Archive for the ‘Essaouria Tour’ Category

Essaouria Morocco Travel Excursion, The Ideal Tour of Essaouira A Seaside Resort, Private Tours from Marrakech, Your Morocco Travel Guide

Sunday, November 1st, 2009

Essaouria Morocco Travel Excursion- The Ideal Tour of Essaouria’s Seaside Resort, Private Tours From Marrakech – Your Morocco Travel Guide

Essaouria Morocco is the ideal tour for a one-day excursion from Marrakech or one of the best short breaks for a two-day Marrakech excursion. For Moroccan Travelers who want to take a rest from busy Marrakech, Essaouria is the perfect place to rendezvous and enjoy an Essaouria historical tour, dine on fish by the sea and visit the old Portuguese Ramparts.

Gates-Bab-Entrance-Essaouria

Essaouria, formerly known as Mogador is located on the Western Atlantic coast of Morocco. The Director and actor Orson Welles stayed at the Hotel des Iles just south of Essaouria in the 1950’s during the time he filmed the classic version of “Othello.”

“Othello” is a film worth watching before your Essaouria tour as there is several scenes in “Othello” that were shot in Essaouira’s old labyrinthine medina. During Orson Welles stay in Essaouria he met Winston Churchill who was apparently another guest at Hotel des Iles. Winston Churchill was also a guest at the La Mamounia Hotel & Palace in Marrakech. In fact today, there is still a Winston Churchill dedicated room at La Mamounia that Moroccan travelers can visit on a one-day tour to Marrakech.

Orson-Welles

Essaouira is a city of culture and boasts many small art galleries in addition to Moroccan woodworking shops and metalsmiths. Since 1998, the Gnaoua Festival of World Music has been held annually in Essaouira. The Gnaoua Festival of World music typically takes place the last week of each June. While the Gnaoua Festival of World music has a main focus of World music it also includes rock, jazz, regga and world music.  Referred to as the the “Moroccan Woodstock” Essaouria’s Gnaoua Festival lasts four days and attracts an audience of over 500,000 people to its seaside resort each year.

Gnaoua-Musician-Festival-Essaouria

Travel Exploration’s Essaouria Morocco Travel Itinerary

The Essaouria Ideal Tour Itinerary for a one-day excursion from Marrakech:

►Depart from your hotel in Marrakech. Travel to Morocco’s seaside resort, Essaorira for the day.

► Visit this eighteenth-century seaside medieval town that boasts lovely whitewashed and blue-shuttered houses, colonnades, thuya wood workshops, art galleries and mouthwatering seafood.

►Once called Mogador by European sailors and traders; Essaouria is known for its annual Gnaoua Music Festival that attracts 300,000+ people in June and its expansive beach for surfing called Plage de Safi.

►A stroll along the town’s sunlit pedestrian main square, Place Prince Moulay el Hassan and the Skala du Port, the fishing harbor offers breathtaking views of the Portuguese ramparts. Explore the ramparts and the spice and jewelry souks.

Portuguese-Ramparts-on-Water-Essaouira

►Have lunch at the fish-grill cafes, with wooden tables and benches laid out overlooking the sea that was once- in the nineteenth century- the only Moroccan port traveled to south of Tangier.

►After lunch visit Orson Welles’ Square and memorial, designed by Samir Mustapha, one of the towns artists, which pays homage to Orson Welles filming of Othello in Essouaria.

►Essaouira, is a city that reminds us of the times when Spain, Portugal and England fought to maintain control over its coasts. It is a typically Portuguese harbor with beautiful architecture as an example of Moorish and Portuguese arts. Essaouira is known for its artists who work on thuja, its silver market, the art gallery and the harbor.

Essaouira-Fishing-Boats

►End your day with a short walk on the beach and then return to Marrakech.

For those Moroccan Travelers who wish to stay extend their Essaouria Tour for another day or two, spend the night at one of Essaouria’s beautiful Riads with views of the sea or at Ryad Mogador, a famous hotel just outside the ramparts. For more information about an extended stay, ask your Morocco Travel Guide.

