Hoy nos despedimos de Marrakech, los próximos diez días recorreremos el sur de Marruecos en coche junto con nuestros amigos Oscar y Marina que llegan mañana.
Ourika valley
At nine o'clock we made an appointment with the car hire company SAMICAR to pick up the car. The formalities and payment were done online beforehand. It's not the cheapest company but you don't have to pay an excess or leave a deposit and the insurance is fully comprehensive. We paid 480€ for ten days picking it up in Marrakech at our hotel and dropping it off in Fez at the airport. This price already includes the one way fee for dropping it off in a city other than the city of origin. We pay an additional 15€ for a second driver.
Taking advantage of the fact that we have the car we go to visit the Ourika Valley, located an hour's drive from Marrakech.
Ourika valley
The first thing we do is fill up with petrol, the tank costs 720dh.
The Ourika Valley is a favourite destination for Moroccans to take refuge from the intense heat of the Moroccan summer.
Many people book an excursion from Marrakech to visit this area for around 30€/pax.
Waterfall
Getting out of Marrakech is easy. The road is in very good condition and quite wide. We drive to the highest part of the valley, to Setti Fatma, a small village where we take the route known as the Seven Waterfalls.
We park next to the road and tip the valet who has marked his area with stones (10dh). We buy locally produced almonds and water, 20dh 200 grams of almonds and walnuts. The valleys around Marrakech are rich in fruit and nut trees.
Waterfalls
It is not necessary to do the route with a guide, although several will come up to you to offer you one. If you don't have the track downloaded, just cross the Ourika River and follow the stream upstream. You won't be alone because if it's the weekend there will be lots of people to ask questions.
At the beginning of the route you have to cross a lot of shops with traditional products and restaurants.
The way is easy and always upwards following the course of the stream. The first three waterfalls are very easy to reach. This is the place where almost everybody stays, but you can continue upstream without any problem. The path is well marked.
Waterfalls
There are 4 more waterfalls upstream and it is worth the effort to get there, you can even swim in the last one. Fortunately the last rains have left a lot of water.
Viewpoint
To return, take the same path back to the restaurant and then continue to the left until you reach a viewpoint with beautiful views of the village.
Distance 7 kilometres
Elevation gain 500 metres
Track on wikiloc, remember that the track is only indicative
On the way back to the village we stopped for lunch by the river in some very cool tents. The restaurant is a bit expensive but the place is worth it, the menu costs 120dh but includes 3 courses. We didn't realise and ordered two menus. In Morocco you can order only one menu to share, bring your own drink and it's not bad looking. In the end we ordered Moroccan salad and omelette as starters, chicken tajine and lamb tajine as mains, and orange with cinnamon and seasonal fruit for dessert (including a banana, an apple, a plum and a bunch of grapes). As there was so much food, we used the bread and fruit for dinner.
Tajine
In the valley you can also visit the traditional Berber markets, in each locality they are on a different day, in Asni for example they are on Saturdays.
Along the river there are a lot of jaima type restaurants, to access many of them you have to cross suspension bridges that sometimes are not in the best conditions.
Suspension bridge
We stop in Asni to buy water, the woman only speaks Arabic and Amazigh but in the end we understand each other. 10 dh for two bottles of water.
Suspension bridge
In the valley you can also visit the Kasbah Ourika, now converted into a hotel. To get there you have to walk a three-kilometre unpaved track.
A Kasbah is a fortified space (fortress or palace) of Berber origin, designed to protect against both attacks by intruders and inclement weather. Kasbahs are part of traditional Moroccan architecture, like a small town with a manor house to receive visitors and labyrinthine streets linking different rooms such as kitchens and stables. A place protected by high walls of adobe bricks (dried in the sun) or pressed earth, straw and stones.
Before reaching the Kasbah turn-off there is another waterfall area on the river but it is not worth stopping. It is a concrete dam and has almost no water.
Le Domine de Carol
We take the car again to find our accommodation for the night, Le Domine de Carole. A spectacular private estate with a garden and swimming pool located on the side of the road. It's a little over a kilometre along a track to get there. When you get there you have to honk the horn to get the door open.
The en-suite room is huge and they prepare dinner for you if you need it. There is an indoor lounge and an outdoor lounge with billiards. A real paradise in the middle of nowhere. So we took advantage of the afternoon to have a bath and rest.
Accommodation Le Domine de Carole room with bathroom, breakfast and swimming pool 40€/2 pax
Fuel tank 720dh
Car rental with SAMICAR 480€ ten days 4pax
Car parking gratuity 10dh
Meal 120dh/menu
200 grams of almonds and walnuts 20dhh
2 bottles of water in Asni 10dh
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