First, the hawkers set up shop: spices, amulets from southern Morocco, oranges... In the middle of the crowd: the famous colourful costumes of the no less famous water carriers. The monkey trainers entertain the onlookers, while the snake charmers blow into their gha\u00efta to excite the reptiles. Around them, acrobats, percussionists, storytellers... Further on, little gargotiers set up shop. People sit on benches around their improvised stalls to enjoy kebabs, fried fish or doughnuts. The sounds and smells mingle to intoxicating effect. It is this spectacle that has earned Jemaa el-Fna the title of \"UNESCO Masterpiece of the Oral and Intangible Heritage\".<\/p>\n
\"The square is obviously a must-see. It's even sometimes the starting point for a treasure hunt in the medina,\" explains Kenza Chaoui, general manager of Excel Tours. Groups generally stay for three or four nights. Budgets start at 600 euros per person, but you should expect to pay at least 800 euros for a quality stay. There is a wide and varied choice of hotels, both in the medina and in the palm grove, some ten kilometres away, as well as in the new tourist areas, such as Agdal. A large number of establishments have conference rooms that can accommodate several hundred people. And the number of openings is increasing, with the obvious risk of over-subscription! This should make it easier to negotiate rates, especially as Morocco has not escaped the crisis, with a drop in bookings over the last few months of between 20 and 30 %, according to specialists. \"After settling in and having dinner, usually at the hotel, a first visit the following day allows you to discover the main historical sites of Marrakech in just a few hours\", adds Kenza Chaoui. Brightly coloured Jacarandas and bougainvilleas, the scent of orange blossom... tourist guides are full of superlatives to paint an idyllic picture of the \"red city\". But that was just a few years ago! Nowadays, visitors are more likely to be in cars or on backfiring mopeds. But never mind! The Koutoubia, the mosque whose Hispano-Moorish minaret dominates Marrakech, is as elegant as ever. Only Muslims are allowed inside. Infidels will be content to admire its chiselled walls and green-and-white earthenware frieze.<\/p>\n
A few minutes' walk away, the tombs of the members of the Saadian dynasty (16th century) are a second stop. Once you've found their discreet entrance - an ordinary door at the end of an alleyway - you'll discover several rooms whose zellij-covered walls rival the stucco lacework of the ceilings. Nearby, the Bahia Palace brings this historic tour to a close. Built in the 19th century, it features a succession of richly decorated flats and riads, and courtyards planted with orange, jasmine and banana trees... The tranquillity of the place is only disturbed by a few dry, regular noises: the clacking of storks' beaks in their enormous nests on the walls of the neighbouring Royal Palace.<\/p>\n
All that remains is to get lost in what has made Marrakech famous: the souks. The tour can be done in small groups, although this is not very practical for shopping! The easiest thing to do is to point out a meeting place, Place Jemaa el-Fna, for example, and let everyone wander as they please among the hundreds of stalls beset by crowds. It's hard to get your bearings in this maze of reed-covered alleyways, which let in a few rays of light here and there, giving the medina a striated, unique atmosphere. And a welcome coolness during the hottest months... To discover this incredible city, the best thing is to let your instincts guide you. In any case, there will always be someone to point the lost stranger in the right direction! Here, a door decorated with interlacing patterns marks the entrance to a hammam; further on, a small courtyard adorned with a fountain. And the strolling crowds, all those weathered faces, the craftsmen at work... the spectacle is everywhere. The dyers' souk, with its multicoloured skeins drying in garlands above the alleyways, will catch the eye of photographers; the wrought-iron craftsmen's souk will appeal to decorating enthusiasts, who will be hard pressed to resist the wrought-iron objects that you have to haggle over, sometimes for long minutes... And then there are the tagine dishes, all the pottery, and the gazelle horns, delicious Moroccan cakes, and so many other inexpensive odds and ends...<\/p>\n
