

All these tourists are coming for a reason: Marrakesh, as a city break destination, has a lot to offer. Serviced by international airlines from around the globe, the city is now more accessible than ever before, with foreign visitors flocking in to experience the famed and unique atmosphere on offer.

Some of the best bits of the city are:

Jemaa el-Fnaa Square

What really sets Marrakesh apart from other cities in Morocco is this central square. There is nowhere comparable to it anywhere else. It is a hive of activity both day and night and is a concentration of all things you might associate with Morocco, all crammed into one place.

Think colourful market and food stalls, street performers, musicians, street hustlers and even snake charmers. You can’t help but be swept along with the energy whilst walking around.

If the atmosphere at ground level gets too manic for you, the square is surrounded by cafes and restaurants to retreat to, often with elevated terraces overlooking the action. The view of lights and smoke rising from all the food stalls in the square in the evening is truly a sight to behold.

Exploring the Medina

Although not unique in style for Morocco, the old town Medina (market area) is a good example being both extensive and varied. You can happily lose yourself for hours exploring the narrow winding lanes and interlinking passageways (sometimes getting literally lost!). There is a great selection of shops and goods on offer. Don’t expect too many bargains though – ‘tourist prices’ are the norm.

A good tip is to get up high on one of the many cafe, restaurant or guesthouse roof terraces in and around the medina, so as to escape the noise and smog at ground level and gain a new perspective on what is going on down below.

Experience a Hammam

This traditional spa experience shouldn’t be missed. Levels of luxury and authenticity vary from place to place, but expect skin scrubs, different showers and massage to feature at most. Some will let you take children for free with you, which makes for a fun and different way to spend an hour or two with them.

Beyond the Medina

The central old town area of Marrakesh is understandably the main tourist draw. If it all starts to feel a bit claustrophobic after a while though, there are some good options for escaping the crowds. Within easy walking distance of the centre are a number of different parks to relax in, as well as some of the best restaurants in Marrakesh. Another good alternative for a place to visit is the pleasant 19th century Bahia Palace.

Further out from the centre, the newer districts of Marrakesh boast smart, modern, European looking neighbourhoods with upscale dining, nightclubs and international chain restaurants, showcasing the modern day Morocco. It’s a million miles in feel from the medina in terms of what greets you. Granted, most people won’t come to Marrakesh for this kind of experience, but it’s there if you want it.

Good Base for Exploring

If you are keen to get out and experience a bit more of Morocco during your stay (something I’d definitely recommend), then Marrakesh makes a good central base for doing so. The city is well connected for transport to elsewhere in the country if wanting to travel independently.

There are also no shortage of tour companies offering single or multi-day excursions to popular locations elsewhere. A popular option close by is a visit to the often snow-capped High-Atlas mountains, complete with waterfalls and traditional Berber villages to explore. Travelling a little further takes you to dramatic mountain gorges and desert film sets. Further still, multi-day tours take you right to camels and luxury desert camps at the Sahara Desert in the east, or picturesque, coastal fishing and surf towns to the West. The choice is endless.

The Bad…

As you’d expect from a city of this size and popularity, not everything is great or to be recommended. It should be said that in comparison to other global cities, for the most part Marrakesh feels a pretty safe place to be. Low level and sometimes constant irritation, rather than danger, is more typically what to watch out for. Some of these negative aspects of the city are:

Hassle

Worse than anywhere else in Morocco, by far. Expect to be constantly approached by touts and entertainers looking for you to part with your cash. It can be fun if you don’t take it seriously and make a game of it, but it is enough to put a lot of people off. The Jemaa el-Fnaa square area is the worst place for this. If you are walking around the food stalls at night, expect a lot of attention from everybody.

Be warned that rarely anything comes for free. Offers of goods and services will come at a price (even if initially handed over for free). Also, if someone offers up directions (even if you haven’t asked for them), they will then usually try to accompany you along the way, followed by the expectation of a tip. You have to be firm with people to avoid falling into these traps. It would be wrong to generalise and say that nobody will help you for nothing, but these little tricks seem pretty widespread.

If visiting with children, a favourite trick is to try and give the children things to hold, so that you then feel obliged to buy them. We managed to drill it into our kids to “not touch anything“, but it still gets a bit relentless trying to watch all directions at once. We found having a large double pushchair and loading all 3 kids inside helped us a lot with keeping track of everything that was going on around us.

If you still have any worries about Marrakesh being safe for children, check out the advice in this useful roundup of 5 things you should know about visiting Morocco with kids.

It is Not Cheap

Don’t come to Morocco expecting incredible bargains. The country in general is not that cheap for tourists (especially if comparing it to cheaper European countries like Spain and Portugal), with recent growth in tourist numbers and demand serving to push prices up even further. In addition, Marrakesh feels comfortably more expensive than elsewhere in the country. Expect to haggle hard if buying from the shops in the central area of the medina, and you’ll still probably end up paying too much.

Dining out at the food stalls in the Jemaa el-Fnaa square is undoubtedly a fun experience. At a first glance the prices seem pretty reasonable too (especially with offers of free drinks etc. being shouted at you by all the touts – and I do mean shouted). However, plates are small (tapas style), and they’ll usually try to bring you more than you ordered. Expect to pay €30-40 for a meal for 2 by the time you’re done. The atmosphere is unique, but there are definitely better meals to be had elsewhere in the city.

Alcohol, although more prevalent than when we visited 10 years ago, is still unusual and not typically served at the majority of restaurants. This should come as no real surprise – Morocco is a Muslim country after all. Where it is available, prices tend to be on the high side of what you might expect.

