One of the most exotic and fulfilling destinations in the world.
1001 Arabian Nights, Raiders of the Lost Ark, Sultans of the Sahara, Bazaars of Isfahan, souks of the Middle East, all are summed up her .... in Marrakech

Founded in 1070 by the Chief of the Almoravides dynasty. Marrakech is an oasis & Sahara town, with the snowcapped Atlas Mountains just a short ride away. It has been for centuries a major trading post between Africa and Europe and is known as "The Red City," "The Pearl of the South" and "The Gateway to the Sahara."

Sample Itinerary:
2 days/1 night- Marrakesh
Click here for the one week Marrakech Casablanca ( Or Agadir )

DAY 1 : Arrival at Agadir Seaport on Morocco's Atlantic Coast :
You arrive in the Kingdom of Morocco, your cruise usually arrives Agadir in the morning: 7 - 9 AM . Our local rep greets you on the pier after you clear the passport and customs and escorts you to Marrakech ( about 3 and half hour drive) , your transfer is always with a private air-conditioned vehicle, private chauffeur and private English speaking guide .
After enjoying an authentic Moroccan lunch at the charming Tanjia restaurant ( or similar )
Lunch includes as well one bottle of water , tea/ coffe for each guest. then, take your first plunge into this wonderful, exotic city.

Marrakech & the Souks:
There is much to see in this great city which Winston Churchill called "the most beautiful place in the world at sunset.

The top sights include the stately Koutoubia Minaret, the hidden tombs of the Saadian dynasty, the Menara pavilion and gardens, the ruins of sprawling Badi Palace, the Bahia Palace Museum, and the Ben Yousef medersa.

Check-in at your Boutique Hotel ( Riad ), or deluxe hotel ( please advise your preference) for a short siesta and to get ready for the evening Soiree:

This evening experience a true 1001 Moroccan Nights dinner:
Tonight you will dine as the guest of an Arab Chieftain ( we will deliver earlier a Djelaba , the moroccan National costume ) As you enter the restaurant will be showered with rose petals by traditionally clad women, before enjoying the many sights and sounds of the traditional Moroccan way of life.
The traditional Diffa meal is made up of various Moroccan specialties and usually consists of the traditional rich spicy soup, lamb or beef ( please advise your preference ) roasted in an earthen oven and the local specialty couscous, a steamed semolina with saffron, chicken and all the season's vegetables and although very filling quite delicious. Vegetarians will have no worries .. we have so many choices , please ask us in advance. Dinner includes as well one bottle of water , tea/ coffe for each guest

The meal is accompanied by performances of Moroccan folk dancing and singing.

Relax & Unwind at the hotel's Spa or Hamam
Not available at all hotels / Riads

DAY 2 : Marrakech & the Souks / Departure : Casablanca Seaport :
Breakfast is included at your hotel. In the morning, enjoy a Walking Discovery tour of the Souks Marrakech's fabulous medieval souk (bazaar) Penetrating the labyrinthine souk, you'll see some of the age-old guilds at work, including the dyers and tanners. Save an hour--and bring your camera--for famous Djemaa el-Fna square with its circus atmosphere of itinerant dancers, jugglers, acrobats, storytellers, soothsayers, snake charmers, medicine men and public scribes.

We enjoy lunch ( included) at Villa Tivoli international restaurant, included as well : One bottle of water , tea/ coffe for each guest.
Drive to Casablanca seaport ( about 2 and half hour drive) to meet and re-board your ship

Private Cruise ship Shore excursions:

The cruise regular shore excursion are generally a good introduction to the city, most of the seasoned cruise travelers prefer to go sightseeing with a private guide.

The difference between ship organized and private tours is best described as "package versus tailor-made." Some people may feel all right joining a large tour group whereas sometimes it is difficult to hear the guide and the group moves only as fast as its slowest participant.

Others may not get their questions answered at all as there may be twenty other people in the group trying to do the same.

