Inside The “Door To The Desert”

We had seven days in Marrakech. A place my boyfriend and I had never been to before. Upon stepping foot in the ancient medina, we were in awe of the beauty and action that danced before our eyes on the bus ride into the city. Once actually mingling in without surroundings however, we were overwhelmed and frazzled.

A day or so of getting used to the pace of things, we started looking into ways to retreat, relax and taking in the vast desert landscape that is associated with Morocco. After doing a bit of research and getting a recommendation from our Moroccan cooking class teacher, we booked our trip Ouarzazate – the door to the desert.

Where are we bro?

The door to the desert! I was excited (and so was my boyfriend) to see a bit of the Sahara, or just get close enough to it. I had never been before and we thought this location sounded like a perfect way to squeeze in the “roughing it” portion of our trip without straying too far or investing too much money. We hopped on a bus from Marrakech to Ouarzazate (about 5 hours ride) and then took a car up to The Fint Oasis.

It’s hard not to be charmed by the ride and the views. Everything was so rural and earthy. We saw people walking along the side of long stretches or road, dunes, greenery and more. That may sound so “touristy” or privilege like of me but I found everything so sweet and real, if that makes any sense. It wasn’t like being yelled at in the ancient medina to lunch somewhere or buy something, but peaceful and beautifully savage.

We road in a car for what was about 20 minutes, absorbing every shock and bump of the rural terrain. That was fun. I felt like I was on a safari ride or in Jurassic Park. haha

Aren’t the colors and the sky just amazing. It really is so different from city life.

We soon settled into the oasis and walked to our room through this courtyard pictured above. It was beautiful but the place did not scream or look to add on any bells and whistles. It was a retreat for you to relax and recharge, away from all things digital. Absolutely no real WiFi unless you were next to the one little hub that moved around from room to room based on the staff member who controlled it. At first I thought, how dare you but then I realized, “I’m at the door to the desert, I need to explore!”

But wait, I needed food. I was getting hangry. The oasis provided free breakfast and dinner and had a lunch menu we could order bits from. I decided on chicken skewers and my boyfriend went for the tagine.

Chicken skewers and chips

Lemon chicken tagine

After our meal, we went out trekking. Exploring the wonders and walking up hills that looked a bit scary.

I was trying out funny perspective.

Never appropriately dressed for any portion of this trip, lol

We really loved our time alone and made the best of everything. We went on long walks and scaled some tall heights. Everything was exhilarating with a hint of scary (my dad told me to be a bit wary of things and now it has stuck) but we made it out alive.

All in all, I’d say staying at the Fint Oasis and exploring the door to the desert was a once in a lifetime trip. If you’re about luxuries, this place won’t be for you. It’s quaint but the resort has no WiFi and it also has one set menu – you get no choice on your food. It’s good local food but it’s the one standard nonetheless. If you plan on spending a week here, make sure you have access to a car because you can exhaust your wandering after a day. I think a short two day trip works (that’s what my boyfriend and I did). Come here to explore the tip of the desert and have a digital detox. That’s what I think it’s good for.

Have you accidentally detoxed from digital? Purposefully? Why? How was it?

Riad Zitoun – How Was It?

Close your eyes and picture a Moroccan riad. What do you see? Fabulous patterns? A gorgeous courtyard with a pool? A lavish rooftop overlooking the medina? Our stay at Riad Zitoun wasn’t the picture of lavish travel but it was quite nice.

Sit here, the fire is nice and warm when Marrakech gets super cold at night.

Our trip started off rocky. A thief named Josef lured us to walk with him (against my constant warning) to Riad Zitoun to show us his “shortcut.” He was the WORST! The absolute WORST. I don’t wish him death but I don’t mind if he loses a limb. haha. He walked us in circles to our place where he then requested 20 euros. I paid him 10 to buzz off and he kissed my hand. Whatever. We enter the riad.

Behind these doors is something special.

Since it’s the holiday season, there’s bit of tinsel tossed about. Keeping things festive. We chat with the hostess in French who tells us some insider tips to navigate Marrakech and hands us a map. We then collect the WiFi password from her (which is amazingly fast) and make our way to our room.

Cozy chic?

The room has two beds. One single and this beautiful double bed that we laid our heads on. Nothing excessive or ornate – just enough to feel like you were in Marrakech whilst staying cozy at night. We also were given a heater and loads of extra fuzzy blankets to hide under. For someone who always gets cold, those blankets were life savers. During the Winter, Marrakech really gets cold at night and the room got drafty. The blankets literally gave me life and the bedding was all around clean and nice.

Bathroom in Blue.

Our bathroom was a surprise. The tub wasn’t a tub. It was like a basin for your feet with a shower head. It worked though. It was interesting. It’s hard to keep the water all in the tub though when using the shower head. There are no curtains so you are exposed and the water splashes around – especially if you are tall. The towels are also basic. Nothing plush but hey, they dry you. The bathroom also comes with small hand soap and plenty of toilet roll.

We tired.

How does this face look?

They clean the bins every night but no new bedding and I couldn’t quite tell if we got new towels but I think we did.

Warm Moroccan colors.

At the very top of the riad is a terrace. You can sit up there to catch the sun at the top of the day or just lounge away drinking Moroccan mint tea.

I’m loving the accents and decor.

There are little loungers and sofas covered in beautiful bright prints. Drapes are also all around the space to protect you from the wind should it be a cool day. I say take advantage of the terrace. It overlooks the ancient medina and you can hear the prayer call in the early morning.

Free breakfast!

The idea of free breakfast always excites me so I was glad we had it included with our accommodations. The setup was so cute and the colorful little dishes were so nice. They concealed Moroccan breakfast essentials like honey, jam, butter and more.

I still don’t know what this is.

We were served crepe like treats and cornmeal type of biscuits. We spread the jams and honey on it and they were quite tasty. I’d say a 3 out of 5. I was surprised to discover that a Moroccan breakfast never included fruit or meat, just carbs. That and mint tea. I will say the breakfast was nice as you could literally eat it when you woke up. No need to rush at 8 AM to collect on the free food and you could have an intimate breakfast by yourself – no need to sit with other people if you’re antisocial.

What a cute stairwell no? So beautiful.

The hallways had character. I liked the patterns and colors in the space. That said, the stairwells did have low ceilings so again, if you are tall, watch your head.

Yay for warmth!

My eyes rarely stay open for photos.

All in all though, Riad Zitoun was a solid 3.5 out of 5 stay. The rooms were a 3.5, the food was a 3 and the helpfulness and ambiance was a 4. Now, it’s no La Mamounia but you get a lot of convenience from this location. It’s comfortable, quiet and provides you with extras like excursion packages, airport pickup and just a friendly atmosphere.

If you need a place to stay and want to be near the ancient medina, then Riad Zitoun is the perfect fit. If you require luxe or a pool in your riad, then this isn’t the place.

Would you stay here? If you’ve been to Marrakech, where did you stay?