When night falls, the programmes generally include a \"Thousand and One Nights\" dinner. Men in Berber costume carrying torches, Gnaoua musicians, dancers... you name it. On the menu: tajine and couscous or more refined dishes, such as the famous pastilla. The Palais Gharnata or Dar Zelij, in the medina, or the Palais Soleiman, the former residence of the ca\u00efd and its open-air patio, are among the most sought-after addresses. The more recent Beldi Country, just a few kilometres from the centre, is also well worth a visit. These palaces can even be reached by horse-drawn carriage, adding to the folklore! The famous fantasias, held at Chez Ali or Borj Bladi, offer a more 'touristy' meal and show. Seated under ca\u00efdal tents in a Disney-style setting, guests enjoy a traditional meal, complete with musicians and dancers, before watching a horse show that ends, as it should, with a race of Berber riders and a salvo of rifle shots. Disadvantage: you have to share the space with several hundred tourists. Much more exclusive, the Terres de f\u00eates company offers dinners in the heart of the palm grove. \"Site illuminated by thousands of candles, palm trees lit up, oriental music or a lounge atmosphere, shows and even a disco with a DJ... we can do it all, for groups from a few dozen to several thousand people\", says CEO Jalil Benbiga. Finally, for the past year, Les Folie's in Marrakech has been trying to renew the pleasures, with a Lido-style music hall dinner, hosted by a troupe of young Moroccans. But the food isn't up to scratch and the show is a little out of date. What remains is the immense 1100-seat hall, which can be hired.<\/p>\n
During an operation in Marrakech, you can take the opportunity to go as far as the neighbouring Atlas Mountains, which are covered in snow from December onwards. The small resort of Ouka\u00efmeden (2,650 m), an hour and a half's drive away, has everything you need for business tourism. But its outdated infrastructure means that operators now prefer to take groups to the sumptuous valley of Asni, which offers a sublime view of the Atlas Mountains and a chance to get up close to Moroccan culture in traditional villages; or to the shores of Lake Takerkoust, 40km from Marrakech, for refreshing team-building activities. Although water sports have been banned for a few months now in a bid to protect the environment, there are still plenty of land-based activities on offer, from setting up Bedouin tents to mountain biking and donkey polo!<\/p>\n
Marrakech the southerner, Tangier the northerner; Marrakech the landlubber, Tangier the seafarer; Marrakech the jet-setter, Tangier the discreet... The contrasts between the two cities are stark. Tangier has everything to gain from this, as it is more than ever intent on marking its difference to attract travellers. The gateway to Africa was long neglected by King Hassan II. His son Mohamed VI has decided to put things right, and Tangier is catching up fast. You only have to walk around the delightfully Art Deco station to realise this. Buildings and hotels are going up and up, a business centre is springing up, and the corniche has been remodelled to look like the Croisette... Above all, the medina is gradually being reborn. All of which should boost visitor numbers to a city with a legendary image.<\/p>\n
Just 14 km from Spain, opposite Gibraltar, Tangier is bathed by the waters of the Atlantic and the Mediterranean, which meet there. This strategic location gave it international status from 1923 to 1956. This justified its reputation as a haven for smugglers, so often highlighted in adventure films from the 30s and 40s! But Tangier is also a city of painters and writers, from Delacroix and Matisse to Paul Bowles (author of Tea in the Sahara), Jack Kerouac and Tennessee Williams. Much more recently, Bernard-Henri L\u00e9vy has taken over, blowing a wind of 'hipness' into the city. People flock to the city, while would-be emigrants on the terrace of the Caf\u00e9 Hafa, suspended above the ocean, dream only of European horizons. \"Tangier is a city full of paradoxes, improbable, probably the least Moroccan of the Kingdom's cities, with no remarkable buildings, so it is all of Tangier that is remarkable. People who come here want to discover a different Morocco\", explains Jean-Olivier Arfeuill\u00e8re, co-director of dar Nour, a ten-bedroom guest house lost in the medina that can be rented in its entirety for small groups.<\/p>\n
The spectacular contrasts created by this cultural melting pot can be seen just about everywhere. But there's no need to look to Tangier for a reminiscence of a certain canaille side that disappeared a long time ago! All the same, the city lends itself to an ultra-glamorous treasure hunt, a sort of sophisticated wandering in the footsteps of a few celebrities: the Caf\u00e9 de Paris and its clock stuck at 12.30pm, which seduced Jean Genet; the ruins of the Gran Teatro Cervantes and its azulejo fa\u00e7ade; the Hotel Continental, which was home to Degas and doesn't seem to have changed since the 19th century! There's also the Hotel El Minzah, Rita Hayworth's favourite address, and the Hotel Villa de France, where Matisse stayed in 1912 and painted some of his most famous pictures from his bedroom window. This long derelict establishment is now being restored to its former glory.<\/p>\n
