I’m going to be honest, I love Marrakech as much as I don’t love it. Its frenetic atmosphere invigorates me yet puts me on edge. Before this trip, I’d been to the Moroccan city twice and wasn’t planning to go back, until my Marrakechi virgin husband convinced me to accompany him. I agreed, but only on one condition: we would avoid tourist traps, crowds and seek out out places and things to do you don’t find in regular guidebooks. 

We went for a long weekend in March which proved a culture-shock tonic escape from the English winter we needed, the weather not too hot or cold. When we weren’t hunting for underrated Marrakechi haunts, we spent time curled up reading books on the terrace of our riad, sipping sweet mint tea, listening to the birds and the call to prayer.

Hidden highlights of Marrakech

These secret highlights of my trip to Marrakech are discoveries you won’t find on most tourist itineraries, which doesn’t mean they aren’t worth visiting or trying – they absolutely are. Sometimes the off-radar places that reveal the biggest clues and get to the heart of a destination. Let’s dive into some alternative things to do in Marrakech!

This post is part of a popular travel series on Ellie & Co called Seven Secret Highlights which rounds up unique discoveries I make on my travels. Other posts in the series include Brighton and the nearby seaside town of Hastings on the south coast of England, Seville in Spain, and Beverly Hills and Venice Beach in California.

1  Early morning in the souks, beat the crowds

The labyrinthine souks – local markets – are Marrakech’s biggest tourist attraction. They’re located in the heart of the medina, the ancient walled part of the city, and have been the centre of trade in the city for a thousand years.

So, what should you do if you want a glimpse, but you’re a tourist-crowd-phobe? Here’s a tip I swear by – get in and out before 11am when traffic (both human and two-wheeled) is still at its lowest.

Leave it too late, and you’ll be competing with tour groups and streams of Marrakechis on loud, petrol-guzzling mopeds. I’m not lying! On our first day, I skipped excitedly out of our riad (in a quiet corner of the medina) after a lie in and a late breakfast, straight into a man riding a moped laden with metal lamps. Ooops, so uncool.

Alternatively, many souq stalls stay open for a few hours after dark, which is also a good time to shop if you don’t like crowds and want to mix with local families.

If you do find yourself in the souks later in the day, I suggest you avoid Souk Semmarine, the Oxford Street of Marrakech and the city’s most famous, at all costs. It runs north from Djemaa el-Fna, the city’s famous old marketplace, to the Ben Youssef Medersa historic college and merges with Souk Nejjarine and Souk El-Kebir and is where you’ll find the biggest crowds.

Instead, head for the smaller, individual souks within narrower streets that run off this main artery. Each one is dedicated to a specific craft where you’ll find makers in workshops, for an insight into how it all works. They tend to be less busy and prices lower.

For example, Souk Haddadine lets you peek into the world of a Moroccan blacksmith; and in Souk des Teinturiers you’ll see fabrics and skins dyed in an eye-catching spectrum of colours.

On our wander, we also stumbled on a locals’ shopping street on the fringes of the souk, complete with a hairdresser, a tailor, and even a radio repair shop with shelves filled with old wooden radios. I became obsessed with taking pictures of shopfronts, stopping every two seconds to get snaps.

2 Cactus Thiemenn, an Alternative to Jardin Majorelle

The thought of queuing for hours in the hot Moroccan sun to see legendary fashion designer Yves Saint Laurent’s botanic masterpiece Jardin Majorelle did not appeal. I’ve been before, and admittedly, it is epic and a highlight of any trip to Marrakech. But to me, walking around it along with hoards of other people negates any feelings of calm being in a tranquil garden should bring.

Instead, we took a taxi to an off-radar cactus garden 10km out of Marrakech, which as it turns out, supplies Jardin Majorelle with cacti anyway. Winner!

Cactus Thiemenn was founded in 1964 by an eccentric German botanical engineer called… the late Mr Theimenn. Nowadays, it’s run by his lovely daughter, Magda, who leads fantastic tours peppered with plenty of fun unusual facts about cacti. For example, did you know that dragon fruits aren’t from Asia, they come from Moroccan cacti?

She also shares heart-warming anecdotes about her Dad’s life in 1960s Morocco. As you listen to her fascinating stories, all around are beautiful cacti in all shapes and sizes, as far as the eye can see. There’s even one that’s 80 years old and eight feet high!

Travel tip: We visited in March but April is a good time to visit when the cacti flower. Although we explored the garden on a private tour, it’s since started opening to the public on Wednesdays and Saturdays, 10am to 3pm (last ticket at 2pm, 60 dirhams for an adult). It’s still off the radar of most visitors to Marrakech.

Find Cactus Thiemenn at Km 10, Route de Casablanca, BP 735 Guéliz, Marrakech

3 Dar Rbaa Laroub, A beautiful 70EUR/night riad NO ONE knows about

We stayed in Dar Rbaa Laroub a surprisingly little-known riad in the Mouassine area of the medina I stumbled upon hidden in the depths of Instagram. I say surprisingly little-known because, to me, it rivals any of the luxury overpriced riads you see on every Instagram feed, in terms of cost and charm. Although in a way, it’s a good thing as we’ll always have it all to ourselves.

Walking through the door of Daar La Roub feels like you’ve arrived at your bohemian friend’s house: the French owner, Jean-Noel (who lives on one side of the riad although you rarely see him), greeted us sporting a chunky cable-knit roll neck, clutching a glass of red wine, the sound of jazz music playing softly in the background.

There’s a quiet lounge filled with art, antiques, books, and slouchy sofas, and the tranquil courtyard is literally swaying with plants. There’s even a swing chair in the corner for afternoon pondering.

Side notes: It costs just EUR70/night including breakfast. Plus – mega bonus – if you want wine, you just ask for some and they give you a bottle. If ever there was a reason to book a holiday around a hotel, this is it.

