The Frugal Explorer’s Guide To Marrakech

I’ve just got back from a 5 day trip to Marrakech, the fourth-largest city in Morocco and it was brilliant. And I just had to share my guide to Marrakech.

We managed to fit so much into the five days and eat some amazing food!

I shared daily snippets from this trip over on my instagram and got a tonne of messages about all the things we got up to so I thought I would put it all together in one post.

In this post, I’m going to share the basics (where we stayed and how we got from the airport) plus all our favourite places to eat and activities we did.

Let’s get into it…

How To Get From The Airport

I’m usually pretty good at having a plan of how to get into the city from an airport. Yet on this trip I left it too late to organise a private transfer so we were winging it.

Looking back booking a private transfer would’ve been the best thing to do as the driver is allowed into the airport to collect. From what I saw, they wait for you just after customs with your name on a plaque.

This would’ve been very easy plus they take you direct to your accommodation. Plus help with luggage to your hotel if inside the medina where cars cannot go.

We did end up taking a private transfer back to the airport and this cost 150DH (~£12). Which was actually the same price we paid for a taxi.

When you exit the RAK airport, if you turn to the right there is a taxi booth where you tell the person where you’re going, pay them the price (it’s in zones – going to the medina was 150DH) and they give you a ticket with an assigned taxi on.

You then walk to the taxi rank and find the taxi you’ve been assigned. They have numbers on the side so this is super easy. You hand them the ticket which tells them where they are taking you and off you go.

This process was really easy and hassle-free. However, the taxi can’t drive through the medina so he dropped us off at the entrance and we had to walk with our luggage through the bustling medina to our hotel.

Alternatively, I have read that you can take a public bus into the city and it’s much cheaper than a taxi. But you have no control over the schedule so would have to wait for one and no control on where you are dropped off.

Where Did We Stay?

We stayed at The Central House and I would 100% recommend this place. It’s a cross between a hotel and a hostel with tonnes of activities on the go and in a great location.

It had a gorgeous rooftop where you could sunbathe and a great courtyard to chill in. We paid around £50 each per night for our private room.

Plus the staff were super friendly and very helpful which is always a bonus.

Check out my full review of The Central House here.

Where Did We Eat?

We ate some incredible food on this trip and I would genuinely go back for the mint tea alone! All the food we had was super fresh and full of flavour.

We found most places added a service charge so didn’t feel the need to tip on top.

Here are some of the places we ate during our trip…

Manzah L Koutoubia

This was our first meal in Marrakech and it did not disappoint. Not only were the views incredible but the food was very tasty and not badly priced for the location.

It’s located just off the famous Jemaa El-Fnaa square with great views of the Koutoubia Mosque. Honestly, the perfect place to people watch.

I had the Moroccan salad platter with a coke zero and my sister had a club sandwich and a smoothie. Plus we ordered an iced coffee to share. Our bill was just under £25 which also included a service charge.

Cafe Des Epices

We stumbled across this place on morning one when exploring the medina and it was a great find! The cute decor drew us in but the food was actually really good and not a bad price.

We ordered two versions of the set breakfasts – usually just called “Moroccan Breakfast” on the menus and got served a feast. This type of dish is on most menus and it is always served with tea or coffee and a fresh juice.

Le Jardin

Owned by the same people as Cafe Des Epices, the food at Le Jardin was so good we ate there twice. And both times we ordered the hummus and whipped feta which were absolutely delicious. Especially when served with fresh Moroccan bread.

The first time we visited Le Jardin we ate on the rooftoop which is gorgeous and the sun was shining. However, it was raining when we visited the second time so we were seated inside. But this was equally as pretty.

If you do eat here, I’d highly recommend the Anytime mocktail! Pinapple, coconut cream & mixed fruits – delicious!

Soul Food (authentic buffet)

We had walked past this place a couple of times and the menu looked good so one night we headed in. However, the night we happened to go was buffet night but turned out to be even better than we could imagine.

The buffet was full of authentic Moroccan food – think salads, couscous, tagines – all so fresh and delicious. Plus they had a great selection of desserts and fresh fruit for afterwards.

It cost 200DH each so not cheap but for all you can eat delicious food it was so worth it. Plus the night we went, they had live music on so we were paying for dinner and a show.

Read Next: Everything I Packed and Wore On This Trip!

Cafe Laksour (cheap!)

We literally stumbled upon this little cafe when we were looking for somewhere near our hotel for breakfast that took card. The majority of places in the medina are cash only so this place was our third attempt but it worked out in our favour.

We ordered the Moroccan breakfasts here again, I went for the savoury version and my sister had the sweet version. The food was super tasty and sooo cheap! Our total bill came to 105DH which converted to only £8.40. Insane!

