Cooking holidays in Morocco
Book a unique Moroccan cooking holiday where you can experience mystical and exotic Marrakech before travelling through Argancountryside to the authentic coastal town of Essaouira. With the scent of spices in the air, you will discover the fusion of influences from Africa, Arabia and Spain that create the unmistakable cuisine for which Morocco gains worldwide respect. This will certainly be an experience to remember.
Highlights
Guided city tour
Traditional culinary workshop
Observe the process of argan oil
Work alongside a translator during class
Transfers to and from the airport
Enjoy a delicious breakfast every day
5 nights
Théme : Culinary , Romantic
Période : All seasons
Start/End Point : Marrakech to Marrakech
Sequance of Spots: Marrakech , Essaouira
Availability: Every day
Category of accommodation: 5* Hotel or Riad
Transport: shared Transfers
Price per pers From : 5* = 899 € / 4* = 685 € / 3* = 585 €
Accommodation
During this culinary holiday, you will stay in luxury boutique hotels. In Marrakech, you will be located in a high-end riad in the atmospheric medina, and in Essaouira, there is the possibility to stay in an elegant medina riad or just outside the city in a beldi chic retreat.
What is included
Airport Transfers
Accommodation at 5* or 4* Hotel/Riad
Shared transfer to and from Essaouiora
Guided tour in Marrakech English-speaking guide
Guided Tour in Essaouira English-speaking Guide
Daily breakfast
1 lunch
Culinary Workshop
What is not included
Additional meals
Additional activities
Travel insurance
Fare
Drinks
Entrence Fee to Monuments
Individual surcharge
German-speaking guide 50 € per day
Day 1: Pick up from the airport and transfer to the hotel
You will be met at Marrakech Menara Airport (RAK) and taken to your accommodation, a 5-star restaurant with pool in the old medina. Depending on the time of arrival, you can visit Majorelle Gardens. These impressive botanical gardens, formerly owned by Yves St Laurent, are set on 12 hectares of land and include the Islamic Art Museum of Marrakech.
Day 2: Marrakech - Guided Tour
Today you can really explore the world-famous city of Marrakech, the second oldest imperial city known as the southern pearl of Morocco, which has been an important point of contact for traders and travellers for centuries.
Their tour includes the Bahia Palace and the Saadian tombs. You can also visit the famous Koutoubia Mosque, whose minaret dominates the centre of Marrakech, before continuing to Djemaa el Fna, one of marrakech's most important cultural spaces and a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
Here you have the opportunity to relax in one of the many cafés around the square, absorbing the sights and sounds of this enticing city. Then, after lunch, experience the hustle and bustle of the aromatic souks of the medina as you make your way through the labyrinth of narrow streets and mysterious bazaars numerically selling handmade carpets, lanterns and spices.
The tour ends on the famous square, which turns into a huge open-air restaurant at night, crammed with stalls lit by gas lanterns, where the air is filled with wonderful smells and plumes of smoke rising into the night.
Day 3: Marrakech - Cooking Workshop
The fusion of influences from Africa, Arabia and Spain creates the unmistakable cuisine for which Morocco gains worldwide respect. Spices, fruits and nuts are extensive and the ingredients are fresh, natural, home-grown and finely balanced.
Today you will take a culinary course with a DADA, traditional Moroccan chef. Small groups with a maximum of ten participants work with a translator who speaks Arabic, English and French, and use easy-to-use modern appliances in everyday kitchens.
You will see how Moroccan bread is made and experience a traditional bread oven, as well as learn to prepare a two-course meal. At the end of the workshop you will dine on the food you have prepared.
Day 4: Essaouira
Today you will be picked up to join a group of 17 people heading towards Essaouira and drive for two hours and 30 minutes through lush valleys with orange groves and old olive trees until you arrive in Essaouira.
Along the way, stop at an argan oil cooperative where you can observe the entire process and have the opportunity to buy some high quality pure argan oil products. If you're lucky, you'll also see the amazing spectacle of goats climbing the argan trees to reach the fruit.
When you arrive in Essaouira, take a short tour to see sights and help you orientate yourself before being taken to your accommodation. You will stay in the Medina Riad with spa and hammam or in a beldi chic retreat with pool, in the countryside, 20 minutes outside the city.