Read more about Dar Rbaa Laroub here.

4 Appreciate Djemaa El fna square from above

Every travel blog, newspaper article, magazine feature and tour guide says you must visit Djemma El Fnaa Square (which is, in fact, triangular shaped. Who knew?). I agree – and disagree – with this advice. I mean, it is one of the main cultural spaces in Marrakech and a symbol of the city since its foundation in the 11th century, after all. It’s also UNESCO listed which I didn’t realise.

There’s absolutely no doubt the atmosphere is electric at night when the spicy food stalls sizzle, and Berber music fills the air. But for me, in comparison to the beauty found in the medina, Djemaa el-Fnaa is the ugly side.

There are dodgy characters everywhere. Men with monkeys on chains, men weeing on the streets, henna tattoo scammers, pickpockets lurking in plain sight, and an abundance of overpriced and average restaurants.

So how best to experience the size and action of Djemaa El Fna without buying into the negative tourism, getting caught up in the melee and having to watch your back every five seconds? The answer: from a cafe roof terrace.

Some are better than others, and it’s likely you’ll have to pay tourist prices for drinks. The best terrace is at Le Grand Balcon du Café Glace but warning: you will get over-charged for a soft drink. Our favourite was Cafe De Paris.

Side notes: If you do want to experience dining at the night food market, do your research. We were scammed at the one stall we chose and felt threatened when we queried our bill.

5 Riad yima, A hidden Kitschy gallery, shop and tea terrace

Thirsty work all this exploring and hustling your way around the Marrakech, so I was happy when I found Riad Yima, a kitschy shop and gallery with a quiet tea terrace.

It was fun to find hidden down an alleyway and so quiet I found it hard to believe I was just two minutes away from the craziness of Djemma El Fna square.  It’s easy to walk past if it wasn’t for the red and white tiled front step outside, a hint of what was to come inside…

This little emporium of kitsch has to be seen to be believed – and instantly made me think of this colourful shop  in my hometown of Brighton in England that I often direct visitors to. Riad Yima was set up by well-known Moroccan artist and photographer Hassan Hajjij in a run-down historic North African/Middle Eastern inn known as a fonduk, he bought and spent three years converting. The ground floor of Riad Yima showcases his work, including shoes, furniture, and his portraits of Marrakech residents.

Upstairs on the roof is a beautiful outside terrace with shady spots for a mint tea. We were also lucky enough to meet Hajjaj who told us about the series of photographs he took, Kech Angels, which depicted local girls on mopeds dressed in eye-popping robes.

The collection has been exhibited all over the world in such illustrious venues as the Victoria and Albert Museum in London and the Institut des Cultures d’Islam in Paris.

Find Riad Yima at 52 derb Aarjane Rahba lakdima Medina

6 An overlooked photography gallery in a former stork hospital

Being the nosy curious traveller that I am, walking past an unmanned open door is hard for me. Especially if it leads somewhere enticing; or I know I probably shouldn’t walk through. Sometimes this has its drawbacks.

Other times, it works out for the best, like at this time, when, to our surprise, we discovered a place called Dar Bellarj. An art gallery inside a former stork hospital with a black-and-white photography exhibition of old Marrakech. It also made a nice shady escape from the hot sun and crowds.

Fun facts: The word Bellarj means ‘stork’ in Arabic. Storks are the national bird of Morocco and are considered holy. Apparently, in the old days, the Berbers believed the storks were humans reincarnated. It was – and still is – forbidden to disturb a stork and if you do and are caught, you risk three months in prison.

There are still a few places to spot storks around Marrakech, including up high on the walls of the El Badi Palace and from the rooftop of Kozy Bar, overlooking the Place des Ferblantiers with it’s palm trees and pretty lanterns.

Find Dar Bellarj at 7-9 Toualate Zaouiate Lahdar. It’s open Monday to Saturday 9.30am to 5.30pm. Entry is usually free. 

7  Shopping at local markets

One day – after too much baklava, oops – we were desperate for some fresh fruit. Thanks to a tip-off from a trustworthy local at our riad, we ventured just outside the medina walls where we found fresh fruit in abundance. We were also excited to find we were the only tourists there! We bought a big bag of sweet and juicy tangerines, and another of the ripest strawberries and fresh sugar cane juice for next to nothing.

Our trustworthy local also tipped us off about the Souk el Khemis, a daily outdoor flea market set in two old hangars on the road heading to Palmeraie, a 54-square-mile area of palm trees on the northern edge of the city. Souk el Khemis is the place to come if you want something for your house.

One section is dedicated exclusively to ancient cedar wood doors and wrought-iron windows, but there are smaller shops too. I read that every time the luxury palace hotel La Mamounia is renovated, its furniture and accessories end up at Souk el Khemis, and that apparently, nearly everyone has some piece of memorabilia or other from the hotel in their home.

Side notes: The fruit market doesn’t have an official name, rather it’s just a road called Route des Remparts lined with stands. Find Souk el Khemis near the El Khemis gate in the northern part of the city.

BONUS SECRET HIGHLIGHT

8 Marrakech’s Underrated local gem Restaurants

Naturally, we prioritised eating and found lots of places to stuff our faces. There are plenty of fancy tourist restaurants with lovely roof terraces – like Nomad and Cafe Des Epices – but sometimes we just wanted home-cooked couscous and tagine in no-frills surroundings.

We loved Naima in the medina, run by two Moroccan ladies where portions are huge, and Snack Grand Atlas on Rue Ibnou Marine – don’t let the tourist tacky decor put you off here, as the food is superb quality. Out of the medina in the leafy residential area of Gueliz, you’ll find Amal, a women’s refuge with a restaurant and a shady terrace, open for lunch and dinner.

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