When we moved abroad more than two years ago, Mr. Dave and I made a list of places we were both interested in traveling to. Since we spent the majority of our time in Asia, all of travel was centered around that region, but interestingly enough, Marrakech was always on my list. When we moved to Europe last year, it quickly became my number one, as northern Africa is just a ferry ride away from Spain – and a three-hour flight from London.

Marrakech is so different from anywhere I’ve ever been. It’s the kind of place you read about, but never think you’ll get to see, which is why I so desperately wanted to go and learn as much as I could.

From a visual perspective, Marrakech is hard to describe, but think: European meets African meets Aladdin – all blended together. Most (if not all?) of the buildings are constructed out of clay, and it’s against the law to build over five floors, so imagine flying in and seeing hundreds of these buildings, nearly all the same height, made from clay. It was surreal. And so unique.

Side note: A friend jokingly mentioned this, and it’s totally spot on, but if you’ve ever been to Disney World, Marrakech looks exactly like it does at Epcot – haha.

Our first day, we hit the ground running with a tour guide that we organized in advance of our trip.

Here’s a quick breakdown of everything we did on day one:

1.       Jardin Majorelle

2.       Yves Saint Laurent Museum

3.       Spice shop

4.       Carpet making

5.       Explored the Souks in old city

Our first stop was at the Jardin Majorelle, the gardens of French painter, Jacques Majorelle.

On his property, where he lived from 1886 to 1992, you can find exotic plant life, fountains, an art studio and two different small museums: one dedicated to Islamic art of Marrakech and another Berber museum. Our tour guide mentioned that many of the plants found in the gardens are those that can handle dry heat, and very little water, as that is the climate of Marrakech. These gardens house the LARGEST cacti I have ever seen.

In the 1980s the property was purchased by fashion designers, Yves Saint-Laurent and Pierre Bergé. When Saint-Laurent passed away in 2008 his ashes were scattered in the garden.

Right next door is the YSL museum. Now I am no fashionista, but the YSL museum is a popular site in Marrakech as the famous designer often traveled there for inspiration. The museum itself houses more than 40 years of Saint-Laurent’s best work through photographs, sketches and actual pieces on mannequins. It was interesting to see how many of his designs were influenced by his travels to Marrakech.

After departing the YSL museum we began making our way to the medina – the walled, city center. Along the way, we stopped at a local spice shop where we were given a lesson on the production of Argan oil and other beauty products local to Morocco.

After leaving the spice shop and winding our way through the alleyways of the medina, we found ourselves at a carpet store. This was one of my favorite parts of the trip as we were able to see the tapestries being made by hand and learn about the different techniques – who knew there were so many ways to make rugs?

After a quick tour of the facility, we were escorted to a private room where we sipped mint tea and browsed. This was when the major selling process began. Suddenly, about 4-5 men came into the room and began laying rugs in front of us and talking about each piece.

After about an hour or more of discussing (and haggling!) we settled on a cute little rug for Emmy’s room. Someday, we’ll tell her stories of all the places she traveled as a baby, and she can look at this rug in her bedroom as a pretty cool souvenir. 

Rug shopping in Marrakech was definitely one of my favorite experiences as we were treated like old friends. I’m sure it’s all part of their schtick, but we felt so welcomed. It was also nice to be able to hang out and take our time, unlike it would have been in the markets, which are a bit more aggressive. Marrakech is known for intricate and unique tapestries (rugs, pillow cases, poufs), so if you ever find yourself there, be sure to snag one!

Lastly, our day ended by wandering the souks. To be honest, I was so wiped by this point of the day we barely did any shopping. We spent probably another hour going from shop to shop, but neither of us were in the mood for it by this point, and we didn’t end up getting anything.  

I found the souks to be major sensory overload. You almost need a pep talk with yourself before going in. And because of this, I would recommend doing them first thing in the morning, rather than the end of your day.

Here are some tips for exploring the Medina and shopping in the souks:

1. When it came to shopping in the souks, I was really thankful we had a tour guide show us around. Each aisle looks almost exactly the same and it’s one giant maize. I have no idea where we entered from, and there’s absolutely no way Dave and I could have got ourselves out. So if time is a concern for you, think about hiring a local tour guide to show you the ropes.

2. Sharpen up those negotiating skills. Prior to coming to Marrakech, I read that if you weren’t yelling at each other (you + the shop owner) then you weren’t doing it right. Everyone is ALWAYS out to make a deal in Marrakech, so go ahead and give them your best price, and stand firm.

3. I would strongly encourage female travelers to dress conservatively by covering their shoulders and knees. Morocco is a Muslim country with very different viewpoints on gender roles than what one might be used to from a more progressive western culture. All of the local women dress fully covered when out in public. Dressing inappropriately could result in some unwanted attention from men.

Part two of my Marrakech travel guide where we head to the mountains is coming soon!