We returned to Marrakesh in October having really enjoyed our holiday there in May 2023. We used the same TUI Blue hotel as last time which is situated in a superb position in the Medina or old town. We’d booked a balcony room, overlooking the hotel gardens. We were lucky as well though as the room had a superb view of the Kutubiyya Mosque.

We’d arrived late on our first day. We had a late afternoon flight as it was but, with a three hour flight time I was hoping we might get to the hotel for an evening meal but that wasn’t to be. Our flight was delayed by an hour and then, on arrival at Marrakesh airport, we had a further delay with a two hour queue to get through the Morocco Passport Control desks. By the time we did get to the hotel it was pretty much a case of going straight to bed after a quick snack. For anyone travelling there be aware that their passport control officers want to see a printed boarding pass for your flight (they did accept phones passes in our line but they weren’t happy about it). They’ll also want the name and address of where you’re staying plus your passport.

On our last visit I’d had a few problems photographing some of the locals. In general they don’t like to be photographed which is partly a cultural thing. I did read that they’ve become pretty resigned to being snapped with phones, just because of the sheer number of tourists visiting Marrakesh. However my Fujifilm XT5, with any lens sat on the front, didn’t go down well. Having said that I tried to respect the locals wishes and didn’t go for too much candid stuff. I always ask before taking a picture of a specific person or group. I also asked the souk owners before shooting their stalls. As regards people, most said no, as regards the souks stalls, most said yes.

What I had discovered on our last visit was that I drew far less attention to myself using my little Sony RX100 Mk6 camera. I’m quite happy using it as the images it produces are more than good enough to get through Alamys (my picture agency) quality control and it’s a lot less weight to carry around.

Having visited most of the palaces and other attractions, in the Medina, on our last visit we didn’t go back to them. We did walk past a few on our Medina morning walkabouts and they were very, very busy. Last time we came out we visited the attractions later in the day, a tip from our travel book, and something I would certainly advise. We’d also visited the Jardin Majorelle, former home of Yves Saint Laurent, last year. We didn’t go again but its really busy, all day, and you need to book online, in advance, if you do want to visit.

We spent most of our time exploring the souks once again as I never the tire of them. I sort of got my bearings and began to recognise some of the alleyways or areas but we really we just wandered around, got lost, before popping up near a landmark we recognised. The hotel had given us a map of the Medina but even with that, finding your way around is tricky. A lot of the roads don’t have name plates and if they do they’re written in Arabic or French.

We paid for roaming data on this visit (we didn’t last time) and that was a help although the signal was patchy. Another problem was that some of the alleyways, especially towards the north of the Medina, were closed following the recent earthquake. They’re repairing the buildings but the damage was quite obvious to see, with large cracks running up through building walls and some demolished building areas. Some of the routes had diversion signs but a lot didn’t.

Whilst we stopped to take it all in, we were approached, in all these areas, by young men, working in teams, offering to guide us around the closed routes. If you do take them up on that offer they’ll probably get you to where you want to go, but want payment for taking you. They might also end up guiding you into a souk stall where you had no intention of going. They can pick off tourists with ease but although they can be persistent they weren’t aggressive. We just gave them a firm ‘no thank you’ and they left us alone.

I’d hoped to visit the tanneries’ in the Medina on this visit, but although we tried following a route in our small guide book, we never made it. They’re in the area worst affected by the earthquake and every which way we tried ended up in a closed off alleyway. On the plus side it forced us into an area of the souks, we hadn’t explored before, where we found a really nice little cafe. We then stumbled into the leather workshop area where an auction for new leathers was taking place. That was cramped and loud but really interesting and good to experience.

I think that’s enough for one blog. Click here for Part 2

All images: ©Stephen Hyde 2007-2025 – All rights reserved.