Moroccan Cookery and Tasting Weekend

Upon arrival in Marrakech, please proceed through customs and immigration formalities.

Our local representative will meet you outside the arrival terminal with a sign, and give you a brief review of the tour during your transfer to the riad or homestay.

Check-in and relax. If time permits, you can enjoy the facilities of the riad/guest house or be picked up for a must-do activity in Morocco like a hammam offering a 30-min. scrub and 30-min. massage, or a camel ride at The Palmeraie of Marrakech.

Dinner to try some local specialties on your own.

Overnight at the riad/guest house.

Today you will explore the exotic city of Marrakesh with a specialist local guide. The tour will take in the sights as well as explore the culture of Moroccan food – including market visits and tasting the street foods of Marrakech.

Begin your tour at the square and market place Djemaa el Fna, Marrakesh’s heartbeat surrounded by bazaars, food-stalls, mosques, terraced cafés, snake charmers, fire-eaters, and fortune-tellers.

Stop at the Koutoubia Minaret, the oldest of the three great Almohad towers, and the Bahia Palace, a marvelous display of painted wood, ceramics, and symmetrical gardens.

Then try the best local street foods, from sfenj, sheep’s head and tangia to pastries and more exotic dishes and a visit to Morocco Food Museum.

You’ll visit the Mellah market, the Old Jewish Market with its vegetables, fruits, poultry, meat, honey, herbs, and flowers on display.

Here you’ll witness the old-fashioned way of making phyllo dough. Afterwards, stop for the more food tasting: doughnuts and bissara (purée of dry fava bean soup with olive oil, cumin and paprika).

Moroccan food is famous for the number and depth of spices used so your next visit will be the spice shop to learn about the mixtures of the aromatic vegetable spices – used both in the traditional and Modern Moroccan Cuisine.

On the way to the Medina, make a stop at the traditional communal bakery where Moroccan families bring their homemade bread to bake.

You’ll stroll through the old part of the Medina and Jemma el F’na to reach the entrance of the market. Here you can taste the tangia, a Marrakchi specialty, which is a meat dish seasoned with cumin and lemon confit prepared and cooked in a clay pottery made only for this purpose.

Then cross the other side of the market to learn about olive preparation and on to the dry meat shops for a sandwich.

Finish your walk through the souk to stop at a snail stall – that you are of course welcome to taste.

The rest of the day is at leisure. Dinner on your own – the riads have excellent restaurants, and the guesthouse will prepare traditional dishes, or your guide can make recommendations to excellent eateries in the city centre.

Overnight at the riad/guest house.

Today you’re going to learn how to make authentic and delicious Moroccan cuisine for yourself, during a relaxed and unforgettable day at The Bennounas Farm with Alain (Azzeddine) Bennouna, New York Times 3-star Executive Chef.

You’ll be picked up from your riad at 10am. Drive to the Valley of Ourika a 30-minute ride, through Moroccan scenery with the backdrop of the High Atlas Mountains.

The final track to the Bennounas Farm will be taken by camel, donkey or mule -depending on availability.

A welcome drink is followed by a tour of the property that is surrounded by the spectacular Atlas Mountain. Enjoy a 20-min. meditation on the roof of the farmhouse (yoga class optional upon request). Then a light lunch will be served, and afterwards the swimming pool is available for use (if season permits). Or just walk around the grounds or local surroundings.

Around 4pm the highlight of your visit begins, as you start preparing for the cooking class.

First, a visit to the kitchen garden to pick vegetables if the season permits.

Then, you’ll start to prepare food in an immersive cookery experience with the Chef. You’ll learn about preparation techniques, Moroccan spices and also how to make Berber bread in a traditional oven.

Once you have honed your new Moroccan cooking skills you will indulge in the food you have prepared.

As your day winds down, a Moroccan tea or coffee can be served after dinner to witness the sun setting behind the mountains.

Return to your riad/guest house for overnight.

After breakfast, you will be taken to Marrakech airport for your return flight.

Alternatively extra days can be booked with excursions to visit:

Ourika Valley

Imlil Valley

Ouzoud Waterfalls

Essaouira

The Three Valleys

The Road of Kasbahs

Merzouga desert

Quad & camel ride