Off topic: Marrakech - bearable or too hot in July? Thread poster: Madeleine MacRae Klintebo
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We're thinking about going to Marrakech mid-July, but I'm concerned about how bearable the temperature will be.
The plan is to stay in a resort hotel about 15 minutes from Marrakech. As the hotel is all-inclusive, and with a large pool, we'll probably spend most days there and visit the city late afternoons and evenings. Is that feasible or will it be too hot to move at all?
Any advice on what to do once there is appreciated as it's 30 years since I last visited.
| | | | Mehdi Caps 
Local time: 14:37
English to French
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Too hot to move during the day, especially if you have not eaten enough: you could faint.
I lived in that city in the early 1990s. The average temperature in July-August is about 37°C, but that means it can be up to 45... in the shadow. And like I said, 'Marrakech, it is 40 degrees in the shadow, but there is no shadow!' When there is some wind, it is like having a hair dryer just in front of your face.
We generally went out at night only, but it is night early (around... See more Too hot to move during the day, especially if you have not eaten enough: you could faint.
I lived in that city in the early 1990s. The average temperature in July-August is about 37°C, but that means it can be up to 45... in the shadow. And like I said, 'Marrakech, it is 40 degrees in the shadow, but there is no shadow!' When there is some wind, it is like having a hair dryer just in front of your face.
We generally went out at night only, but it is night early (around 7:40 PM in mid-July). During the day, make short walks under the sun if you need to go from a cool place to another cool place. Move slowly, be well dressed. Being half naked is the worst thing to do: you are not protected, you are sweating in thin clothes and they get all crumpled, it can offend some people's sense of modesty, and if people do not mind brushing against others in the street, they do mind being touched by other people's sweat.
The unspoken rule : men must wear trousers and a shirt with short sleeves (ideally cut just above the elbow) ; women must cover their legs (almost) entirely, but can show their arms up to their shoulder, provided there is not a big opening on the side showing more bra than necessary. Women with short skirts = whores and men with short shorts or showing their armpits = pigs. That was the general opinion when I was there, and for the women, it was true: only prostitutes and foreign women (more or less the same thing, for them) dared wearing short skirts, then. It may have changed.
To say hello, men kiss men (or shake hands if they do not know each other, of course) and women kiss women. Men and women shake hands. In doubt, always shake hands, except if you are meeting an old woman (it is better to kiss her hand, or to take it gently and bow, or to simply bow).
I am far from the topic, I am afraid. ▲ Collapse
| | | | | indoors or in the pool during the hot hours | Jun 20, 2011 |
I heard 45-47°C last year in Marrakesh. Really horrible when there is this hot air coming from the Sahara (chergui).
In the early morning when heat is bearable (say before 9am), tourist places are still shut, but there is less people if you want to wander around the city walls or the old town.
I recall it gets dark at around 9.00pm. No safety issue there in major tourist areas.
In the hot hours, the Majorelle Gardens are slightly refreshing, with a lot of shade, plants ... See more I heard 45-47°C last year in Marrakesh. Really horrible when there is this hot air coming from the Sahara (chergui).
In the early morning when heat is bearable (say before 9am), tourist places are still shut, but there is less people if you want to wander around the city walls or the old town.
I recall it gets dark at around 9.00pm. No safety issue there in major tourist areas.
In the hot hours, the Majorelle Gardens are slightly refreshing, with a lot of shade, plants and fountains and ponds. Other sites of interest that may be cooler are various palaces or Saâd tombs, which are mostly indoors and less tiring than walking about the medina or the Jmaa el Fna square in the afternoon.
If you rent a car, the Atlas mountains are not so far away, with nice views and cooler air.
The dress code and behaviour described by Mehdi is still up-to-date, although some tourists seem to forget they're not in Ibiza. Any lack of fabric between you and the sun is a bad idea, unless your skin is already used to being exposed to Australian-like sun.
When we lived in Casablanca (until last year), we used to go to Marrakesh every so often for the cleaner air, but in the country. The tourist spots can feel oppressive once the sense of novelty and exploration has faded.
Drink water often. Or green tea. Wear a hat and walk slowly. Tourists are kown for walking quickly. Besides their outfit, it's a way to spot them!
Philippe ▲ Collapse
| | | | matt robinson
Spain
Local time: 13:37
Member (2010)
Spanish to English
The people who live there bear it. How hot do you like your holidays?
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Mehdi Caps
Local time: 14:37
English to French
+ ...
The people who live there do not bear it. When I said, 'we generally went out at night only', I meant my Moroccan friends and I. I was describing the life of the ordinary people, in my previous post.
There are mostly tourists during the day in the streets in July and August, because only tourists are crazy enough to walk all day outside: the locals are at home or at work. And many go up North in summer to visit family in Casablanca and Rabat, for instance; the contrary happens in wi... See more The people who live there do not bear it. When I said, 'we generally went out at night only', I meant my Moroccan friends and I. I was describing the life of the ordinary people, in my previous post.
There are mostly tourists during the day in the streets in July and August, because only tourists are crazy enough to walk all day outside: the locals are at home or at work. And many go up North in summer to visit family in Casablanca and Rabat, for instance; the contrary happens in winter. ▲ Collapse
| | | | matt robinson
Spain
Local time: 13:37
Member (2010)
Spanish to English
I didn't mean to imply that it was possible to do things in the daytime. If you go to a hot place then you must prepare to become more nocturnal, but that doesn't rule it out as a holiday destination.
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