Activities in Marrakech

Marrakech, also known as the red city, is an ancient town founded in 1071 in the center of Morocco. Here, you will find a wide range of activities to do during your stay. So, whether you join one of the guided tours or explore on your own, you will discover the history, culture and natural scene of this magical place.

If you don't know what to see and do in Marrakech, you can take a camel ride through the palm grove, try the local cuisine and learn how to make some dishes in a cooking class. You can also get caught up in the old town, go shopping in the souks and even visit the desert. I'll tell you all about it below.

The palm grove of Marrakech is the perfect place for camel rides. This small oasis with more than 100,000 palm trees will surprise you with its scenic beauty and calm desert atmosphere. If you book a tour of the Marrakech Palm Grove, please note that you will travel by car to the palm grove for about 10 minutes. There, you will climb on the back of a camel and, for about an hour, you will enjoy unique perspectives.

You will see a series of dry riverbeds, beautiful desert areas, some local villages and hundreds of palm trees bordering the city. Undoubtedly, a perfect scenery for you to take the best pictures. In addition, you will learn about the Berber culture and you can drink traditional mint tea under the shade of the trees.

A particularity of these camel rides is that you can wear a tuareg. This is a traditional Moroccan clothing used to protect you from the sun in the desert. In fact, this clothing, coupled with the sandy trails, will become the perfect setting for you to take the best pictures.

Useful information

• Price: the average price of this activity is approximately 20 € per person.
• Duration: this camel ride usually lasts 1 hour.
• Advantages: you will ride a camel through a small oasis covered with palm trees and contemplate a beautiful landscape.

Traveling to the so-called red city and not discovering its desert areas would be like never having visited it. Therefore, you should incorporate in your itinerary a tour of the desert of Marrakech in one day. You will be able to enjoy all the goodness of this beautiful place. To be precise, this activity takes place in the desert of Agafay about 40 minutes from Marrakech by car, as this is the closest to the city. It is a small oasis with an arid and desolate landscape.

If you book this excursion to the Agafay desert from Marrakech, you will travel with a driver-guide, who will tell you the history of the place and some anecdotes. Upon arrival, you will enjoy the breathtaking desert scenery, take pictures and relax sipping traditional mint tea in a haima.

In addition, the guide will take you on a camel ride through the desolate wastelands of the Agafay desert. You will contemplate a different view of the place: stone dunes, the High Atlas Mountains and, if you are lucky, you will see the occasional wild flowers growing.

Useful information

• Price: the price of the visit to the desert of Marrakech starts at 34 € per person.
• Duration: the excursion lasts one day.
• Advantages: you will enjoy an amazing desert landscape with stone dunes and the High Atlas Mountains as a backdrop.

Whether you plan to stay one day in Marrakech or more, as you're finding out, Marrakech has plenty to see and do, and your itinerary should incorporate a tour of the Medina or old town, named a UNESCO World Heritage Site. This way, you will be able to immerse yourself in the history and culture of the so-called red city.

Although you can do this experience on your own, the ideal is to book a tour of the Medina. This way, you will not run the risk of getting lost in the narrow but picturesque streets of the Medina. Whichever option you select, you won't have to worry about what to see and do in the Medina of Marrakech, as many places of interest are concentrated there. For example:

• The Bahia Palace: this is a 19th century building with mosaics, paintings and gardens.
• The Kutubia Mosque, dedicated to the worship of the Islamic religion in Marrakech.
• The Saadian tombs: erected in honor of the parents of Sultan Ahmad al-Mansur in the sixteenth century.
• The souks or traditional markets.

Information of interest

• Price: the cost of the tour of the Medina usually starts at 26 € per person.
• Duration: the activity usually lasts about 2 hours.
• Advantages: you will discover the history and culture hidden in the old town of Marrakech.

Among the best things to do in Marrakech is a visit to the Majorelle Garden. It is a small oasis that has been controlled by the hand of man, to offer an important botanical collection, several species of birds and a small sample of Moroccan architecture.

You can walk through it on your own and gradually discover the hidden gems it houses, but my recommendation is to book a tour of the Majorelle gardens to not miss any of its jewels such as:

• The cactus collection: with around 60 different species.
• The palm collection: with a large family of local palms and others brought from the Canary Islands, the Pacific, Africa, the Mediterranean basin and India.
• The bamboo forest: with a long stretch of bamboos brought from Asia.
• The pond of aquatic plants: where you will see the beautiful water lilies and some lotus flowers.

You will have access to the Berber Museum, whose exhibits will help you to know part of the history of the city, the Memorial dedicated to the couturier Yves Saint Laurent and Pierre Bergé, the Boutique and the Café Majorelle. You can also visit the Yves Saint Laurent Museum, dedicated to the iconic French couturier.

Information of interest

• Price: the price of a tour of the Majorelle gardens is 77 € per person. For its part, the general admission has an average cost of 14 € per person.
• Hours: the tour lasts 4 hours. Regarding the opening hours, it is open from October to April from 8 am to 6 pm, from May to September from 8 am to 6:30 pm and during Ramadan from 9 am to 5 pm.
• Advantages: you will enjoy a quiet space surrounded by a beautiful natural scene, while learning about botany, history and fashion.

If you plan to explore Marrakech in two days or more, you should incorporate an experience from the air into your itinerary. Such is the case of a hot air balloon ride with a professional pilot, to discover the best panoramic views of the city in all its splendor.

Please note that if you book a hot air balloon ride, this activity usually takes place at sunrise or sunset. Upon arrival at the destination assigned for the experience, you will receive flight instructions from the pilot. In addition, you will see how the staff inflates the balloon. You will reach an altitude of about 1,371 meters and fly over the skies of Marrakech for approximately four hours. You will be amazed by the majestic desert views, the palm grove and other open landscapes of the city and its surroundings.

