Travelling Morocco
Morocco is much more than just a surfing holiday! It offers way more than that. That’s not to say that the surf isn’t great, and we certainly like to get decked out in our Ann’s Cottage finery and ride some waves. Once you’ve had your fill of salt and sand though, there’s so much to keep you entertained. If you want to have a luxurious holiday in Morocco then you can rent a Villa Marrakech and live like royalty. Traveling around Morocco is pretty cheap and remarkably easy, however there are some things which can be expensive. Generally, the only expensive things are luxury items and imported goods – they are often significantly more expensive than in Europe, so just be wary of the prices. You can find advice on how to save money whilst travelling at https://www.surbleury.com/. When moving around, all you need to do is get yourself accustomed to the CTM and Supratours buses and normally for less than 10 Euros you can get yourself to pretty much anywhere in the Kingdom. We have outlined the best places to see and also tried to give a little guidance on how best to see them. Don’t try and buy your bus tickets online, they have not got it sorted out yet. The best thing to do is to ring the companies in advance of your journey, check the times and try and buy the tickets a day or two before you head out!
Paradise Valley
This beautiful oasis is about 90 minutes drive from our Taghazout surf camp. We try and organize a weekly trip to visit the waterfalls and rock pools. To make sure that you can get on a trip all you need to do is come down to the office and put your name on the list and pay the 200dh needed to go on the trip.
This is the most popular day trip that we run as it involves rock jumping from various heights freshly prepared tajines and short twenty minute hikes through lush oasis’s. Check out our facebook group to see some of the photos that people took on their last trip, or this short blog post outlining in more detail how our day trips are: https://surfberbere.com/paradise-valley-number-1-day-trip-from-taghazout/
Immesouane
This is possibly the longest right hand wave in Africa. The bay of Immsouane has a beautiful fishing village nestled on top of the cliffs overlooking the longest right hand point break that Morocco has to offer. The perfect wave for beginners to learn this is a hop on hop off bus that just goes on for ever and ever. A lot of people put traveling the world right at the top of their bucket list for when they reach a certain age, as was suggested by this cool infographic. Immsouane is a place that you just have to visit if you consider yourself to be someone who wants to see the most beautiful parts of the world.
Have a look on YouTube for our 1 minute 30 second ride!! We organize day trips up to immsouane from the Taghazout surf camp so just ask to make sure that you get up there for at least one day of your stay.
Casablanca
World renown for the romantic embrace Casablanca conjures up imagery that few other places in the world can compete with. Alas the reality is not as good as the film. Heavily industrialized poorly planned and non-tourist friendly we would recommend skipping any visit to this business centre of Morocco and use your days seeing one of the many other sites that Morocco has to offer!
Rabat
Rabat is the administrative capital of Morocco. A clean well-maintained city with beautiful ancient walls surrounding the city makes it a pleasant town to visit. There is not a great deal to do in Rabat (although there are a couple of good surf spots nearby – skhirat). There are probably more exciting towns that you should visit ahead of this capital city.
Fez
Fez is an ancient capital of Morocco. It has the Roman ruins of Volubilis just minutes away from its center. This was once the ruling epicenter of the entire Northern African Roman Empire.
The UNESCO listed medina is a must see sight with its heady mix of aromas sounds and smells of the tanneries and miles of historic souks you can lose yourself in this remarkable city. Getting to the center of Fez is easy from Marrakech or Casablanca just jump on a CTM or Supratours bus.
Chefchaouen
The “blue city” is a great town to visit. Just 40 kms from Tangiers right up in the North of the country Chefchaouen has a large Spanish influence. Situated right in the middle of the Rift Mountains the Kasbah is an imperious fortress.
The Berber people are welcoming to tourists and don’t be surprised if they invite you in for tea and biscuits. Their hand-woven earth tone blankets rugs and even lamp shades are seen displayed at the small shops within the city’s medina walls. Buses run a couple of times a day from Fez/Casablanca and Tangiers.
Marrakech
Marrakech is known as the “city of roses” famous for its pink walls and magnificent medina. The UNESCO Djema Fnaa is a sensation attack as the smoke; sounds and smells invade your whole body just by walking through the square.
Hit the main square at sunset enjoy a tajine at Chez Cherouni and watch the world as it hustles its way by! Flights go straight into Marrakech from most international airports and getting to and from here from the rest of Morocco is a doddle on the CTM and Supratours buses. Be wary of the local buses (i.e. ones that are not CTM or Supratours) as they take forever and are not air-conditioned.
Todra Gorge
The gorge is a natural canyon cut out of the limestone cliff that is often referred to as Morocco’s Grand Canyon. The charm of the gorge lies in the changing colours of the stone as the sun sets in the West.
To get to see the Todra Gorges either sign up with a tour through Nomadic Tour UK (mention Surf Berbere to get a 5% discount) or try and get on a two day trip from most Marrakech hotels.
The Sahara Desert
The Sahara desert is the highlight of most people’s trips to Morocco. Staying in a Berber camp with a sensational view of the night sky is simply unparalleled. Getting on a good trip to the Sahara is another matter. Whilst most hotels offer tours to the Sahara the best trips are organized by some of the larger tour operators.
Contrary to most people’s beliefs it can be pretty cold at night in the desert and the quality of your Berber tent is all the more important if there is a sand storm. Nomadic tours offer fantastic trips to the Sahara.
Essaouira
Essaouira is a beautiful Portuguese fortified town just three hours north of Taghazout and two hours drive from Marrakech. All the buses run daily from Agadir and Marrakech to Essaouira so it is really easy to get to and there a couple of good hostels to stay in as well (check out www.explora.com for windsurfing as well).
The town itself is surrounded by huge medina walls and the internal streets are beautiful narrow havens with incredible squares hidden around every corner. The main seafront square has excellent restaurants and there are a couple of roof terrace bars that are great fun in the evenings!