Here again, you have to drown in the medina, which spreads out like an amphitheatre right down to the sea, through the Grand Socco, the historic square that gave its title to Kessel's novel, and which is bordered by an Anglican church with a minaret-shaped steeple and the Rif cinema, straight out of the film Cinema Paradiso. You wander through a maze of whitewashed houses, sometimes repainted yellow or blue. Nothing to do with Marrakech. Here, there are no reed roofs to protect you from the heat, and the narrow streets and staircases leading down to the port are bathed in a soft light, the same light that attracted so many painters. And while the medina is surprisingly clean and airy, this should be seen as a start. \"A tourism development plan, with a budget of 50 million euros, is being prepared. The aim is to improve urban planning and housing in order to make the city more pleasant, with, for example, the embellishment of tourist sites and the medina, and the renovation of facades and pavements\", explains Mustapha Boucetta, President of the Regional Tourism Council. In particular, the Place de la Casbah could do with a little grooming, to highlight the crenellated facade of the Dar el-Makhzen that stands there. This former palace of the Sultan has now been converted into a small museum. Not far away, in the market, women from the Rif, recognisable by their huge straw hats with tassels, sell vegetables, fruit and poultry. The walk inevitably ends with a stop at Caf\u00e9 Fuentes, dear to Kerouac, or Caf\u00e9 Baba, a favourite haunt of the Rolling Stones.<\/p>\n
On the outskirts of the city, the billionaires' villas of the Vieille Montagne district taunt the old medina: here the summer palace of King Mohammed VI, there that of the late King Fahd of Arabia... Other rich anonymous residences follow one another, lost in the vegetation, as far as the famous Cape Spartel, which marks the watershed between the Mediterranean and the Atlantic. A simple lighthouse watches over the strait, close to the Caves of Hercules, which are being spruced up for the summer ahead. According to legend, it was here that the hero rested before completing the eleventh of his labours. The neighbouring Mirage Hotel, with its Californian ambience, is a place where other, more modern heroes can relax. Businessmen and statesmen appreciate its tranquillity and its terrace overlooking the ocean, perfect for a cocktail party or a private dinner for a few dozen people.<\/p>\n
All the same, it would be a shame to visit the region without going to Tetouan, a good hour's drive away. Preferably along the Rifian coast, facing the Spanish coast. This is the perfect opportunity to discover other Herculean projects, such as Tangier-Med, the world's largest container port. In a few months' time, cargo traffic will be completely rerouted here, relieving congestion in the port in the centre of Tangier, which will be devoted to yachting. Then you can once again discover the city from the sea, and marvel at this \"tumble of stone cubes\", as Pierre Loti put it.<\/p>\n
Leaning against the foothills of the Rif, a mountain range where cannabis grows like wheat in Beauce, Tetouan boasts a medina listed as a World Heritage Site. Not quite Arab, nor quite Andalusian, the \"little Jerusalem\", in memory of the large Jewish community that once lived there, is almost suffocating. It's hard to wander through the dense network of narrow streets and bustling souks without getting lost. The charm and whiteness of Tetouan is best discovered from the tanners' souk. A must-see, despite the smell! But never mind, here it's the \"pleasure of the eyes\" that takes precedence. As is often the case in Morocco. Just one last time before heading back.<\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Like every evening, the terrace of the Caf\u00e9 de France is fully booked. At the bottom of the steps, Issan gives his voice to encourage tourists to cross the threshold. It's \"the place to be in Marrakech\", he laughs. And he's right! The view from up here is breathtaking. The Place Jemaa el-Fna, the heart of the city, beats to the beat. And if the ochre buildings here are graceless, almost hideous, it's because the charm of Jemaa el-Fna lies elsewhere. As soon as night falls, the magic of the Orient is at work, and the whole of Marrakech seems to make an appointment there.<\/p>","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[97],"tags":[],"type-darticle":[],"n_magazine":[],"class_list":["post-11161","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-destinations-incentive","vapo-free"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\n