Where in Morocco for about 8-9 days.

Old Jan 4th, 2012, 10:57 AM
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Where in Morocco for about 8-9 days.

Hello: I rarely post on this forum as I am active on the cruise board mostly. However we are thinking of going to Morocco so I have a few questions please in anyone can help.

1. Would August be a good month to go there?
2. As we like to stay in one area and explore it and as I am into history what city would be good for that as well as have good shops and restaurants and perhaps a market ala the Grand Bazaar in istanbul which we loved.
3. Overall how is the cost once you are there? We found istanbul to be pretty reasonable so can anyone compare the two?

Thanks! Larry
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Old Jan 4th, 2012, 12:19 PM
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http://www.weather2travel.com/climat...ountry=morocco

Hey Larry unless you really like it hot might choose the winter months.Love it especially in the South in Winter.
Pretty cheap once you get settled in.seat61.com/morocco
have been training in the South since the sixties.Nice
little Riads like Riad D'Or in Meknes are amazing.Cheapest
for me to connect via LON on ryanair.com booked in advance.
Save a lot. otel.com booking.com hostelbookers.com around
my flights usually Fez cheapest for entry from Luton.

Have fun!
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Old Jan 4th, 2012, 12:21 PM
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www.riaddor.com
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Old Jan 4th, 2012, 01:33 PM
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Hot hot does it get qwo? Hmmm.
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Old Jan 12th, 2012, 02:33 AM
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August gets very hot in Morocco, mid 40's in Marrakech, lower on the coast at Agadir and Essouira due to the Atlantic wind (although still sun burn very easy). If you go East to the Sahara, it can easily reach 50. I have been to Morocco twice, both times in August because my wife is a teacher and it's school holidays and we don't mind the heat as long as you accept at Midday you need to be relaxing not walking around as you might melt. However, Morocco is a fabulous country with stacks to see and such varied things that there is something for everyone.

Marrakech is simply amazing due to the main square transforming into some sort of medieval entertainment centre, it's not a tourist gimmick as most of the people there are locals. Snake charmers, acrobats, monkeys, story tellers and food galore! There is also a huge mosque, some nice souqs and an interesting Jewish quarter to name a few things.

Fez has some unbelievable souqs, renowned for being easy to get lost in due to their enormous size and winding alleys. There are some leather tanning pools somewhere in there which are amazing to see (hold your nose, some of the dye is poo).

For something different, the north is interesting, particularly around Chefchouen in the Rif mountains. Totally chilled out place with lovely walking around the town in the mountains. Nice steam baths etc. Not much to do other than enjoy local culture, good food and relax

West coast is for the Atlantic beaches where it's cooler (very good for windsurfing due to the wind) but nothing on Mediterranean beaches in all honesty. Agadir is touristy and a bit tacky, but attracts a lot of tourists. Essouira is quieter and more laid back.

My favourite is Atlas mountains and the Eastern part. You can go via Ait Benhaddou to see where Gladiator was filmed which is an amazing town built out of sand and mud. Truly beautiful. Then there is Ouarzazate which is a bit tacky again, filled with film studios. Then there is Dades Gorge further East which impressive. Then as you go right to the Algerian border, you can stay at Erfoud or Merzouga or somewhere like that. Here you can go on a camel trek into the desert in early evening, camp overnight under the stars, and return the next day. This is one of the most amazing things I've done. Nice food, beautiful stars and views, the sunset is unreal and it's a must do for me.

Easiest way to get there is to hire a car as the buses are ok but somewhat unreliable. We got a bus from Marrakech to Ait Benhaddou and then hired a car from there (to avoid mental Marrakech traffic). This meant we could stop at Dades and Ouarzazate on the way and leave when we were ready so made the most of our time.

Lastly, the only place I didn't like in Morocco was Tangiers. The locals are used to day trippers from Spain and it's a bit dirty and the hassle is more here in my experience. It's a shame becuase the place itself has some stuff to see and is interesting, but I wasn't a fan. If you're arriving here, best bet is to book a bus out to somewhere like Tetouan or Chefchaouen to chill out before moving down to Fez, Casablance, Rabat or the Roman ruins of Volubilis (which are meant to be spectacular although I haven't seen them).

