Morocco Mountains Family Tour

Overnight Standard Hotel Swimming available

Like many North African towns, Marrakech is divided into two distinct parts, the Gueliz (the modern French-built city) and the Medina (the Old City). For generations it has been a meeting place for the mountain Berbers and the desert peoples of the south, who come to trade and barter amongst the colourful souks, turning the centre of the old city into a rich cacophony of noise and colour. We journey out into this vibrant city this morning, to enjoy a tour of some of its most enthralling sites with a local guide. You can wander past vendors selling doughnuts and fried grasshoppers, meander through native markets where Muslim women, their hands and feet dyed with henna, call out to sell their wares, and enjoy the sounds and the smells of the exotic. After our tour there will be the option to stay in town and make your own way back to the hotel, taking time to enjoy more of the remarkable Medina, perhaps haggling for a bargain or two, or simply sitting at one of the local cafés and watching the street tableaux unfold before you. The city’s beating heart is the spectacular Djemma-el-Fna, a site not to be missed and a scene straight out of the pages of the Arabian Nights. You will find the square alive with storytellers and musicians, jugglers and acrobats, snake charmers and clowns. Marrakech is a city like no other and a walk through its bustling streets will fill the senses and fire the imagination. The city boasts a staggering array of spectacular architecture and wonderful facades, but do remember that many of the mosques will be forbidden to non-Muslims and be careful of photographing women, however photogenic they look, as the Moroccans are very sensitive about such things. If you are unsure, it is always best to ask. Leaving the city behind this afternoon, we drive south towards the craggy peaks and plunging valleys of the Toubkal Massif.Crossing the Haouz Plain we pass through the tiny town of Asni, from where our road begins to climb towards the foothills of the Massif. Below us the valley of the Oued Rhirhaia stretches out into the distance and small villages cling to the sides of the steep hills as we meander our way towards the village of Ouirgane. The towering peaks of the High Atlas are North Africa’s greatest range of mountains, a wild region, culturally removed from the rest of Morocco, and a barrier between the northern plains and the pre-Sahara. This is the land of the fiercely independent Berbers, the “Lords of the Atlas”, whose traditions and ways still hold sway up here in their mountain strongholds far away from the cities below. The Berbers present us with a unique view of a way of life lost to the rest of North Africa, where music and dance, even language and religion, are far removed from their Arab neighbours.

Overnight Standard Hotel Included meals: Breakfast Swimming available

Ouirgane presents the perfect spot to relax and enjoy the magnificent scenery of this superb part of North Africa. Today has been left free to enjoy something of its abundant charms at your own pace, with a number of optional activities available to make the most of your time here. Walking in the valley offers some wonderful ways to spend the day. There are also opportunities for swimming, or visiting a Berber village to learn something more of the unique lifestyles of these most remarkable and hospitable of people.

Overnight Standard Hotel Included meals: Breakfast Swimming available

Heading south today we will first visit the Tin Mal Mosque. Built in 1156 it is one of the only mosques open to non-Muslims. After our vist we take a dramatic drive through the spectacular Tizi n’ Test pass and down into the region of the High Atlas. At 2092m the views from the pass can be quite spectacular, with views back across to the Toubkal Massif and down into the Souss Valley presenting us with some magnificent photo opportunities. Our descent is something of an exhilarating ride, dropping an incredible 1600 metres in just 30 km. The views, as you can imagine, are incredible, with mountain peaks and tiny villages nestling amongst the valley slopes laid out before us. We will arrive with plenty of time to enjoy the surroundings of this evening’s accommodation, Riad Hida. Riad Hida was once the Kasbah of the 19th century pasha Hida. It passed into the hands of a French colonne before Kastberg Borge, a former officer of the Danish Royal Guard acquired it. Kastberg Borge had retired to Morocco to cure his rheumatism, but once cured, decided never to leave. On his death he left the Kasbah to his Moroccan companion of many years, Lafici - a champion cyclist – who now runs it as a hotel.

Overnight Standard Hotel Included meals: Breakfast Swimming available

Leaving Ouled Berhil we head for the small market town of Taroudant, situated in the Souss valley and surrounded by red-mud walls. The souks are worth a closer look and you may be able to find a bargain souvenir or two. After our visit to Taroudant we continue our journey turning north, back into the mountains, towards Immouzer which lies nestling amongst the western edges of the Atlas.

Overnight Standard Hotel Included meals: Breakfast Swimming available

Immouzer is a regional market town famed for its honey, which benefits from the bees’ ready access to a wide range of wild mountain herbs and is set amidst a landscape of olive and almond groves. We will take a walk this morning out to the site where until recently flowed the famous Immouzer waterfall, enjoying the tranquillity of the setting and perhaps spotting some of the rich birdlife that inhabits this region – crag martins, golden eagles and Bonelli’s eagles can quite often be seen here – before we continue our journey north once more. Joining the coast road at Amesnaz we head for the resort town of Essaouria today, a mecca for water sports enthusiasts from all over the region. If time allows we may stop off en route south of Sidi Kaouki, where a rich expanse of open sands and colourful fishing communities present the perfect setting for a walk along the Atlantic coast. Situated within the confines of its 15th century Portuguese fortifications, Essaouira has a lively yet relaxed feel to it, where whitewashed houses and traditional fishing boats present a perfect backdrop for our stay. The town has a rich and somewhat colourful history and its importance as a trading port during the 18th and 19th centuries saw it prosper, attracting British, French, Arab and Jewish merchants and sailors to its shores. These influences are still reflected in the architecture and layout of the town. An interesting, and it has to be said, wholly suspect legend claims the town’s patron saint to be a Scotsman by the name of McDougal, who was believed to have been washed up onto these shores after a storm in the 14th century. Another interesting footnote is that much of Orson Welles’s version of Othello was filmed here, its ramparts and coastline providing a rich and original setting for Shakespeare’s Moorish tragedy.

Overnight Standard Hotel Included meals: Breakfast Swimming available

Your time here today is free to indulge as you wish. We suggest a stroll around the old town or along the fine sandy beach from the harbour. Not to be missed is a visit to the Medina, but be warned, after passing through the narrow, highly decorated arched entrance, it may be hard to resist snapping up some of the locally made rustic leather belts, gleaming gold and silver jewellery and wooden boxes exquisitely inlaid with mother of pearl. The town abounds with galleries and workshops, cafes and souks, making it a pleasurable way to pass the day. For the more active amongst you, you may prefer to take to the beaches for some opportunities to enjoy some walks along the coast. Swimming is possible but please take local advice before entering the water as the surf off these beaches can prove to be too much for less able swimmers.

Overnight Standard Hotel Included meals: Breakfast Swimming available

With some extra free time this morning to enjoy the last of Essaouira’s laid back ambience, or perhaps grab a last minute bargain, we then head back once more to the eclectic delights of the ‘Red City’ of Marrakech where, on arrival, there may be some time to explore something more of this wholly captivating city before our final evening.

Overnight Standard Hotel Included meals: Breakfast Swimming available

Included meals: Breakfast