Exploring the Markets and Souks of Morocco

By |June 11th, 2015|

The street markets and souks of Morocco should always be on your ‘to-do’ list while spending time here. Who could resist the sights, aromas and ambience that will unveil before you?

Wherever you happen to be in the Kingdom, you are never far from a market. The country’s history is founded on trading routes that still […]

Visiting Morocco during Ramadan?

By |June 4th, 2015|

Learn about the realities of Ramadan from the perspective of a Muslim living in Marrakech. Rachid Aoutouf, Co-Director of Magnificent Morocco Tours, explains.

Ramadan is a time to think of others less fortunate than ourselves; the poor, the infirm and the homeless, for example. It is in our religious culture to offer these people help and […]

Discovering the Blue City of Morocco

By |May 28th, 2015|

The sight of Morocco’s ‘blue city’ is something to behold, and while you are here you simply have to experience it for yourself while on a private tour with Magnificent Morocco!

Hidden away in the Rif Mountains, the city was founded in 1471 by Moulay Ali Ben Moussa Ben Rachid El Alami. Its roots can be […]

Sampling the sights and smells of the ancient tanning pits in Fès

By |May 21st, 2015|

Leather is big business in Morocco. In fact, it is one of the country’s largest exports shipping up to 100 million slippers annually to countries including Spain, France and India.

Although most of the production is now carried out in factories as well as countless workshops in souks around the country, the ancient tanneries of Fès […]

The Monkeys of Morocco

By |May 6th, 2015|

What images spring to mind when you think of Morocco? Deserts, camel rides, souks, blankets and carpets? How about monkeys?

It is a little known fact that there is actually a population of around 15,000 Barbary macaque (Barbary Apes) living in Morocco. These monkeys are the only primates aside from humans living north of the Sahara […]

Balek! Balek! 9,000 alleyways in Fès!

By |May 4th, 2015|

With no mechanized transportation allowed inside the 9,000 narrow alleyways of the Fès el-Bali walled medina, you may wonder how the all the fresh produce and the raw materials to manufacture the millions of souvenirs are delivered to the artisans and traders everyday. Enter – to the cries of “Balek-Balek” (Arabic for “Get out of […]

Laser-guided prayers

By |May 4th, 2015|

With glass floors to view the ocean beneath, a sliding roof so that prayers can be offered in sunlight or under the stars and doors crafted from titanium, the Hassan II Mosque in Casablanca combines ancient tradition with modern technology. Not only is it the largest mosque in Morocco and Africa, but at 210m also […]

And the winner is…

By |May 4th, 2015|

 

Apart from the amazing scenery to be found as you travel around Morocco, there is no shortage of unusual sights as well. One of our clients captured this rather precariously loaded vehicle while travelling from Fès to Merzouga. We had no hesitation in awarding First Prize to her in our April 2014 feature of “Unusual […]

Behind closed doors

By |May 4th, 2015|

 

There’s an old saying in Morocco that you cannot tell a house by its door. It’s a characteristic with deep-rooted religious origins based on the principle of not outwardly displaying one’s wealth. As you wander round an old Berber village, you’ll see many a simple façade and entrance. Inside it is homely, intimate and welcome. […]

Grooving with the Gnaoua

By |May 4th, 2015|

 

Essaouria’s amiable convergence of Arabian, African and European cultures has long been a popular platform for this Atlantic town’s annual Gnaoua and World Music Festival – a showcase for the traditional music of Morocco and a source of musical inspiration for a global audience. The event attracts established and breakthrough artist from Morocco and beyond […]