[OURIKA VALLEY, MOROCCO] — Here’s my review of Kasbah Bab Ourika an airy oasis and one of the best boutique hotel in Morocco’s Atlas Mountains. Kasbah Bab Ourika is one of best hotels Atlas Mountains and the perfect base to explore the Atlas Mountains. And one of the best adventure hotels in Morocco. ______________________________ The road out of Marrakesh is a great unwinding. Leaving the crowded and bustling Medina behind, the criss-crossing crowded intersections and roundabouts, vehicles of every different size and shape. Donkey- and horse-drawn carts take their place alongside screaming mopeds, belching buses and trucks loaded with construction supplies and produce. Vendors selling everything out of their trunk on the side of the road or at a waiting stoplight. Well-dressed Moroccans and expats
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[ESSAOUIRA, MOROCCO] — Review of Le Jardin des Douars hotel Essaouira. The best luxury boutique hotel near Essaouira Morocco. Where to shop Essaouira Medina. _______________________________ “Will we be able to see the goats in the trees?” I’d read about them for years, had seen picture and always wondered: “Why are the goats in trees?” Now I wanted to see them. The drive from the Atlas Mountains was long and a little painful, you basically have to drive back through Marrakesh, then two and half hours driving across the barren plains to Essaouira on the coast. But as we were getting close to Essaouira, the driver quickly pulled over to the side of the road. GOATS! After the initial fun reaction, we soon realized this
[MARRAKESH, MOROCCO] — Here’s my post on the best things to do in Marrakesh. What to do in Marrakesh. What to see. Where to go and where to eat in Marrakesh. ___________________________________ It’s the drums that get you first. A full-frontal, heart-fibrillating pounding of Berber rhythms. So intense and staccato-firing that Buddy Rich would have a hard time keeping up. And the flutes. The ear-piercing, high pitched whine of the flutes, constant, taunting cobras to dance on the hot stones. And the people. The rush of endless people. Of every shape, size, color, religion, sunburn, clothing, shape, shoe-type/non-shoe-wearing. And the breeze. A steady wave of warm air that makes the palms, the long robes, the billowing smoke from the merguez grilling in the food stalls
[MARRAKESH] — A hotel review of Riad 72 the best riad in Marrakech. Best place to stay in the Medina of Marrakech. Best boutique hotel in Marrakesh. A glorious Riad, with interior courtyard, chic design, great restaurant and reasonably priced. ______________________________ Arriving at Marrakesh airport was a trip. My hotel had arranged a Fast Track service to expedite thru the passport control. A cute, small red-lipped French-speaking girl in a matching red blazer welcomed me immediately off the jetway with a sign. It was the first time I’d seen my name as a verb — “Fogarting”. We stood awkwardly as we waited for my baggage, toes tapping, me trying my Bad French. She, apologizing for her delightful English: “I like this, I can practice my English….”
[THE SAHARA, MOROCCO] — I was sitting there polishing off my second Negroni — a Negroni in the frickin’ Sahara Desert — watching the blazing sun rapidly sink over the darkening horizon when here comes Ahmed, barreling over the lip of the nearest dune, in bare feet (!). Huffing, he says “Monsieur Dan, we have one more surprise for you tonight. Please come. Oh… and bring your camera.” As if I needed more surprises that day… we start charging off through the sand towards the quickly setting sun. We follow a path along the dune ridges, lanterns illuminating the way, the darkness arriving freaky-fast, almost like a light switch. We top the lip of the ridge and I shriek like a little girl. Ahmed giggles with excitement. We’re
[SKOURA, MOROCCO] — This is my overview of an incredible stay at the mind-blowing Dar Ahlam a luxurious kasbah in a hidden palm oasis on the edge of the Moroccan desert. A hotel review of Dar Ahlam luxury hotel, the best boutique hotel in Morocco. Located in Skoura, Dar Ahlam is the perfect luxury hotel to explore the Sahara. __________________________ After a long, bumpy slog over the Atlas Mountains from Marrakesh, I got out of the dusty Mercedes van in an indiscriminate parking lot outside a great mud-walled compound. Steep walls up to the sky. This is it? I wondered under my breath. This is the place I’ve heard so much about? And then, with silent porters in linen tunics grabbing my bags, a great
[HIGH ATLAS MOUNTAINS, MOROCCO] — Here’s my review of Richard Branson super luxury Kasbah Tamadot hotel in the Hight Atlas Mountain of Morocco. Kasbah Tamadot is one of the best luxury hotels in Morocco and the best luxury hotel in the Atlas Mountain and part of Richard Branson’s amazing Virgin Limited hotel group. It’s only an hour outside of Marrakech, but feels like a world away. ___________________________ Pulling out of the crazy busy dark corners of Medina of Marrakesh, the sky suddenly opens up. Endless palm trees paint the sky like clouds. Vast estates with long pink mud walls line the highway for miles. And that’s when you first see them, the Atlas Mountains, snow capped even in the 80 degree spring heat. Beckoning from
Here’s a quiet little video summary I made of a fabulous two week trip in Morocco in April 2015. I tried to capture the sights, sounds and incomparable experiences of all of Morocco. Marrakesh, the High Atlas Mountains, the desert oasis of Skoura and camping in the Sahara. If you want more detailed information of all the sights in this video, check out the Morocco page on my website. Lots of great pictures, information, maps and links to other resources to help you plan your trip. Of course, if you have any questions, feel free to comment below.
[HIGH ATLAS MOUNTAINS, MOROCCO] — I didn’t know there’d be a donkey involved. Actually, I didn’t really know what all would be involved. But there he was, on a foot bridge spanning a roaring river, staring at me like “Really?”. It would be hard to be a donkey, actually. Getting all the shit jobs that man doesn’t want to do, in this case, carrying my pack and our lunch for the day. And the flies. Man, the flies. A constant swarm of pesky varmints, always, poking your eyes, biting your knees, and just all-around being annoying. 24/7. I hate flies and if I was a donkey, I’d really hate flies. A constant shake of the head to shake them away. My tail in continuous motion to
[MARRAKESH, MOROCCO] — Here’s my hotel review of Villa des Orangers the best boutique hotel in Marrakesh. Villa des Orangers is my vote for best luxury hotel Marrakesh. ___________________________ It was midnight on a full moon in Marrakesh. A late flight from Barcelona after a many-hours transfer in Casablanca. The driver pulls over on a very busy, unremarkable street, next to a gas station, an LP gas depot and about the world’s most frenetic bus stop and taxi stand, drivers wailing and waving, engines gunning. Everyone looked to be in charge, yelling at other drivers to be doing something other than what they were doing. Buses, trucks and loud scooters screamed by, drowning out the shouts of the cab stand. The luxury van stopped in
[MARRAKESH, MOROCCO] — The sun had set. The sky dimming a deep purple. Reflections on a giant dark pool shimmered back the endless repetitive patterns of grand columns across the water — embracing my pattern-OCD like a bear hug. A handful of people relaxed on pillows strewn about a manicured lawn, sipping cocktails amidst the growing light of the dozens of lanterns lit just so. Silently, five men in long robes and headscarves sat down in low chairs at the water’s edge. And then it started. A gentle bass drum, lithe strings join in, picking up the pace as a percussion resonated against all the giant stone walls surrounding the lagoon. Not loud, on the contrary, it sounded like being in a recording studio, with a growing crescendo of