In contrast, a small tour group with tailor-made program is way more enjoyable and ensures personal attention for everyone. You will spend as much time as you want.

Therefore, if you want to maximize your limited time, the private escorted tour tailored to your unique wishes and interests is an ideal solution.

All our private shore excursions tours are carefully designed to give you the best possible experience. Our knowledgeable, friendly and qualified tour guide and driver will ensure that your visit ashore is truly memorable. When you tour with us as part of a private shore excursion , your tour guide will get you into sites without waiting in lines that is especially valuable given the limited time you have to spend in ashore .

Price includes:

• Private Tours as listed .
  
• Deluxe hotel/riad as listed with breakfast and tax
  
• Entrance fees
  
• Round trip private transfers from/to the ship/pier
  
• Private air-conditioned car/driver/guide
  
• Ground transportation
  
• Greeting and assistance.
  
• Porters/Luggage handling ( where /when applicable at hotels/pier/Airport)
  
• MOROCCAN Galabya/Jelaba/ Gandourah - Will be delivered to your room with our compliments Traditional Moroccan costumes «Gandourahs» (many colors are available, among which: white, sky blue, dark blue, beige, rose) can be offered to the guests as «fancy dress» to add to the fun of the evening ( you may wear your Gandourahs over your own clothes).

Rate per person in USD $

Not included:

• International airfare from/to your home country
  
• Trip interruption and cancellation insurance (please see our insurance brochure).
  
• Gratuities.
  
• Personal expenses, beverages, and meals not specifically listed
  
• Any cruise accommodation

Clothing on shore:

Look forward to warm, even hot weather with some cooler breezes at night.
Especially for shore excursions, we recommend loose, comfortable cottons or other lightweight clothing.

There will be good amount of walking, particularly throug the souks and local markets so comfortable shoes are recommended.

Imagine an almost 1000 year of Arab & Berber heritage with a touch of a more recent French influence in language & cuisine and the result is the unrivaled charm of Marrakesh.

You'll enjoy & feel the warm hospitality of the locals as soon as you touch down at El Menarah Airport. Marrakech is a destination that evokes relaxation, sun, Palm trees, swimming pools, hotel spas, Moroccan Hamams (Steam Bath) in an enchanting landscape gardens, exotic plants.

It is a true paradise for shoppers, with great weather almost all year round, especially in winter.

There's golfing from a choice of three world-class golf courses or even skiing at the nearby High Atlas Mountains.    

Marrakesh offers superb sightseeing, its great venues and mysterious places, but also in the surrounding region of the Atlas Mountains, and neighboring Berber adobe villages.

Against the impressive backdrop of the snowcapped Atlas Mountains, the red-walled imperial city of Marrakesh offers a wealth of sightseeing and fun activities including horse-drawn carriage tours, camel riding in the vast Marrakesh Palmgrove, and walking discovery tours of the bustling and colorful Souks in the Medina.

Visitors will not want to miss a visit to the famous Djemaa El Fna Square where "007" had to maneuver among the crowds in one of his movies, jugglers, acrobats, musicians, snake charmers, and story tellers gather to entertain natives and visitors every afternoon all year round.

From dining out in one of the old palaces in the narrow streets of the Medina and thrilling Fantasia evenings, to a wide choice of international restaurants, casinos, discos, and Karaoke bars. Marrakesh has an outstanding Convention Canter, with several nearby world class hotels, offering more than two thousand 5-Star bedrooms and suites.

You'll find a wide range of conference facilities and modern Business and Audio Visual equipment for meetings, Conferences and Seminars. Marrakesh as a venue for your future meeting/conference/incentive offers one of the best values . Moroccan cuisine is world famous for typical recipes made of delicious vegetables and fruit, rare spices, and a large variety of poultry, meat and fresh seafood.

