Morocco Travel Guide
Morocco is the African country which offers the greatest variety of climate, thanks to being bordered by two seas and having the Atlantis mountain range at the South which limits the expansion of the desert. In the “cold country where the sun is hot” rains come in autumn and spring, whereas the summer is hot and dry.
Morocco is a fascinating country filled with mysterious beauty and extreme contrasts. Even though it is only one hour by ferry from Spain, it seems worlds apart with a deeply traditional culture based on Islam that might be quite unknown to some of you. In one day, you will see young ladies in short skirts, women totally covered and only revealing their eyes, oln 'jellabas' (long robes with a hood) and water sellers in traditional costume. You can explore thousand years' old medinas, where you may feel as if you are walking in medieval times. Feel the modern rush of cosmopolitan cities, the quiet beauty and solitude of sand dunes in the desert near Merzouga or see snowcapped mountains dotted with Berber villages and beautiful beaches.
Agadir is all about the beach! The town is a nice example of modern Moroccan design, but not much in the way of history or culture. Take the local bus for a few cents and go 2 or 3 villages North. The beaches are much better there and there are no burglars at all.
Agadir is very interesting for it's location. Around Agadir you can find very nice and empty beaches, and the region of the Antiatlas, the Sahara desert, some natural parks are very close and accessible for a low fare if you flight from some parts of Europe. The beach, together with the weather, forms the main attraction for thousands of sun worshippers, who come especially in the winter months to escape the cold and gloom of northern Europe. Around this, a resort town with restaurants, bars, cafés, modern, comfortable hotels and a broad offer of water sports has developed. Agadir thanks its modern look, with broad boulevards and pedestrian walkways in part to the rapid development of this tourist industry, but also to the powerful earthquake that destroyed much of the old town in 1960.
Forever immortalized by the movie classic of the same name, Casablanca is Morocco's modern metropolis. Even though it is not one of the famous imperial cities, having grown in no time from a small settlement into a sprawling city of three million, Casablanca offers visitors an equally rare experience. Everything is bigger here: the streets, the hotels, the office blocks and the slums. The people themselves say, "Casablanca has no memory and no past, only a future." Even so, a rich heritage of art deco architecture fused with North African elements acts as a tangible reminder of its French colonial past.
The four great imperial cities of Rabat, Fez, Meknes or Marrakesh have medieval rhythms about them with their dynastic monuments, medinas and squares filled with snake charmers and story-tellers.
If you only have one week and you would like to see amazing geological landscapes, palm oasis, painted rocks, and the Berber way of life, Tafraoute is not to be missed. Only two hours drive from Agadir , the drive is almost as stunning as the destination.