This experience is ideal if you have traveled to Marrakech with children, as they will have fun while learning about the history of the Medina, some monuments and Muslim culture in general, thanks to the guide's commentary. In addition, you will be able to take aerial photographs with incredible perspectives.

Useful information

• Price: the price of this activity is around 238 € per person.
• Duration: the activity usually lasts about 4 hours.
• Advantages: you will be able to contemplate the city of Marrakech from a bird's eye view and thus obtain impressive panoramic views of the sunrise or sunset.

Booking a bath in a traditional hammam spa is a good idea, whether you plan to stay one to seven days in Marrakech, or even longer. You will be able to relax and get away for a few hours from the characteristic hustle and bustle of the Medina streets. For this experience, you will be picked up at the door of your hotel and taken to one of the city's hammams. These are usually Les Bains de l'Alhambra, Les Bains de Marrakech, Sublima Spa, among others.

Upon arrival at the hammam you will feel like a local. You will be able to experience up close one of the activities of the Muslim culture, which for centuries has been part of the social life of the inhabitants of this part of the world.

You will receive the traditional treatment consisting of the entrance to a sauna, an exfoliating bath of eucalyptus soap and a massage with Moroccan argan oil. All this, accompanied by the customary mint tea, which you have surely tasted since the first day in the city.

Information of interest

• Price: the value of this activity starts at 56 € per person.
• Duration: generally the experience in the hammam of Marrakech lasts about 2 hours.
• Advantages: you will relax, pamper your skin in a hammam, while discovering the traditional Turkish bath.

The souks of Marrakech are in the Medina, so passing through them is a must when touring the old town. However, this picturesque maze of stores deserves a little more time to visit. Therefore, it is ideal to book a tour of the souks of Marrakech, the so-called mecca of bargaining and buy some products.

You will not have to worry about not knowing how to move around Marrakech and the narrow streets of its souks, as the guide will take you to know the stalls that make them up. You will discover the places with the best bargains and learn to bargain like a local.

As you dive into the souks you will see a wide range of products: slippers, a variety of carpets, Moroccan fashion, leather bags, ceramics, jewelry, lamps, argan oil, caftans and other handicrafts. You will also find vegetables, fruits, street food, spices, among others. In addition to the information about the history of the place provided by the guide, you will have the opportunity to talk with the merchants to learn about the culture of this part of the world. You will also observe the artisans working in their stores.

Information of interest

• Price: this guided tour of the souks of Marrakech usually costs about 27 € per person.
• Duration: the activity lasts about 3 hours.
• Advantages: you will explore with a guide the souks of Marrakech with enough time to buy some local products.

If you like adventures on wheels, then during your stay in Marrakech you can't miss to book a quad tour in Marrakech. You will travel through the mountainous terrain, which will allow you to discover amazing natural contrasts.

This type of activity starts at the door of your hotel in Marrakech. There, you will be picked up and taken by car to the nearby palm grove, a transfer of about 10 minutes. Then, the guide will teach you the basics of quad biking.

You will drive through a series of rocky trails and desert plateaus up to a beautiful hill. From there, you will get a breathtaking view where the color of the desert sand intermingles with the color of the palm trees. You can also stop to refresh yourself by drinking mint tea with the locals in a Berber village.

Useful information

• Price: the cost of this adventure starts at 26 € per person.
• Duration: this tour usually lasts about 2 hours.
• Advantages: you will be able to cross some desert plateaus and rocky trails of Marrakech aboard a quad, in a lively guided adventure.

If you are an enthusiast of Moroccan food, you can't miss your visit to the city of Marrakech to taste its exquisite gastronomy. And, better yet, learn how to prepare the traditional dishes of this locality, in the company of a professional local chef. This type of activity takes place in the kitchen of the chef's house, which is usually located in the Medina area. But first, you will take a stroll through the local market to purchase fresh ingredients, herbs and spices needed.

You will prepare a starter, main course and dessert. All of them, traditional recipes usually offered in the restaurants of Marrakech and tasted daily by the locals. You can also suggest to the expert the Moroccan dishes of your choice. For example, among the preparations made in this culinary experience are usually the following:

• The tajine or stew of chicken, lamb or vegetables.
• Pastela, a pastry that combines the sweet taste of puff pastry with a salty filling and an exquisite aroma of cinnamon.
• Couscous: a dish made with wheat semolina, which is part of the Berber cuisine.
• The zaaluk, which is a salad of lettuce, tomato, tuna and onion.

Another option if you want to know these and other delicacies of Moroccan cuisine is to book a gastronomic tour.

Interesting information

• Price: the value of the activity is around 42 € per person.
• Duration: generally, the culinary experience lasts 4 hours.
• Advantages: you will learn the secrets of Moroccan cuisine, prepare some traditional dishes and stroll through a local market.

Leave the selfies in the past during your stay in Marrakech and make the most of the magical scenery of this ancient city. Let a professional capture your trip in images, taking a photographic tour of the tourist destinations of your interest.

Once you connect with the photographer in the city center, you will start the adventure. You will walk through the Medina with its mosques, the narrow streets of the souks and the huge Djemaa El-Fna square, which will serve as the backdrop for each photograph. You can also select the destinations you like the most beforehand. For example, a trip to the palm grove or the desert of Marrakech.

Whatever the destination, you will be brainstormed by the photographer to take advantage of the reflections and shadows offered by the natural light of Marrakech. In addition, he will look for the best perspectives for you and you will get amazing pictures.

Useful information

• Price: the price of this photographic tour is around 227 € per person or groups of up to 20 people.
• Duration: the activity is usually planned to be done in 3 hours approximately.
• Advantages: you will get amazing professional photographs in digital format, which you can share on your social networks and keep as a souvenir of the trip.