Everyone knows that person who spends weeks sniffing around travel blogs, going deep into Tripadvisor rabbit holes, collecting Google docs from friends of friends, and creating A Beautiful Mind–style spreadsheets to come up with the best vacations and itineraries possible. In this recurring series, we find those people who’ve done all the work for you and have them walk us through a particularly wonderful, especially well-thought-out vacation they took that you can actually steal.
The first place Teddi Cranford, hairstylist and founder of the East Village’s White Rose Collective, goes when she arrives in Marrakech is the souk. The visual and sensory overload always seems to help her power through the inevitable jet lag. It’s a trick that also worked for her 6-year-old daughter, Juniper, who, along with her partner, photographer Andrew Harrington, accompanied Cranford there this March. It was Cranford’s fifth time; a trip to Morocco has now become kind of an annual tradition.
“Morocco is my happy place,” she says. “It’s an escape that also feels so inspiring. And it’s come to feel like home to me, so I just continue to go back.” While buzzy Marrakech may not immediately come to mind as a kid-friendly destination, Cranford’s daughter, much like her, embraced the energy of it all. “It’s a bustling place, but she owned it,” says Cranford, laughing. “By the end of the trip, my 6-year-old was telling me, ‘Mom, watch out, move over,’ in the medina when donkeys were crossing or motorcycles were whizzing by.” Cranford’s advice for anyone who travels here, no matter your age, is twofold: First, balance your days by coupling energy- and sensory-zapping activities with relaxing ones (see: pool time or a steam), and perhaps most important, just dive in. Says Cranford, “Don’t take the heckling in the medina personal; eat all the food, wander off onto the calm little side streets that draw you in, take note of the light throughout the day, smell your hands after you peel an orange, watch the bubbles aerate from the high pours of mint tea, listen to the birds, and when you hear the call to prayer, take a minute to check in with yourself.”
Day 1
3 p.m.: Land in Marrakech
We arrive in Marrakech around 3 p.m. There are two ways to get to Marrakech from New York: via a layover in Paris or by flying direct to Casablanca and hiring a driver. That’s a two-and-a-half-hour drive, and though it does shave off some travel time, it’s still long. I prefer the layover and flying with Air France. Once we land, we meet our porter to help us with the bags and navigate us to our riad; any riad or hotel will set this up for you so you can get to where you’re going seamlessly.
4:30 p.m.: Arrive at the riad
My client Helen Marden is who originally inspired me to go to Morocco, and when I’m there, I’m very fortunate to be able to stay at her very special private riad — a traditional Moroccan home with an enclosed interior garden and courtyard. To get a similar homey feeling and incredible design, I recommend Riad Jardin Secret. Upon arrival, we are greeted with wonderful mint tea and the sounds of birds chirping, and my daughter and I take it all in while getting settled. I like staying in the medina, the wall-enclosed old city, so I always remember to grab cash at the airport; if you’re staying outside the medina, there will most likely be an ATM at your hotel, but if not, pull out money prior to entering the medina to avoid lines and many broken ATMs.
5:30 p.m.: Stroll the souk
The day we arrive, it is drizzling and the sky is this magical grayish-purple hue that’s so beautiful. To beat the jet lag, Juniper and I go immediately for a stroll in the souk. We take pictures and purchase a few spices and some orange oil and orange water, just dipping our toes in. I recommend that first-timers get a guide (your riad or hotel will hook you up) for your initial souk visit since it can be overwhelming and then you can go out on your own after that.
7 p.m.: Beat jet lag with with burgers and a view
After the souk, we walk over to Riad El Fenn to grab some food on the rooftop terrace. Because I know there will be many meals of Moroccan food ahead for Juniper, we order burgers and chicken fingers, which you can get there. It’s also one of the few places that sells alcohol in the medina, so I have a glass of rosé.
Day 2
9 a.m.: Rise and head to the country club
We have breakfast at our riad and then grab a taxi (there are some surrounding the medina so it’s easy to get in and out) and head to Beldi Country Club where you can buy a day pass. We swim in the pools and visit the hammam to get a traditional scrub after steaming in black soap. This is key to a fresh start in Morocco; when I’m there, I sometimes hammam every day.
2 p.m.: Snack on salads and watch the glassblowers
We have lunch at Beldi’s gorgeous restaurant, which serves French Moroccan cuisine with lots of ingredients from the gardens. It’s all very fresh. Then, after lunch, we explore the lush grounds, following the little paths to the rose garden and the greenroom, which is breathtaking. We both pull out our cameras to take pictures. Beldi also has a mini-souk with glassblowing, where you can see the artisans at work. We purchase some beautiful glasses and pitchers that I end up packing carefully in my carry-on.