Morocco Travel Recommendations From Travel Exploration – Ideal Tour One-day Excursions From Marrakech:

  1. Ourika Valley Tour
  2. Ouzoud Waterfalls Tour
  3. Agadir Tour
  4. Safi Tour
  5. High Atlas Tichka Tour
  6. High Atlas Toukbal Tour

For more information about an Essaouria Tour or Essaouira Excursion

For more information about Travel and Tours to Morocco plus highlights on Moroccan culture visit Morocco’s Imperial Cities, Resorts, Sahara, Berber villagesA Taste of MoroccoMagical Kasbahs, Ruins & Waterfalls, Absolute Morocco, The Best of MarrakechFes, and Ouarzazate.

Essaouria Morocco Travel, Essaouria Travel Excursion, Ideal Tour Essaouria, Essaouira One Day Tour, Essaouira Excursion, Essaouria Tour, Essaouria 4×4 Tours, Essaouria Morocco, Morocco Travel, Tours to Morocco, Morocco Vacations, Morocco Holidays

Discover The Best of Morocco - Travel Exploration

Travel Exploration specializes in Morocco Travel. We provide Tours and travel opportunities to Morocco for the independent traveler and tailor-made tours for families and groups with a distinctly unique flavor. From Morocco’s Seven Imperial Cities, to the Magical Sahara Travel Exploration offers a captivating experience that will inspire you. At Travel Exploration we guarantee that you will discover the best of Morocco! Call Travel Exploration at 1 (800) 787-8806  or 1 (917)703-2078  and let’s book a tour to Morocco for you today


Marrakech Travel Excursion: One Day Ourika Valley Tour, Your Morocco Travel Guide

Wednesday, October 28th, 2009

Marrakech Travel Excursion: One Day Ourika Valley Tour – Your Morocco Travel Guide

A Marrakech Travel Excursion to the Ourika Valley for a one day Ourika Tour is a seemingly relaxing way to spend time outside the hustle and bustle of Marrakech. Marrakech is Morocco’s capital of tourism and one of the most exciting Imperial cities to explore within Morocco. Even so, everyone who visits Marrakech for more then a few days may want to consider a Marrakech Travel Excursion to a slower placed seaside port or Moroccan nature tour where you can hire a driver whisk you a way for the day and return you that evening to the red hamra city of Marrakech.

Ourika-Valley- Landscape

Take a day off from the city heat to travel southeast of Marrakech, Morocco and visit the Ourika Valley. The Ourika Valley has a small souk located near a picturesque spiritual Zaouia every Monday. Ourika also boasts local crafts and Berber carpet shopping options with prices that are much less then expensive Marrakech. Let your Travel Exploration Morocco driver lead the way to local shopping options or stay true to the trip and focus on Ourika’s natural surroundings.

Ourika-Valley-Berber-Carpet

The road to Ourika is filled with gardens, palm tree plantations and fruit trees and you will find tiny hamlets, summer homes plus cafes and restaurants. During your one day Ourika Valley Tour you can have a quiet picnic lunch near the Ourika River or in a local Moroccan traditional restaurant with a local Ourika cooking. Options are a Moroccan tajine, couscous, salads and much more.

Ourika-Ouirgane-Valley

After having lunch during a visit to the Ourika Valley one of the best places to continue your journey is to visit Setti Fatma, just a few kilometers from the heart of Ourika which has beautiful streams and waterfalls. Your hiking guide will take you to explore Setti Fatma’s valley’s green terraces, surrounded by Atlas peaks, rocky village foothills and seven waterfalls.

Travel Exploration Morocco offers several Marrakech travel excursions and one-day tours for Moroccan travelers. Here are the Best Marrakech Travel Excursions and one-day tours that we offer:

Safi-By-The-Sea-Ramparts

1. Ourika Valley Tour – A Morocco Travel Excursion to Ourika Berber Villages, have lunch and see the Setti Fatima Waterfalls and return to Marrakech.

2. Ouzoud Waterfalls Tour – A Morocco Travel Excursion to the Cascades D’Ouzoud Falls, lunch above the falls or within a Berber tent aside the falls, fresh squeezed orange juice made by locals, a hike around the falls, a swim in the freezing cold and refresh Ouzoud Waterfalls and visit the Berber Village that resides just above the majestic Ouzoud. Then return to Marrakech.

