6-Day Marrakech Activity Holiday — Cooking, Hiking & Shopping

Experience Itinerary

1. 1

   Day 1 — Arrival in Marrakech

   • ›Private transfer from Marrakech airport to your traditional riad in the medina.
   • ›The rest of the day is free for you to settle in, swim in the small pool, watch the sun set from the rooftop or take a short walk in the maze of narrow lanes of the old town, where each street is dedicated to a different craft or product.
   • ›Welcome dinner at the riad.
2. 2

   Day 2 — Guided Marrakech tour

   • ›Half-day walking tour in the morning with an official English-speaking city guide.
   • ›We walk through the souks of the medieval medina to meet artisans, bakers, carpenters, spice merchants and old herbal pharmacies, with small tastings of olives, nuts, dates, dried fruit, roasted meat and spices on the way.
   • ›We also visit the Ben Youssef Madrasa, the Bahia Palace and the Koutoubia Mosque, and end at the famous Jemaa el-Fnaa square with lunch on a rooftop terrace.
   • ›In the afternoon you can take a horse-drawn carriage to the new town of Gueliz and the Majorelle Gardens, originally home of the painter Jacques Majorelle and later owned by Yves Saint Laurent.
   • ›In the evening the square turns into a huge open-air kitchen with grilled meat, fried fish, snails, harira soup and many other local dishes.
3. 3

   Day 3 — Day trek in Toubkal National Park

   • ›Day trip to the Toubkal National Park in the High Atlas Mountains for an easy hike in beautiful rugged scenery.
   • ›With a local guide you walk across small streams, through walnut groves, almond and fig orchards and fields of figs, berries and cherries, up to a small foot-only Berber village.
   • ›There a local family welcomes you for a simple lunch of salads, tajine or couscous and fresh fruit, surrounded by free-range chickens and goats.
   • ›Mules can be added for the way up if you prefer.
   • ›Back at the riad in the late afternoon.
   • ›In the evening you can pick one of the famous gastronomic restaurants of Marrakech with traditional music and even belly dancers.
4. 4

   Day 4 — Moroccan cooking class

   • ›A full day with a real Moroccan dada (the female cook of a Moroccan family).
   • ›The morning starts with a tour of the souks and markets with the cook to pick the freshest herbs and spices, meat, fish, fruit and vegetables, and to learn to haggle.
   • ›The class is in a riad in the medina, with a small group.
   • ›You will prepare a meat, vegetable or fish tajine, couscous, the gently spiced zaalouk salad, harira soup, stuffed filo pastries (briouates) and Moroccan sweets.
   • ›Lunch on the riad terrace with the dishes you have made and a glass of wine.
   • ›In the afternoon, free time to visit the Badi Palace, the Museum of Marrakech or to take another carriage ride.
   • ›In the evening, a light dinner is enough — café in Gueliz or a cocktail in Hivernage.
5. 5

   Day 5 — Free shopping day

   • ›A full day for shopping.
   • ›Whether you want a Moroccan carpet, a metal lantern, a set of tea glasses, a scarf, herbs and spices or a pair of leather slippers, you can take an optional personal shopper for half a day or a full day.
   • ›The shopper can also take you to the designer parts of Marrakech with their contemporary furniture, home wares, jewellery and fashion.
   • ›Optional activities: quad biking, camel ride in the palm grove, hot-air balloon at sunrise, horse riding, golf, hammam and spa.
6. 6

   Day 6 — Departure

   • ›Private transfer from the riad to Marrakech airport, at the time you need.
   • ›You can also stay longer in Morocco and add another tour, for example the desert, the Atlantic coast or the imperial cities.

Know Before You Go