Come back to Morocco and extend your stay
Luxury stay & Spa Experience at the new & luxurious Sofitel Essaouira

What others say about our service in Morocco

April 8, 2007

Lebes (Berber greeting) or sbah ikheer (Arabic for good morning)!

Spring break is about over and it's back to work tomorrow. It will be a shorter week at CAS for me because on Thursday I'll be leaving for the Optimal Match Conference (SPED and Technology) in Rabat. Last year I
attended the conference in Madrid, Spain. I'm eager to see if the teachers from Rome, Paris, and Barcelona who I met last year will be attending this year. It is great to network with other teachers and find out about their programs plus hear about new and innovative strategies. The presenters are from the US.

Paul is currently enroute between Casablanca and Amsterdam with arrival due in the US at about 5:30 tonight and then back to work for him tomorrow. We had a fantastic week of touring and seeing more of
Morocco - a truly remarkable country with beaches, mountains, deserts, and everything in between in a relatively small area. Paul will send from his email account a number of pictures which might give you an idea of
our experiences this past week.

Trekking in the Amizimiz area while seeing the Atlas Mountains with its picturesque landscapes and Berber villages was quite remarkable. Our guide Said served us Moroccan tea and a lamb tagine for lunch in his
home. As you can see from the photo they also decided to dress us up in the typical Berber attire for lunch.

We continued on with the drive through the High Atlas Mountains crossing through the Tizi N' Tichka Pass and descended down through the Draa Valley stopping to see ancient Kasbahs (fortified palaces) and to the
caravan-town of Ouarzazate (movie site of The Mummy, Black Hawk Down, Babel, Syriana, Lawrence of Arabia, etc.). Enroute we stopped to hike up Ait Benhaddou and up the sandstone hill which has been the site for
a variety of movies including Gladiator. People still live in this UNESCO World Heritage village including Uemna and her husband. She invited us in to see her cave dwelling in the side of the hill and shared delicious
home-grown almonds.

Our next two nights were spent in the desert. The first night was at Zagora and in the middle of a sandstorm. Paul thinks that I probably have never been so grouchy upon awaking in the morning after a night spent trying to breathe while attempting to sleep in our nomad Berber tent amongst a haze of blowing sand. I think that the sand is all out of our ears by now. The next night after some fun camel riding we enjoyed a night on the Merzouga Desert in a deluxe tent under the stars.
Both nights we had our own private concert with talented musicians and dancers entertaining us with traditional Gnaouan music and delicious Moroccan cuisine.

It was interesting to study the information displayed on Paul's GPS in the mountains, deserts, etc. In the photo you can see our Moroccan friend and Paul discussing the merits of such equipment. We read in one
of the tour books that it is difficult for tourists to locate their reserved auberges (lodging accommodations) or tent sites and that they are encouraged to call ahead for the GPS coordinates in order to locate the correct place in the Sahara Desert.

Riding out into the golden dunes near Merzouga on camels to see the sunset was so much fun while watching four-wheel-drive vehicles zipping up and down the sand dunes (some in preparation for the Dakar Rally).
All too soon it was time to start the travel back to Casablanca via Fez.
On one of our stops we fed peanuts to the Barbary apes near Ifrane.

Staying in the Riad Dar Al Andalous was an experience of seeing more of the history and culture of Fez. Here we had one more example of the challenges of communication in a foreign country. Paul asked if he should pay for a Coca Cola and before he knew it he was being enthusiastically escorted into the kitchen to meet the 'cook' (Coke).

Living and visiting in an international setting is truly an exciting and stimulating experience.

A week after leaving Casablanca via train we arrived back in Casa with our very informative and helpful driver Hamid. Now, we have the memories and the pictures (and a few souvenirs) to enjoy of this
adventure in another area of incredible Morocco.

Our time in Morocco is fast approaching an end with one last trip
before returning home to Minnesota. At this point we are thinking of exploring more of Spain and the Moroccan coast of the Mediterranean.

M'a ssalama (goodbye - Arabic)

Paul and Dixie