3. Essaouira Tour – A Morocco Travel Excursion to this sea side medieval town that boasts lovely white-washed and blue-shuttered houses, colonnades, thuya wood workshops, art galleries and mouthwatering seafood. Enjoy the day walking by the port and visiting Orson Wells Square. Relax by the Atlantic. Then return to Marrakech.

4. Agadir Tour – A Morocco Travel Excursion to the Agadir Port, a short visit to the Valley of Birds if time allows and a nice long lunch of freshly caught Moroccan seafood. Make sure to keep a lookout for the Argan goats that climb the trees during the spring, summer and fall season to suckle off the Argan nuts which are then turned into Argan Oil, Argan Butter and used to make Argan cosmetics by Berber women. Then, return to Marrakech.

5. Safi Tour – A Morocco Travel Excursion to Safi, the pottery capital or Morocco, where guests can enjoy a variety of pottery traditions, shop, have lunch by the sea and visit some of the unique Moroccan artist galleries who showcase their pottery and paintings. This is a laid back one-day excursion with roadside views to the quiet and less traveled town of Safi, pronounced “Asfi” by Moroccans. Then, return to Marrakech.

Safi-Pottery-Man

6. High Atlas Tichka Tour – A Morocco Travel Excursion to the Sahara city of Ouarzazate, also referred to as the “Door to the Sahara Desert.” Travel Ouarzazate’s Ancient Kasbahs, Ait Benhaddou, a UNESCO World Heritage site and tour Ouarzazate’s Kasbah Taourirt. Your next stop on this Ouarzazate Travel Excursion is to the Atlas film studios where Cleopatra, Bertolucci’s Sheltering Sky, Scorsese’s Kundun, Gillies MacKannon’s Hideous Kinky, Ridley Scott’s Gladiator, Black Hawke Down, Oliver Stone’s Alexander The Great, Ridley Scott’s Kingdom of Heaven, and Penelope Cruz’s Sahara were all filmed. Then return to Marrakech.

Ait-Benhaddou-Kasbah-Ouarzazate

7. High Atlas Toukbal Tour – A Morocco Travel Excursion to the Berber Village of Imlil, stopping at the Argan Cooperative where you get a personal tasting and be able to watch Argan oil and Argan nut butter made by Berber woman while you are served fresh bread for dipping and Moroccan Mint tea. Have lunch in Imllil and then take a 2-hour hike up Mount Toukbal with a guide. Then return to Marrakech.

High-Atlas-Imlil-Village-Mount-Toukbal

For more information about Ourika Valley Travel Tours

For more information about Travel and Tours to Morocco plus highlights on Moroccan culture visit Morocco’s Imperial CitiesSeaside Resorts,Sahara DesertBerber villagesA Taste of MoroccoMagical Kasbahs, Ruins & Waterfalls, Absolute Morocco, The Best of MarrakechFes, and Ouarzazate.

Marrakech Travel, Marrakech Travel Excursion, Marrakesh One Day Tour, Marrakech Excursion, Marrakech Tour, Marrakesh Tour, Ourika Valley Excursion, Ourika Valley Tour, Setti Fatima Excursion, Setti Fatima Tour, Ourzoud Waterfalls Excursion, Ouzoud Waterfalls Tour, Essaouira Excursion, Essaouria Tour, Agadir Excursion, Agadir Tour, Safi Excursion, Safi Tour, High Atlas Tichka Excursion, High Atlas Tichka Tour, High Atlas Toukbal Excursion, High Atlas Toukbal Tour, Morocco Travel, Tours to Morocco, Morocco Vacations, Morocco Holidays

Discover The Best of Morocco - Travel Exploration

Travel Exploration specializes in Morocco Travel. We provide Tours and travel opportunities to Morocco for the independent traveler and tailor-made tours for families and groups with a distinctly unique flavor. From Morocco’s Seven Imperial Cities, to the Magical Sahara Travel Exploration offers a captivating experience that will inspire you. At Travel Exploration we guarantee that you will discover the best of Morocco! Call Travel Exploration at 1 (800) 787-8806  or 1 (917)703-2078  and let’s book a tour to Morocco for you today