Why Morocco Should Be at the Top of Your Travel List
Guest blog by Mel Ripp, participant on Laura’s September 2023 Morocco trip
“Hey—remember that one time we were in Morocco?”
This was something our group said to each other over and over—while we were still in Morocco.
The line started to become shorthand:
We’re at a rooftop bar overlooking the Koutoubia Mosque and the surrounding medina. We’re sipping expertly-crafted cocktails as the sun is starting to set…
“Hey—remember that one time we were in Morocco?”
We depart from our medina before dawn and drive into the desert. Our destination? A hot air balloon that’ll take us 2,500 feet over the Atlas Mountains…
“Hey—remember that one time we were in Morocco?”
We spend the entire day at the world-class Dior Institut Spa in Marrakech—being treated to traditional Moroccan hammams and massages, migrating between the steam rooms and the cold pools while sipping Moroccan tea and champagne…
“Hey—remember that one time we were in Morocco?”
You get the idea. We were so over the damn moon to be in this place many of us had only dreamed about, with each other, doing all the things.
The trip we took with Laura was a little different from her usual Morocco trip—it was a private trip that she had planned with Ashley Quinto Powell, who, prior to spending eight days in Morocco together (after an earthquake, no less), was an acquaintance of mine. She had sent an email out in January of last year, asking if I’d like to go to Morocco.
Of course, the answer was yes.
I was the kind of kid who would take a volume of the World Book Encyclopedia off our bookshelf at home, open it to a random entry, and read.
Growing up in Door County, Wisconsin, I knew that visitors came to my home to visit. At the time, I didn’t realize that I could—someday—travel to the places I was exploring in these books.
One of those places was Morocco.
I remember reading about the Sahara Desert as an eight-year-old, and quickly becoming obsessed. So, when Ashley’s “are you in?” email hit my inbox, I was ready to hand over all my money.
I could talk forever about all the amazing things we did on the trip:
Exploring the Ben Youssef Medersa—a historic Islamic college in Marrakesh—where I could have looked at the tile work and hand-carved walls for hours without getting bored
Getting a private shopping session in a herboristerie and all of us literally walking about with enough saffron, Moroccan tea, and “Berber botox” 😂 to weigh down our plane on the way home
Having a free afternoon to explore, and deciding to go to the no-words-to-describe-the beauty, Jardin Majorelle
Heading to the seaside town of Essaouira and getting to pet all the cats
The shopping. SO MUCH SHOPPING. Our group was especially good at this—by the end of the trip, at least half of us had the equivalent of a Master’s in medina bartering
Riding my first camel, and feeling like a badass riding ATVs through the Agafay Desert before heading to our beautiful glamping camp (no roughing it here) complete with a pool and some of the best food I had on the trip
If you want to have a mind-blowing travel experience, Morocco is for you.
Go do it—you won’t be sorry. But I also want to talk about the other things I gained that I didn’t expect:
The fact that by the end of the trip, I had gained the deep friendship of ten other women who will all regularly keep in touch six months later. We covered everything in our lives during those eight days—our fears, our hopes, our dreams, and where we were in our lives, both personally and professionally.
A renewed sense of self. Turns out, I can do hard things.
A pretty cool set of stories to tell at parties (anytime you can start a story with “When I was in Morocco last fall…,” it makes you feel pretty cool).
An incredible reverence for the Moroccan people, who, even though they were dealing with an earthquake that happened THE NIGHT BEFORE we landed, were so welcoming, kind, and resilient.
If you’ve made it this far, thank you for reading (I’m the kind of writer where brevity is NOT my strong suit).
Laura’s got group trips to Morocco at least once or twice a year. GO. Seriously. You’ll be in the absolute best hands, do the absolute BEST things, and if you’re open to it, have the kind of trip that breaks your heart and your soul wide open in the best possible way.