Hope that helps
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Old Jan 12th, 2012, 04:37 AM
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The other thing to consider if you are going this August, is that Ramadan will be observed around July 19 - August 19th this year.
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Old Jan 12th, 2012, 05:28 AM
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Thanks guys. That really helps. So mid 40's is too hot but perhaps another time of yr. What time of yr. weather wise would be better? Thanks! Larry
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Old Feb 11th, 2012, 07:13 AM
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Let me toss this to the top again. So if I wanted about a week or so in Morocco and wanted to have enough to fill my time such as markets to see, shows, points of interest and so on where would be the best place, Casablanca, Rabat or elsewhere? Any ideas? This trip would be in Oct. if the cruise I want doesn't work out. Thanks! Larry
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Old Feb 11th, 2012, 07:38 AM
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Marrakech and Fez. Make it nine, ten days. Driver and car between the two thru the mountains, stop somewhere overnight half way. Wonderful. Trust Dog.
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Old Feb 11th, 2012, 07:58 AM
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Definitely Fez. I didn't care as much for Marrakesh, and the Fez medina is much more interesting, but I did have riad troubles in Marrakesh (read all Morocco reviews with great caution!). Rabat rather than Casa. A side trip to Essaouira is nice, but it's not terribly Moroccan. Definitely time in the mountains. If you've already ridden a camel and seen a desert, no need to do it again. Click on my name for my TR.
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Old Feb 11th, 2012, 12:51 PM
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Thanks! And I do trust the Dog. And thursday too. My only concern here is, if we do M and F is the road b/t the two. If its mountainous or I really mean winding a lot Sue will get car sick. I'll google M and check it out and also see that TR.
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Old Feb 11th, 2012, 08:08 PM
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We went the last two weeks of December and the weather was wonderful-60's to 70's F/short sleeve but not sweating to death. We rented a car and found that Morocco was very easy to drive around and safe.
My family's favorite city was Essaouria on the coast-cheaper shopping than Marrakesh,goats in the trees,fabulous beaches and old harbor with great seafood and a town that has both old and new souks.We liked Marrakesh better than Fez;enjoyed Meknes and the Roman ruins outside of it(Volubilis)and only enjoyed the beautiful mosque in Casablanca as the city is big and crazy.
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Old Feb 11th, 2012, 08:39 PM
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Ah, yes, I forgot the car-sickness.

A couple of suggestions: it's not ALL windy; you'll be in your own car and, if you're smart, not on a tight schedule. Right now I've forgotten just how many hours the drive is - not epic. Why not break it up into bite-size chunks, knowing that as soon as Sue feels queasy, you can simply stop by the roadside, take a break, suck up the countryside [something I wish I'd done] - then, when she feels better, move on a bit. Take two or three days to do it. Actually, it'd be a very pleasant way to get from A - B. Slo-o-o-ow travel.

As long as you pre-arrange a driver who understands, isn't a madman and drives slow and safe, I'd imagine you might make it alive and fairly comfortably. Once Sue throws up over the driver a couple of times he'll get the message. Check mazza's post above. Great advice.

Of course, you could just cudgel her and stick her in the trunk. That might be quicker and easier.
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Old Feb 12th, 2012, 06:18 AM
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Dutyfree: Not sure what you mean by "goats in the trees." The rest sounds pretty cool.

Dogster: Good thoughts as usual esp. the caveman approach to the whole thing.
I somehow wound up with like 57k points on my Citi card which entitles me to about $540.00 bucks off that Equinox cruise so thats Plan "A" but I have to wait till like May to get the vaca approved. Thats life at the big U of I for now. Then on top of that X agreed to a $240.00 OBC on a future cruise d/t the crap job they did in providing Indian food on our last one. Many don't know this but if you request Indian food all the mass market lines will prepare it for you. RCI even has a dedicated email address for this and usually its pretty good. Don't expect gourmet Indian but it is good usually. However this time we had issues, lets put it like that. The last night the chicken biryani was so off it was like biting into apple pie and tasting a turnip.

However if this doesn't work then exotic Morocco would be pretty cool. We'll see.
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Old Feb 17th, 2012, 12:27 PM
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Any of the three imperial cities (Marrakech, Fez, Meknès) or a combination thereof with excursions would do to take up a week's time.

We had almost two weeks and traveled by train and bus between these cities.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/mksfca/...7622870770847/
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Old Feb 18th, 2012, 10:20 AM
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Thanks for the advice and the pics. Really nice. Larry
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Old Feb 18th, 2012, 05:06 PM
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Goats in the trees (there is actually a calendar out every year with pictures) is a speciality of the Essaouria area.The goats LOVE the Argan tree because of the nuts so you actually see goats up in branches and climbing up on the trees-its amazing.The argan nut is a better nut and oil than olives-considered much more healthy than olive oil. Back in the day,the goats used to eat the nuts and after they "went through" being digested the women of the village would harvest the oil. Now they use machines but you will still see lots of goats in the trees south of Essaouria.
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Old Feb 19th, 2012, 01:47 AM
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Got it! Thanks.
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Old Feb 19th, 2012, 07:30 AM
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Hmmm. Speaking of such " natural processing" have you ever heard of Kopi Luwak coffee? If not google it. Its goes for up to $400.00 per pound give or take.
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