Morocco — Marrakech, Sahara and back

With tips and experiences you can benefit from

Three of us spent the winter holiday on a trip around Morocco: two days in Marrakech, two days in the Atlas Mountains around Ouarzazate, and two days right on the edge of the Sahara near M’Hamid, plus one day driving back to Marrakech.

This is not a rosy description of Morocco, but rather honest information you can actually use.

View over the high Atlas Mountains — panorama — Morocco with a view over the high Atlas Mountains

Marrakech — the world’s biggest bazaar

We flew to Marrakech and spent the first two days there. It feels like the world’s biggest market, with people everywhere trying to get money out of you. They don’t try to steal from you, but much of what they sell is fake — made purely for tourists. One example: I needed a hat to protect my head and naturally wanted to buy a fez. One of the many Berber women spent a long time explaining how poor she was and how painful it was to sew all the tiny stitches by hand. The price she quoted was the equivalent of 300 DKK, but after lengthy haggling I paid around 50 DKK. The first time I took the hat off I found a little label inside that said: Made in China. I got what I needed — head protection — but it was a con nonetheless.

People posing for photos for money in Marrakech — People posing for photos — for money

One of the countless leather shops in Marrakech — One of the countless leather shops

A walk through the old town — the medina — is fascinating, with countless stalls selling everything from spices and leather goods to jewellery, pots and pans. If you can handle being constantly pulled at by sellers, you can easily spend a day or two wandering around.

The old town of Marrakech — the medina — The old town of Marrakech

The largest market in Marrakech — Jemaa el-Fna

Atlas Mountains — fakes and crystals

Getting around the Atlas Mountains is easy if you rent a car, which we did, driving the scenic road towards Ouarzazate. The drive can be done in a few hours, depending on how many stops you make to enjoy the views.

Every time you stop, locals appear trying to sell stones with “crystals” inside. These stones often have the most peculiar and unnatural colours — because they are spray-painted red, green or some other colour. The seller tells a long story about them being fetched from a deep cave far away and carried out on donkeys. But they are all just painted — or made entirely from clay with small sticks pushed in, coated with glue and sand and then painted. It is all fake. If you find them beautiful, feel free to buy one — just don’t believe you are buying a rare natural gem.

Fake crystal stones sold everywhere in the Atlas Mountains — Fake crystal stones — sold along every roadside in the Atlas Mountains

The same crystal after one cycle in the washing machine — almost all colour washed off — The same crystal after one washing machine cycle — almost all the colour is gone

Another “crystal stone” after washing — made of clay, sticks, glue and grit

Fint, Ouarzazate and the edge of the Sahara

Outside Ouarzazate lies a small oasis called Fint — a beautiful and fascinating oasis in an otherwise barren landscape. You can easily drive there in a regular car, as long as you take it slowly on the rougher sections.

We drove on to M’Hamid, where the Sahara begins. It is a spectacular journey, and the sight of the endless desert is an enormous contrast to both Marrakech and back home in Denmark. We stayed with a wonderful French woman who runs a small place right on the edge of the Sahara — Le Drom’Blanc. Highly recommended. The drive back to Marrakech takes around 8–9 hours.

The small and beautiful Fint oasis outside Ouarzazate

10 km into the Sahara — a wonderful experience

Sunset over the Sahara on a February evening at 18:10 — Sunset over the Sahara on a February evening

The Fint oasis — view over the barren landscape — The Fint oasis — an oasis amid the barren Atlas foothills

Luna with a dromedary on the edge of the Sahara