Day 5: Essaouira
Enjoy today with your guide. Perfect for pottery, the souks are stress-free compared to Marrakech and are known for their rich and varied crafts. All over the city there are Zocos (markets), filled with textiles, jewellery, ceramics, musical instruments and handmade wooden objects. Art galleries and small boutiques are located between a plethora of cafés where you can chat with the locals while sipping mint tea and chills.
Visit Si Said's spice shop at the spice market behind the fish market to buy high-quality spices such as locally produced saffron and royal tea blends. If you have space in your luggage, you can buy a tagine to take home and try out your new skills. It is also possible to choose your fresh fish from the fish market and eat it in front of you at one of the common outdoor tables or near restaurants.
Day 6: Transfer back to Marrakech
After breakfast leisure until 3pm you will be guided by your accommodation to participate in the return Groupe Transportation and be brought back to Marrakech check-in to your accommodation, then at 8 pm a driver will come to you outside in a traditional restaurant with show back at midnight & overnight.
Day 7: Departure
After breakfast your transfer will be at your service back to Menara airport; Thank you for visiting
Marrakech
Marrakech is famous worldwide for its souks, square and red buildings and is located at the foot of the spectacular Atlas Mountains. This mystical city pulsates with life and manages to be bohemian, cultivated, traditional, magical and romantic.
Exotic goods, snake charmers and musicians line the streets while you are enchanted by the most vibrant selection of colours and scents that can be found everywhere. Escape the grey sky of the home for this pink tinted city where the beauty is in detail. Choose from a range of beautiful gardens to escape the hustle and bustle for a while.
A year-round destination and a good starting point for a series of day trips or longer excursions, Marrakech has so much to offer. The traditional, modern mix is captivating and entertaining. Intoxicating and chaotic, it is a paradise for human observers.
Essaouira
An authentic coastal town that is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Essaouira (known as Swira) is located on Morocco's west coast; a few hours from Marrakech. It is a seductive, untouched destination with a tangible North African feel.
Essaouira is a welcome relief from the stagnant heat of Marrakech in the summer months, which is warm all year round and cooled by the Atlantic breeze. A melting pot of locals and foreigners who came and stayed have created a relaxed atmosphere and fascinating resort. Windsurfers love Swira's shallow, clean water and it's the Atlantic trade winds that have ensured that the big operators stay outside and the character stays.
There are times of the year when the ten kilometers of sandy beach to look at, but do not sit and that is when you appreciate that this is a functioning city with a lot to see. The fishing port thrives, and with the smell of citrus fruits and spices in the air, you can have their fresh daily catch grilled for you on hot coals at the open air stalls.
The confusing labyrinth of a medina, where the pretty, narrow streets are crammed with cobalt blue shutters and doors, is as important to the locals as it is to tourists, and the woodworkers are still tinkering with their Thuya wood as if time had stopped.
Perfect for pottery, the souks are stress-free compared to Marrakech. Known for its rich and varied handicrafts, there are all over the city Zocos (markets) filled with textiles, jewelry, ceramics, musical instruments and handmade wooden objects.
Art galleries, bars and small boutiques are located between a plethora of cafés, ideal for people watching the locals and chatting with them while sipping mint tea and chilling. After being established in the 18th century as Morocco's most important port and exporting goods brought through desert and mountain by the Timbuktu caravan route, Moroccan Jews were encouraged to settle here to cope with European trade, with many Jewish buildings remaining in the Mellah today.
Food
The fusion of influences from Africa, Arabia and Europe creates the unmistakable Moroccan cuisine. Spices and fruits are extensive and the ingredients are fresh, natural, home-grown and finely balanced.
The meal time is a very important part of domestic life and usually begins with olives and bread, followed by the classic tagine, a slow-cooked stew, which is served in a middle estate known by the same name. This is placed in the middle of the table for all to share and is often accompanied by couscous, as a gift from Allah, or a colorful Moroccan salad.
Flatbreads are served at every meal and replace cutlery while you literally shovel up your food in the bread. The ubiquitous green tea with mint, called Berber Whiskey, is a ceremony in itself and you will be welcomed almost everywhere with this wonderful Moroccan custom.