DESTINATIONS — NORTH AFRICA
Sister company Urban
Adventures extends this philosophy to Egyptian capital Cairo. Its cuisine isn’t as well known as Morocco’s, but the four-hour Home-Cooked Cairo excursion not only teaches guests how to make rice dish kushari, lentil soup, stuffed vegetables and moussaka, but also brings them into a family home for an unbeatable insight into local life (£30).
course built in North Africa, at The Cascades Golf and Country Club. The par-72 course, also a Gary Player design, is open to guests of any Soma Bay hotel. Hayes & Jarvis suggests staying at the Kempinski, so golf widows can make the most of other sports facilities – including tennis, squash and a dive centre – or sit back and relax in the spa.
l COOKING For every person who wants a break from cooking every night, there’s another who relishes the chance to learn about local flavours at their leisure, and with its rich and varied cuisine, Morocco is ideal for the latter camp. There are plenty of home-based lessons such as Do Something Different’s tajine cookery class in Marrakech (from £38), which starts with shopping for ingredients in the souks before getting to grips with the cooking in a family riad. However, serious chefs should
make a beeline for the best cooking school in the city, at boutique hotel La Maison Arabe, where guests can learn to make samosa-style pastry briouat or sweet-and-savoury meat pie pastilla, as well as the classic couscous and tajine. These specialities feature on
Intrepid Travel’s comprehensive 10-day tour, the Real Food Adventure to Morocco, which really gets under the skin of local cuisine, from ingredients in the spice markets and souks, to the final dishes, complete with wines made in Meknes and a tasting trail around Fes medina. Land-only prices start at £725.
l ANCIENT HISTORY These lands are teeming with the ruins left behind by ancient civilisations, so anyone with even a passing interest in archaeology can’t fail to be awestruck here, whether it’s by the third-largest amphitheatre in the world at El Djem, or the mind-blowingly ancient pyramids and Sphinx at Giza. The best place for history buffs has to be a Nile cruise, where they can wake up each morning to a new and even more exciting ancient site, from the Valley of the Kings and the Colossi of Memnon, to the Temple of Karnak at Luxor and Philae Temple at Aswan. The 10-day Jewel of the Nile is On the Go Tours’ most popular Egypt option. Cruise-only prices start at £899. Discover Egypt offers seven-night cruises in the company of an Egyptologist, so guests can learn about the ancient
sites in depth. Prices start at £799, including flights.
l PHOTOGRAPHY Nile cruises aren’t just about history: if selling a tour on the strength of its ancient sites isn’t enough to convince clients, try another tack. Budding photographers will find capturing these ancient sites easier with fewer people around, so it’s worth suggesting they visit now before the crowds start to ramp up again – and given the resurgence of Nile cruise product, that’s only a matter of time. Hayes & Jarvis offers a seven-night cruise between Luxor and Aswan, with a private Egyptologist and private car transfers, so photographers
can take as long as they need to
capture just the right shot. Prices start at £995, including flights and
full-board accommodation. The colourful souks of Morocco
are also prime fodder for photographers, especially if they get beyond the obvious sights in Marrakech. Riviera Travel has an eight-day Imperial Cities of Morocco tour, which visits Fes, Casablanca and Marrakech. Prices start at £799, including flights.
l SURFING Unless they live in Newquay and don’t mind the cold, chances are surfers will have to jet abroad to practise their skills. And as appealing as the golden shores of Byron Bay or California might be, Morocco’s Atlantic coast is a lot closer and cheaper to reach. Visitors to Essaouira or Agadir
Karnak Temple
won’t be short of surf schools down on the beach. But rather than take their chances on arrival when, why not pre-book the Surf School at Paradis Plage Surf Yoga & Spa Resort in Taghazout, just north of Agadir? Classic Collection Holidays can bag spots on its two or five-day surfing packages, which start at £45 and £110 respectively, with
Red Sea Holidays offers
seven nights’ half-board at the Royal Azur Thalasso Golf Hotel in Hammamet from £519. The price includes flights, transfers, green fee discount and shuttle transfer, for May departures.
redseaholidays.co.uk
SAMPLE PRODUCT
Four nights at La Maison
Arabe in Marrakech starts at £525 with Prestige Holidays. The price includes Gatwick flights, B&B accommodation, private transfers and a
half-day cookery course, for departures on July 6.
prestigeholidays.co.uk
Hayes & Jarvis offers seven nights’ B&B at the Kempinski Hotel Soma Bay in Egypt from £829. The prices includes flights with Turkish Airlines
from Gatwick and transfers, for departures on September 4.
hayesandjarvis.com
90 minutes’ tuition a day plus board and wetsuit hire. Better still, non-surfing spouses
can sign up for the two or five-day yoga packages (£40 and £80), or pre-book their green fees and course transfers to Taghazout Golf (from £105 for two rounds). So there’s no chance of boredom setting in. TW
23 April 2015 —
travelweekly.co.uk • 65
TOP TIP
Keen cyclists can see Morocco on two
wheels with Exodus’s best-selling bike trips, Atlas Descent and Cycle Morocco’s Great South
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