Getting Lost

In this era of having Google Maps always at your fingertips, I find there is actually something quite charming about getting lost, so this doesn’t necessarily have to be a negative. It is something to be aware of though as it’s incredibly easy to do. Even walking a couple of blocks from your guesthouse can prove to be surprisingly confusing. If wandering further afield, be sure to make note of a landmark near to where you started – don’t expect taxi drivers to know the name of every guesthouse if you can’t find your way back. When we visited 10 years ago, we got properly lost. I speak from experience when I say that wandering the backstreets hopelessly in the early hours of the morning can start to feel a little frightening.

The Traffic

Crazy busy. The central ring road is a collection of cars, buses, delivery vans, motorbikes and horse carts all jostling for space. Most visitors won’t be driving, so can just be amused by all this from a distance. However, if like us, you are driving into the city, be prepared for the drive of your life! Maneuvering a 7m long van through this madness is an experience that will stay with me forever.

If you are visiting in a camper and looking for somewhere to stay, the car park next to the main Koutoubia mosque has camper parking at the rear. Services are limited but it is surprisingly quiet and the location is unbeatable.

Backstreets after dark

I don’t want to make too much of this, as there are much more dangerous cities in the World, even in the UK I’d say. That said, it is possible to notice a bit of an atmosphere shift on the streets late at night. The sheer number of foreign tourists and the money they bring seems to have acted as a bit of a magnet for vagrant characters from around the country to descend upon Marrakesh.

Often the riad guesthouses are located down gloomy, quiet backstreets. We had an awkward walk back to ours one night while being followed by a man shouting obscenities at us (or maybe himself) from a little too close for comfort. It’s the kind of experience that I imagine could make a solo traveller feel very uncomfortable, especially when you add in how easy it is to get a bit lost if you’re not careful.

The Ugly…

In my opinion, some of the worst scams and biggest irritants to watch out for are:

Misinformation

Worse than hassle (which I can forgive to an extent – people are just trying to make a living after all), is deliberate misinformation. It happens a lot. You are forever being told “don’t go that way, there’s nothing there”, “you’d be better turning that way instead”, or “that place is closed today” etc. Block it all out. It’s very rare that any of it is true. People seem keen to either direct you past places that might be able to make them money, or else offer to escort you in person instead, again for money. The only other place we really encountered this problem on such a wide scale was inside the old medina at Fes.

The worst scam we found that utilises this type of misinformation is based around the tannery. Unless you have a burning desire to visit a tannery, don’t bother going anywhere near it. It is a fair walk to get to and there is nothing picturesque about the place (incidentally, the one in Fes is much more colourful and interesting if you do want to visit one). We were repeatedly told by stallholders from quite a distance away that there was a “special Berber festival” happening there, and it was “for today only”, with all of them keen to show you the way. You get the picture. All lies. My guess is the people running the leather shops around the tannery pay commission to people for bringing in the tourists. Once people have had a ‘free’ tour of the tannery, I reckon some will subsequently feel pressurised into buying something from the leather shops there. We realised straight away when we got there that there was no special event and nothing to see, so left. We walked back to the centre of the city past a steady stream of small groups like us being led there in the other direction. This scam is obviously well established and must be a good earner for people, judging by its popularity.

Motorbikes

Trust me, I challenge anyone to spend a few days in Marrakesh and not get sick of the motorbikes. Although traditional donkey carts still squeeze their way through the tight lanes of the medina, they have been increasingly replaced by this motorised transport of preference. They are a real menace. Not only do you have to watch out for them all the time (especially hard work when walking around with children), but the smog they create makes the air in the enclosed spaces horrible to be breathing all day. Maybe (hopefully) one day they’ll see sense and follow the lead of other cities in Morocco and completely remove them from the medina. For now though they remain, all the while massively reducing the quality of visitor experience.

The Horse and Cart ‘Queue’

Taking a horse and cart ride is actually quite an enjoyable experience. The horses seem relatively well cared for and largely oblivious to the traffic cramming the streets around them. A ride will take you to less visited and quieter parts of the city which makes for a pleasant change of pace. Our kids enjoyed the experience a lot.

My issue is not with the rides themselves, but rather with the lack of organisation at the main horse and cart stand between the Jemaa el-Fnaa square and Koutoubia mosque. Show the slightest interest in the horses and expect the cart drivers to descend on you in numbers, all aggressively touting for your business. Expect a lot of people shouting prices at you and trying to forcefully lead you towards their carts. It is pretty overwhelming. Why they cannot just take it in turns like in a traditional taxi rank I don’t know. It kind of puts you off going anywhere near them.

Despite a whole variety of prices being quoted loudly at you as you pass by (commence the haggling), all carts are actually required by law to display the official city prices (which it turns out are not unreasonable). You shouldn’t be tricked into paying any more. Likewise, trying to haggle a lower price than what is official only encourages this scrum mentality to persist. We eventually settled on one of the less pushy guys and paid the official price, which seemed about right.

Should you go?

Yes. Despite my misgivings I’d still recommend Marrakesh for a visit. The unique vibrancy of the city is something not to be missed and, if not seen before, really is essential to experience during any visit to Morocco. That said, having now toured more of the country, Marrakesh is definitely not my favourite place. There are other cities that offer a similar visitor experience but in more pleasant surroundings and with a lot less hassle – Essaouira is a good example.

The ever-growing tourist numbers to the city tell a story, though – people are not coming in their waves to Marrakesh for nothing – it remains a place that is worthy of everyone experiencing at least once in their lifetime, given the chance. Just be sure to do so with your eyes wide open.

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