4 p.m.: Drink like royals
We take a cab from Beldi to the famous Royal Mansour. It’s so beautiful and worth seeing, but it’s not a very kid-friendly vibe, so we go early just to grab drinks (I always get a King Spritz) and see the grounds … and check out the people.
6 p.m.: Order a tagine and sip bedtime tea
We head back to our riad in the medina for an early evening swim and to relax. We stay in for dinner and have the first of many chicken tagines with preserved lemons and Moroccan salads, which is exactly what we want. Then it’s some mint tea and to bed.
Day 3
8 a.m.: Watch turtles, then get in a swim
Another amazing breakfast at the riad with fresh fruits and yogurt, a fried egg with spices, and a crêpe you douse with jams, plus strong coffee and pomegranate juice. June is obsessed with the breakfasts. Then we play hide-and-seek in the riad, follow all the turtles in the garden, and have a lovely morning swim.
11 a.m.: Shop the souk … and haggle
The souk is packed with new and old things, and you can really be in there for hours and lose all concept of time. Dress easy and casual, not flashy; I like a light dress or linen shirt and pants and a sandal. It’s tempting, but don’t buy the first thing you get excited about. Negotiations are happening left and right, and that’s the fun part! You can practice on small things: Like if they say 200, offer 50; if they say no way and counter 150, you suggest 100 and then maybe land at 120. Working for it always makes the purchase more memorable for me. I have a vivid memory of a vendor on my first trip to Morocco slamming a bag down on the ground mid-negotiation and telling me how durable it was. He was not wrong (it became my favorite beach bag), and at the end, we shook hands and smiled. On this trip, I buy another leather bag (an incredible woven style), linen pants, and a bunch of shoes for June; the souk has great kids’ shoes, so be on the lookout.
2 p.m.: Recharge with veggie couscous and salads
We’re feeling some serious souk fatigue, so we walk over to have lunch at Terrasse des Epices, a nice spot in the medina to go for tagine and a cold glass of rosé. We order the vegetable couscous, Moroccan salads, and a beef tagine and chat about our souk finds. After lunch, we stop off at the gift shop so I can pick up some eucalyptus black soap and ylang-ylang argan body oil.
4 p.m.: Nibble olives and play checkers poolside
After lunch, we grab some olives in the souk and a checkers set (there are always some really cool cedar chess and checkers sets to buy). Then we make our way back to the riad to play checkers and chill poolside prior to our dinner reservation.
7 p.m.: Dress up for dinner and belly dancing
This is our adult night out, so the riad arranges a sitter for June. Andy and I get a little jazzed up for a fancier date and head to Le Comptoir, a spot where you eat traditional Moroccan food (we order lamb tagine and couscous and lots of cocktails) while watching an epic belly-dancing show. We wanted to do something lively and let loose a bit, and the vibe here is super-fun.
Day 4
10 a.m.: Drive to the Atlas Mountains
We pack an overnight bag and head to the Atlas Mountains. Abdou, who runs our riad, arranged our trip, but any riad owner or hotel concierge where you’re staying would be able to do the same. A driver picks us up in the main square. The ride up to the Atlas Mountains is about an hour and a half (we bring water and snacks, and if you get carsick, take something with you) and is really beautiful.
Noon: Hike with donkeys, then eat khobz for lunch
After the drive, our guide meets us and straps our bags onto a donkey, and we hike 45 minutes to a Berber village where we are welcomed into a local family’s home. They greet us with mint tea and a delicious home-cooked meal. June and I watch the woman making khobz, a traditional Moroccan bread, fireside; you can see by the way she works the bread with her hands that she has been doing this her entire life. After lunch, we have another 45-minute hike to the hotel. We hike across the stunning seabed, and along the way, you see tiny villages in the distance and the light changing as you get higher. You really feel like you’re somewhere far, far away.
3:30 p.m.: Check into the hotel and chill in the garden
Once we arrive at the hotel, we feel genuinely transported. We stayed at the Douar Samra, which is lovely and homey and a more rustic experience, but if you want something fancier, there’s the Kasbah Tamadot. We check in and head immediately for the wood-heated hammam to slather black soap all over us and scrub off the day. After steaming, we chill in the garden outside our suite and play some checkers and then head to an early dinner. They serve simple traditional Berber cuisine with vegetables grown on-site, and there’s no wine at the hotel, so if you want a glass of red in the mountains, remember to pack a bottle. But trust that mint tea flows freely and the whole place feels like a reset, so you don’t even need it.
