Renting in Morocco

For those people looking a little further afield, and interested in a different cultural experience, Morocco is becoming a hot-spot especially with celebrities. Apparently quite a few A-listers have been ploughing their hard-earned cash into bricks and mortar in Marrakesh amongst other places.

I have always preferred the idea of experiencing foreign cultures from within the community rather than from the outside and holiday apartments are a great way to steep oneself in the local culture more than if one is staying in a hotel environment. Whether you are considering bargaining with traders for exotic goods in the busy markets of the towns and cities, or sunning yourself in one of the rentals on Morocco's coast, a variety of properties are available all through the year.

Morocco offers a variety of activities, the architecture and scenery naturally lends itself to traditional sight-seeing and photography. Shopping is a popular activity, but don't expect high street shopping here, vast, varied markets offer handcrafted delights from carpets to food or trinkets.

Souks (traditional markets) are open Mon-Sun 0900-1300 and 1530-1900.

Morocco has beaches on the Atlantic and on the Mediterranean, the ones on the Med offering warmer water, more intimate beaches and a proliferation of small fishing villages to add colour. The Atlantic beaches are more suited to water sports enthusiasts such as surfing, kite-boarding or jet-skiing.

For UK visitors, Morroco is on a very similar timeline, so jet-lag should never be a problem either travelling to or from Morroco.

North Africa gains popularity

North Africa has benefited from investments in recent years, and coupled with lower air fares this area is expecting growth which could see visitors from the UK double compared with figures from three or four years ago. Morocco will be the main benefactor of these 'travel dollars' and has proven to be popular, with destinations like Tangier, Casablanca, Marrakesh on offer, the lure of the African continent is now affordable whilst remaining exotic.

Morocco is only one geographical step on from Southern Europe and can be reached in only three hours, it offers cultural delights, fantastic architecture and landscapes. All good places have their down-sides however, and a note of caution needs to be injected as last year tourists were targeted by suicide bombers in Casablanca.