We are an adventurous group and all six of us looked forward to and enjoyed every day of this trip.
We agree that the most historically fascinating site was Chefchaouen. Perhaps the most honored guide was the old gentleman in Chefchaouen who really knew everything-history, religion etc and he was a contemplative, thoughtful intellectual! The guides were all very good and patient in answering all our questions-we had many- and the guide in Marrakesh was relaxed and simply very good-natured. The guide in Fez was just a bit more formal. And the guide at Volubilis also was very good-he made me a crown of flowers!
Driss handled us pretty well, took care of us very well and even helped Steve find a proper head scarf! He may not have been thrilled with the drive back to Casablanca along the coast, but we found the drive interesting and did see a very different part of Morocco,-also beautiful- especially the sea, industry and the Portuguese port where we tooled around for a considerable amount of time. We fed Driss well at the seaside hotel so he was happy!
We were glad to take the excursion to Bhalil and again did like the guide very much, enjoyed tea, meeting his wife and baby at the cave home where his parents lived and where they built living quarters upstairs! This side trip was a good choice as we are not shoppers.
The Riads were all beautifully appointed and superb, and the staff and managers great. The owners of Le Clos des arts were a joy to talk with and they gave us architectural and historical information about their building and about Morocco. We asked and they agreed to have the cook take us to the central cookery to pick up our dinner! The Riad was also close to the square. None of us had an interest in the additional half day in Marrakesh and we were pleased to take the coast road.
The camel ride was an experience for most of us-Doug and I had the experience in Australia. We stopped part way to the camp and climbed -crawled! up the dune to await the beautiful sunset, and it was. Our guides were young and fun to be with during out 1.5 hr sunset wait, and we did enjoy our time with them! The Berber camp dining area was beautiful and the food, we thought, better than the usual Moroccan fare that we were having. Everyone at the camp was exceptional. The other food exception was in Chefchaouen as Driss discovered that his friend had returned from Japan and opened a restaurant here. A very nice place. He served us a lot of tapas like food and it was so very tasty! The owner was also lots of fun as he explained all the dishes. We told Driss it was the best and we hope he takes others there as well. This was a cut above our normal dinners as it was more flavorful.
The Hotel Berber was nice to arrive at after the Sahara experience! And having the choice of the variety of food was appreciated. Good idea!
I’ve already recommended this trip to several friends with a suggestion that they call you.
Thanks to you and the agency for making this a fantastic experience for all of us. We have such good feelings about our time in Morocco.
Marge
April 2017