Day 5
10 a.m.: Shop for rugs
We wake up and enjoy another amazing Moroccan breakfast at Douar Samra before checking out and taking a short hike down the mountain to my favorite place for rugs, La Source du Tapis. The prices here are much better than at the souk (though you can still negotiate), and I find the quality is too. There’s an abundance of rugs, so I definitely suggest going in with a sense of the vibe you want. Today, I’m looking for a large blue rug for June’s room and a white rug for my living room, and we have a great time picking these out along with tons of handwoven silk tapestries that I don’t need but love. If the owner knows you or your driver or guide, you can call ahead and have them arrange lunch for you on-site, which I’m glad we did because we were starving after all the rug browsing. They take care of shipping, but if you’re traveling with a group, don’t ship together because your order will likely get stuck in customs.
2 p.m.: Head back to Marrakech
After hours of rug shopping and celebratory tagine and mint tea, we drive back to Marrakech. We arrive back at our riad and swim and drink and listen to the birds, and June goes looking for her turtles.
7 p.m.: Eat an Italian dinner
After many, many tagines we want to switch things up — and get all dressed up — so we go to the new Italian restaurant at La Mamounia for homemade pasta and wood-fired pizza.
Day 6
9 a.m.: Take a morning steam
We wake up and walk to the Es Saadi hotel, where the vibe is nice and welcoming but without the fuss and fanciness of a place like Royal Mansour. The hotel has an easy pool for kids, and the spa gets the job done; today, I go for a morning steam and sauna, which feels so refreshing. It’s the ultimate reset, in my opinion.
Noon: Order lamb for lunch
We ask our driver Dom to take us where the locals eat, and he brings us to a smoke-filled place called Laayachi for méshui (whole lamb slow-roasted in underground clay pits). The lamb comes with just bowls of cumin and salt, bread, and mint tea. It’s an experience, and we may be the only tourists there. Safe to say it’s my favorite meal of the trip.
3 p.m.: Buy custom coats and ceramics
I love going to this store called Funky Cool Medina. The owner has a lot of his own designs, plus an assortment of vintage, and the entire vibe there is just so cool. Juniper and I get matching jackets made out of carpet that are one-of-a-kind and incredible. Don’t plan to bargain here: He is firm on his prices, and he should be because you’re getting a good deal for something truly custom. After finding our dream coats we head back to the souk. I get some ceramic pieces, and June and Andy purchase some more turtles for the riad. She loves those little turtles so much, it’s very cute.
Day 7
8 a.m.: Head to the Agafay Desert
Our driver picks us up early to drive an hour out to the Agafay Desert. It’s peaceful and beautiful and feels like an oasis after the business of Marrakech. We check in at the Oxygen Lodge, where your room is a chic tent that’s fully equipped with everything you need.
Noon: Drive ATVs through the dunes
The lodge has an infinity pool that overlooks the desert where we hang out most of the day. There are a lot of other kids at the lodge, so June is excited. One of my favorite things when we’re traveling internationally is when she meets a little buddy and they both speak different languages but they just figure it out and keep each other entertained. Then we do ATVs, which is so fun. I have June on the back of mine, and we rip through the sand dunes for an hour on a guided tour.
7 p.m.: Eat dinner under the stars
We have drinks at the on-site bar and then fantastic Moroccan food at the lodge’s tented restaurant. We end the night with mint tea and stargazing by the big firepit.
Day 8
8 a.m.: Take a final dip
We have eggs and crêpes and jam, then relax by the pool at the lodge for a while before heading back to Marrakech.
3 p.m.: Walk the souk before packing up
We take one last cruise through the souk for rosewater and these exfoliating gloves I love. And I need to buy an extra bag for all our purchases! Then we head back for our last night at the riad to pack and to eat, yep, one more tagine before leaving in the morning.
Teddi’s Marrakech Packing List
We unplugged from social media completely on this trip and packed watercolor paints and two Polaroid cameras instead.
A cross-body bag that’s low-key (not a flashy designer one) is essential for the souk so you can just easily grab stuff out and zip it back up.
Hair products are always a must for me obviously, but I keep it pretty simple when I’m there. This serum is great for slicking hair back or an air-dry.
These sandals by The Row are the best investment I ever made, but really any Teva-type shoe is great. You want something comfortable for walking that isn’t flashy.
I’m never walking around with a full face of makeup in Morocco, though I always fly with my skin-care essentials. A good sunscreen is definitely key.
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