 | Marrakesh Tourist Traps | Tips 51 - 60 of 64 |  |
They can trow a snake around your neck and ask your friend to take a picture, DONīT make sure how much you must pay first.
Ask before you take a picture...
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 | |  |  | Water Sellers / Beggars / Intrusive People: The mellah and synagogues. | |  |  | |  |
Upon entering the mellah you will be hounded by young to middle-aged men who will dog your every move offering to take you to see the "synagogue". The mellah is the historically jewish quarter and is interesting from that perspective alone, these days it's really little more than a stinky, run-down slum which is not very well-policed. It's annoying during the day and downright dangerous after dark. Also, there's little of architectural interest, looking much the same as other, less rank, parts of the medina.
The oldest surviving synagogue is mildly interesting, being guarded by an old blind man and all, and you really won't find it without the help of a guide. Arrange a price in advance (10DH is sufficient) and then stick to it when the time comes to pay up. I haven't been to the other 'gogues, but I assume that they're less interesting.
Go to the cemetery! The Jewish cemetery can be found easily without the help of a guide. Just follow the main road that leads into the mellah from the Bahia Palace. It's quite interesting, and usually deserted, too (most tourists get fed up with the hassle and return to the better policed parts of the medina before finding it). The groundskeeper is quite nice and informative. Be sure to leave a nice donation when you leave (he'll suggest it, but is not at all pushy).
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| | | | Caleche tour - scam of scams! | | | | | |
You can't avoid caleches in Marrakesh. These horse-drawn carts are everywhere, used mainly by locals as an alternative to taxis, but also by tourists as a different way to see the city. As they aren't purely for the tourists, you might expect them to be relatively good value. Perhaps they can be, but as with so many things in Marrakesh prices are strictly subject to how much the seller thinks he can rip you off.
We hadn't planned a city tour. We just wanted a ride back to our riad, but the driver was adamant: it was a tour or nothing. Well, this ought to have sounded warning bells. 25 euros. This did seem a bit steep but again he wasn't budging - and our guide did recommend a city tour. An hours ride around the walls was mentioned. And so we got in.
The ride did start interestingly enough, and while we were navigating the narrow streets, it was very almost magical (I say almost because I couldn't dispel the feeling of being conned) and it was great to avoid the scrum below. But it wasn't long before we were out of the streets where things were going on and onto a long, dark road with absolutely nothing of interest or even a single living soul. We did see the famed heron nests there, but then we could have walked to see these. And then, at the end, we found ourselves close to the riad. The whole trip must have taken 15 minutes at most, probably closer to 10. 25 euros.
Now this was our first experience of being ripped off in Marrakesh and sadly not the last (the opportunities for scamming gullible visitors seemingly endless), but it was the worst. See my suggestion below, but if you find yourself with a driver like ours just give it a miss.
Credit where credit's due: going through the streets in a caleche is a fantastic experience in itself, especially at night when the streets of Marrakesh are most bustling. So how to get a tour worth having? Well, next time I would fix ask about the driver's proposed duration and any sites we would see. I would haggle, bargain and I'd make suggestions. And if that didn't work, I'd move onto the next driver.
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