Sensory overload, in the most pleasant sense, is what any traveler can expect from a country like Morocco, a high-octane destination that makes good on the promise to stimulate all the senses, no matter what region or city a trip focuses on.
Although it can be hard to know where to start in Morocco, planning a customized private journey through the country with luxury operator Abercrombie & Kent (A&K) offers an intentional way to slow down, ease in and control the pace of where to go — and what to bookmark for next time.
My recent A&K Tailormade Journey through Northern Morocco was just like that: slow and steady, intentional about where we visited, but flexible enough to make tweaks here and there when needed. It represented a simple kind of luxury that paved the way for grand experiences on a seven-night trip that visited Casablanca, Rabat and Marrakech.
Inspired by the luxury tour operator’s new 10-day Morocco: Tangier & the Blue City itinerary, my Tailormade Journey featured highlights from the new trip, plus select features from the brand’s existing tours in Morocco. Hotels, restaurants, sights and cities — even special events such as an extravagant tented farewell dinner in Marrakech’s Palmeraie palm-tree oasis — were all handpicked from A&K’s Morocco itineraries to create a custom journey full of surprise and delight.
Play it Again, Casablanca
Our small group of three kicked off the tour in Casablanca, where we stayed for one night at the ultra-luxurious Royal Mansour Casablanca, part of a five-star collection of properties owned by the King of Morocco, and a place I easily could have spent an extra night in. A&K itineraries usually don’t spend more than one night in Casablanca, though that could be rearranged on a custom trip. Travelers only have one evening to explore the city on their own before the following day’s half-day tour of Hassan II Mosque, lunch at a riad (garden courtyard) and a short walk through the medina (historic old town).
So, short on time and fully jet-lagged, I spent my one night in Casablanca at Rick’s Cafe, an absolute must for any cinephile worth their weight in celluloid. Sit at the bar, order the Champagne oysters and a dry dirty martini, let the live band play their tunes for you again and again, and marvel at the sight of this shrine paying tribute to the 1942 classic Hollywood film. The band might even let you sit at Sam’s piano.
Film lovers should visit Rick's Cafe in Casablanca.
Credit: 2025 Nicole EdenedoRabat: Not to be Overlooked
Spending time in Morocco’s capital city of Rabat ended up being a surprise highlight. Like Casablanca, A&K itineraries that include Rabat typically only stay for a night and include a half-day of touring before departing for the next city, giving travelers just a general overview of the capital. Staying for at least two nights — perhaps at the newly opened Fairmont La Marina Rabat Sale Hotel & Residences, where we stayed — allows clients to take their time and enjoy what this polished seaside city has to offer, such as the Kasbah of the Udayas and Mausoleum of Mohammed V.
A soldier guards the Mausoleum of Mohammed V in Rabat.
Credit: 2025 Nicole EdenedoAfter the historical sites and lunch, I had the afternoon free to get down to serious business: shopping at the medina. Rabat is the ideal place to knock out the bulk of any shopping (especially if on a budget), when only visiting two to three cities on a custom tour — even if one of those other cities is Marrakech.
I found more reasonable starting prices in Rabat for hearty items such as calf-leather duffle bags and stylish staple clothing items, and vendors were more willing to haggle within reason. And while overall I found the vendors in Morocco to be far less pushy salespeople than in other international central markets, Rabat offered a surprisingly laid-back shopping experience — so much so that, often, vendors seemed to hardly notice that I had wandered in, or possibly didn’t care, until I approached them about prices. It was a far less intimidating experience than I imagined.
A rug store filled with colorful goods in Rabat
Credit: 2025 Nicole EdenedoMarrakech, on the other hand, is a more expensive place to shop; it’s well-touristed, a global hot spot for shopping and, I would imagine, a destination that someone with limited time in Morocco would likely choose to visit over others — meaning there’s less of a chance travelers would know the difference in price, quality and variety of the items they could get elsewhere for a potentially lower price.
That said, I’m proud to say I got the haul of a lifetime in Rabat: two pairs of sandals, one pair of babouche slippers, three little lanterns, a pashmina scarf, a traditional gold woven belt, that hand woven calf-leather duffle I mentioned earlier and a black velvet gold-trimmed robe that I hope to never outgrow, all for around $150.
More, More, More in Marrakech
The thing about Marrakech is that there’s so much of it — so many good, colorful, enticing and mysterious qualities about it — that it’s hard to share space on the same page in describing the experience there alongside visits to other cities.
How can I do Park Hyatt Marrakech — our hotel for three nights — justice when talking about the dynamic Moroccan culinary experience we had at its on-site restaurant Tfaya? Or when remembering how the property’s calmingly elegant Le Spa facility made me feel so at home?
A&K can arrange a special experience at Scarabeo Desert Camp in the Agafaye Desert.
Credit: 2025 Nicole EdenedoWhere would I even begin in recounting my visit to Jemaa el-Fnaa Square, where I was dizzy with disbelief at the mesmerizing time I had dodging snake charmers, monkey handlers and acrobats with their lanterns lit so bright I could have mistaken them for open flames?
And I won’t even bother mentioning Scarabeo Camp. What I felt during our evening listening to the soul-stirring music of the Senegalese acoustic guitarist who played for us as we dined under the stars, with nothing but the sounds of the Agafay Desert’s shifting sands whistling between songs — that was an experience too precious to put into words.
