Activities, Morocco

4×4 Drives

If you want to go further afield in Morocco there are various 4×4 one-day excursions that you can book from most of the holiday resorts. They usually combine the ride with a stop at a local’s house for some traditional refreshments and perhaps a camel ride.

Alternatively, you could hire a 4×4 to drive yourself which is a good idea if you are going somewhere roads are poor quality or if you’re considering a trip up into the Atlas Mountains.

The ultimate adventure, however, is actually enjoying your whole holiday in Morocco travelling from place to place in a 4×4. Morocco Tours is a company offering such a holiday. You will be picked up from the airport by your tour guide and that’s when the adventure begins. The trip will already have been completely planned in advance for you and you can just sit back and enjoy the ride.

American Legation

The American Legation building is situated in the medina of Tangier. In 1821 the Sultan of Morocco, gave this building as a gift to the USA making it one of the first pieces of property the US government had ever owned abroad.

This museum is housed in an elegant five-storey mansion and has some unusual displays, including a Moroccan Stars and Stripes carpet. It also has an exciting display of paintings that give a view of the Tangerine’s past through the eyes of its artists and a number of art retraces that originate from the 17th century through to the 20th century. The museum also has a variety of Moroccan rugs, furniture, maps, and photographs.

From the rooftop room of the museum, you have a picturesque view of the Straits of Gibraltar and of the harbour. On a clear day, you can also see as far as the Rif Mountains.

Boucharouite Museum

The Boucharouite Museum (formerly an 18th-century riad) in Marrakesh, is a little off the beaten track but is well worth a visit. It exhibits and publicises stunning artwork in the form of Berber boucharouites (rag rugs made from recycled cloth) made by the Berber women.

The museum is the work of avid collector Patrick de Maillard and as well as the boucharouites, the rooms are scattered with a lovely jumble of Moroccan popular art, from agricultural implements to painted doors. Patrick is on hand to give further information with regard to the exhibits and to answer any questions you might have.

This is an incredibly interesting museum, showing the history of a beautiful craft. Not only are the carpets gorgeous but the location itself is equally special. Once you have walked around the museum, why not take time to enjoy a lovely mint tea on the top floor terrace?

Crocodile Park

The Crocodile Park (Crocoparc) located on the outskirts of Agadir is the first crocodile park in Morocco and has become a major tourist attraction, offering something completely different.

The park is chiefly a place to discover and learn all about crocodiles; their movements, way of living and daily life. Children will absolutely love it here but it is also of interest to scientists, researchers, and students, who have access to the laboratory and the crocodiles’ nursery.

The resident species at the park is the potentially man-eating Nile crocodile and you can see them living in habitats that have been made as natural as possible and provide them with everything they need to thrive. The park also has 4 themed gardens with beautiful lush vegetation and plants.

There are several restaurants, a shop, toilets, 2 children’s playgrounds and a carpark. There is full disabled access to the park.

Majorelle Gardens

The Majorelle Garden is a two and half acre botanical garden and artist’s landscape garden in Marrakech. It was made in the 1920s by French painter Jacques Majorelle and has shady lanes, marble pools filled with water lilies and lotus flowers, burbling streams, banana trees, coconut palms, and bougainvillea.

There is also a gorgeous, Moorish styled building with a hint of Art Deco in the park, which has been painted in amazingly vivid primary colours.

It is not surprising that the garden is put together and coloured like a painting as it was designed by an artist and it is said that Majorelle garden rather than his paintings was his masterpiece.

After years of neglect, the garden was then taken over and restored by the fashion designer Yves Saint Laurent and his partner Pierre Berge. The garden is open daily, all year round.

Photography Museum

The Photography Museum of Marrakesh is located in the Medina, the oldest part of the city. It opened in April 2009, with a collection of photographs spanning from the 1870’s to the 1950’s. The museum exhibits a comprehensive selection of 5,000 original black and white and coloured photographs, giving a unique and fascinating insight into the lives of those who inhabited Morocco during this time. It also shows how photography has advanced over the years. You can purchase prints and postcards of the lovely photographs.

Once you’ve enjoyed the wonderful collection of photographs, you can round off your visit by enjoying a pot of traditional Moroccan mint tea on top of the roof terrace, which as it’s higher than most of the other buildings nearby allows amazing views of Marrakech Medina and the Atlas Mountains. The late sun gives it all an amazing orange hue. A sight to behold.

Shopping

Shopping in Morocco is an incredible experience and the range of goods on offer is amazing. You can buy rugs and carpets, ceramics, jewellery, leatherware, clothing, wooden goods, semi-precious stones and spices and oils, to name but a few.

For tourists, a visit to a Souk (market) is an absolute must. They are found everywhere: every town has a souk area, large cities like Fez and Marrakech, have large areas made up of individual souks and in the countryside, there are hundreds of weekly souks, on a different day in each village of the region.

To get the best price you should avoid main tourist areas and buy goods as close to their source as possible. Morocco leather is famously soft and luxurious. In towns like Fes, Marrakech and Taroudant you can even visit the tanneries to see it being cured.

Whatever you buy, other than groceries, remember to haggle.

Sunset Camel Rides

You cannot go to Morocco and not take the opportunity to ride a camel and there are many operators offering this amazing experience. Why not make it even more special by ensuring you are “in the saddle” as the sun sets?

The tour guide will collect you from your hotel and take you to your camel where you will learn how these hardy animals can travel long distances without water. After a safety briefing, you can get on your camel and once you recover from the initial jolt as the beast gets to its feet, you can enjoy the gently rolling motion as you amble along. The tours usually include a stop for refreshments such as hot bread, olives, and oil with a glass of the superb Moroccan mint tea.

Continue meandering along, absorbing the serenity of your surroundings as the sun sets in the sky. A truly mesmerising sight.

Water Sports

Morocco has two beautiful coasts, one fronting the Atlantic Ocean, the other bordering the Mediterranean Sea. What could be a better way of escaping the heat of this extremely hot country than to submerge yourself in its cool waters?

A fun way of doing this is by taking part in a water sport such as scuba diving, windsurfing, surfing, kayaking or canoeing. Water skiing, in particular, is extremely popular on most beaches in Morocco.

Kitesurfing is a fairly new water sport to be introduced to the area but it is quickly gaining in popularity.

The search for new water sporting venues has spread across Morocco into other areas as more people have taken to the rivers and lakes that zigzag the country. Now, white water rafting, jet skiing, rowing, and yachting are other Moroccan water sports that appeal to many tourists.