Alternatives, Marrakesh

We found that organization at Hotel Ali. But their office is located on the corner of Avenue el-Mouahidine and Rue Bani Marine. They offer different kinds of trips (from 1 to 15 days). The organization is excellent and the people very honest.
Before going to Morocco, we had an idea of the places we wanted to explore and the things we wanted to do. But soon we realized that traveling by bus wouldn’t be easy because the bus system is not reliable enough, we would lose a lot of time depending on the timetables and delays and we wouldn’t be able to see everything we wanted to see. Ait Ben Haddou for example was on our list but not on the bus way.
We also thought of renting a car but personally, I wouldn't have liked to drive, I found it quite dangerous on the road (we saw many accidents) and it's easy to get lost, they were no road signs in some places.
Finally, we opted for the 4 days-3 nights package for the south of the country and didn't regret that choice. The tour was exactly what we were looking for. We even got a discount. We only needed to be six people before leaving to get it. Easy to find in a city full of tourists like Marrakesh.
The advantages of our package : we had a driver who knew exactly the way, we didn’t have to worry about busses, timetables, hotels etc., we traveled by 4x4, the number of participants was limited to 6 people.
Now, I'm really glad we traveled this way. We could take ways that would have been impossible by bus or even by car. And thanks to our driver, we didn't lose our time and could simply enjoy that fabulous part of the country.

1 more image

All nine of us agree that the day-trip to Ait-Ben-Haddou was a grand idea and that our bus driver, Ahmed, is one of the coolest and nicest people ever. I did some research before our trip and located "Medloc-Maroc" as a company that would provide my group with an air-conditioned minivan, gasoline, and driver for the full day. The price was 180 Euro ($250 USD). When you divide that 9 ways, it's only 20 Euros ($27.78 USD) each for a whole day excursion. That includes the price of gasoline! If we had've completely filled the 12-person minivan, it would have been even cheaper.
We should have rented the van every day for our local Marrakesh tours instead of doing it by taxi or "Hop-On Hop Off" bus--which ended up costing us far more. ...And without the personal touch.
On the road to Ait-Ben-Haddou, Ahmed knows all the good photographic panoramic spots to stop. He also stops whenever a member makes a request (as long as the road is safe to do so). The little restaurant he took us to for a morning mint tea and snacks was spectacular as was the Argan making facility we stopped at on the way back. Trust me, you don't want to navigate the steep, winding Atlas Mountain roads on your own and we were all happy that this man is as cautious as they come. With Medloc-Maroc we got much more than a driver, we got a tour guide and by the end of the trip, a friend.
On the road back to Marrakesh, after a long day of driving and touring, Ahmed hands me his cell phone and says his boss would like to talk to me. "Hello?," I answer. "Mr. Edward, how is your trip? Is your driver good?," the voice on the other end asks. "Oh, he's the best! We love him! ...And he's a really cool guy! We've had a great time!" My friends all give a round of applause from their seats. The voice chuckles and says, "He's a 'cool' guy? Very good--I'm glad!"
I highly recommend this company to anyone going to Morocco who needs to get around. The whole thing was negotiated beforehand through e-mails and I paid the driver cash on our departure. Prices vary depending on whether you want to leave Marrakesh and where you want to go.

1 more image

We decided not to take the taxi from the airport offered by our Riad (Guest House) for a mere 10 €. This was the only big mistake we made. If you are a first time visitor to Marrakech, hotels can be very difficult to find, especially if you are staying in the Medina. Our riad was beautiful and I highly recommend it (see accommodation tips) but it was difficult to find. Streets in the medina are hard to distinguish and are seldom marked with street signs. If you look lost there are plenty of people who will offer to help you, for a price! (Yes, we were victims of this.) If you are used to the city a bit, finding your way becomes easier, but late at night, tired and thirsty, looking for your hotel is no fun. Hotels in the newer part of the city are easier to find, but it is still a good bet to use a taxi. Most hotels and riads will arrange for a taxi to collect you and this will prevent you having to negotiate a reasonable price.

To arrive to Marrakech I toke a Ferry from Algeciras (South of Spain) to Tanger (North of Morocco) . (See my Tanger page) I used
Trasmediterranea for going and frs for coming back to Spain.
From Tanger I took an airplane to Casablanca and then from there a airplane to Marrakech.
Its cheaper fly inside the country. Nearly every plane stops at Casablanca. (Royal Air Maroc) RoyalAirMaroc