Cute Cafe on the Corner of Ben Madrasa Square

We’d walked past this place almost daily since arriving in Marrakech and commented on how cute it looked but never ventured inside until our last day.

I didn’t catch the name of the place and we paid in cash so I can’t even track it but it’s a small cafe on the corner of the big Ben Madrasa square. Helpful I know!

It’s on the small-side but set over three floors with a rooftop so felt like a little rabbit warren. We literally had to walk through the kitchen to get to our table which was kind of funny.

Sticking with our theme we ordered a Moroccan Breakfast but this time just one to share with an extra coffee. And no joke, the Moroccan pancakes we were served were the best we had on the entire trip! I’d recommend this place for them alone!

We paid 130DH for a set breakfast and extra coffee which works out to around £10.40 and it was more than enough food to serve two.

La Porte du Monde

This place was honestly too cute to walk past and not go in! We scored a prime spot in front of the cafe and enjoyed a mint tea and crepe whilst watching the world go by.

This was the perfect pit stop during our shopping spree in the medina. We paid 85DH for a juice, mint tea and crepe which is around £6.80.

What Did We Do?

We did some pretty cool things over our 5 days in Marrakech. It was a good mix of history and adventure! Here are a few of our favourite things we did…

Jemaa El-Fnaa Square

Visiting the famous (and UNESCO World Heritage Site) Jemaa El-Fnaa Square is no doubt on the top of everyones must see list when visiting Marrakech. And it did not disappoint.

It is the main square in Marrakech and is full of food stalls, traditional musicians, street performers and all overlooked by the famous Koutoubia Mosque.

Ben Youssef Medersa

This place was super cool to visit and a great photo op. It was 50DH to enter so around £4 and they only accepted cash. This place used to be a school so it was cool to see all the little student dorms and get a peak into life in Marrakech back in 1547 when this place was built.

It’s now a UNESCO World Heritage Site, but was once the largest Islamic school in North Africa also featuring a library and mosque. The madrasa was abandoned in the 18th century but was restored in the 19th century.

El Badi Palace

Built in 1578 the El Badi Palace is no longer the place of opulence that it once was but it is worth the visit if you are a history buff like me.

Once home to Sultan Ahmad al-Mansur and the 500 women that made up his harem, El Badi Palace was a display of his wealth and power.

Day trip to Ozoud Waterfalls

I am so glad we decided to book this day trip! The Ouzoud Waterfalls are the second tallest waterfall in Africa, after Victoria Falls in Zimbabwe.

We booked the trip through GetYourGuide and paid £17.30 each which included pick up & drop off from a central point in Marrakech (cars couldn’t reach our hotel in the medina), the 6-hour round trip to the falls, a traditional Berber tea ceremony, a local guide at the falls and a boat trip.

As part of the tour, we were taken to a place for lunch which was delicious. It was a authentic Moroccan set menu featuring olives & bread, fresh salad, couscous, tagine and mint tea. We had to pay in cash for lunch (the trip T&Cs made this clear) and it came to £10 each which is great value.

There are lots of variations of this trip available and all seem very similar. But this is the one we booked if you want to check it out.

Quad Biking in the desert

This was an absolute highlight of the trip and something I would highly encourage anyone to do!

When we were planning this trip we came across a lot of recommendations to do a camel ride in the desert but neither of us were very keen. I just feel awful for the camels and wouldn’t know where to start to make sure it was an ethical tour company.

So we decided to avoid that completely and went with quad biking instead which was actually so much fun.

We got picked up from the city at around half three and driven into the desert where our guide met us. First, we enjoyed tea, olives, bread and dip before getting helmets and heading out in the desert.

We rode for around 90 minutes with two stops for photos and then driven back into the city for around 6pm. Absolutely great experience! 10/10 would recommend to a friend!

Like with the waterfall trip, there are a tonne of tour providers that offer pretty much the same thing – this is the one we went with and we paid £20.72 each.

Extra mentions

“Free” Walking Tour

This is something we were planning on doing and even had a 3-hour “free” walking tour booked but our plans changed last minute and we had to cancel.

But I still do think walking tours are a great way to see a city and learn about its history. Plus the guides are often locals so they tend to have great recommendations for the rest of your trip.

I’ve put free in quotations marks as whilst free to book on, with these tours you are typically expected to tip at the end.

YSL museum and gardens

This was something on our list and we did walk the 1 mile short journey from the city centre to the site. However, when we got there we found out that it was sold out for the rest of our time in the city.

I had no idea it was this popular!

The photo’s do look amazing but I question whether it’s actually worth it or whether it’s a tourist trap. Tickets are around 300DH each which is approximately £24 per person so not cheap.

So there you go, all our recommendations from our trip to Marrakech! Have you been before? Is it on your list?