Morocco Guide

Morocco is immersed in colourful history and exists against an equally colourful background. Explore a country full of red desert, green oases, turquoise seas and glowering mountains, and discover gritty cities with medieval souks at their heart and baked-ochre mud villages.

Slip back to the 12th century in the kasbah of elegant capital Rabat, perched on the Mediterranean. Drive north to photogenic Tangier for colonial street life and glimpses of Spain. Explore the ornate sights of spiritual inland Fès. See ancient and modern collide in the bustling port of art deco Casablanca and marvel at Marrakech's Moorish ramparts, mosques and palaces to the south.

Find coves along the Mediterranean coast, backed by the snow-capped Rif Mountains. Hike the High Atlas massif and tour the rocky wilderness and oases on its southern edge. Hit the beach in modern-day Agadir or hang out with hippies in the medina at gleaming Essaouira. Drive in a 4x4 across relentless red-peaked dunes in the Saharan south.

Bargain for hand-woven carpets, pointy embroidered leather slippers in rainbow shades, colourful patterned ceramics and delicate metalwork lanterns from souks countrywide. Buy elaborate silver brooches, daggers and odd little pieces of geometric pottery from Berber traders. Dig out inlaid wooden boxes and cute cedar camel carvings from craftsmen in Fès and Essaouira.

Snap up fresh fish from the quays of seaside towns, or spicy chicken skewers and stewed lamb tajines from nightly open-air food stalls in Marrakech. Feast Moroccan-style on salads, grilled sardines or bstilla (filo pastry) stuffed with game, and dainty pastry desserts. Wash down with mint tea, or choose a quality local red wine.

In spring, sun yourself on the beach at Agadir and next day drive into the foothills of the Atlas for a spot of cross-country skiing in Oukaïmeden.