GUIDES

 Occasionally people write and ask if I can suggest a guide, and in my travels I have met several who I think are excellent.  Their specialties and contact information are listed below.

General Guides and Driver

All the guides speak excellent English.

Houssein Chaal leads tours for university alumni groups and others like the Smithsonian Institution.  He takes groups of tourists around Morocco, is available to drive and lead individuals too, and has many contacts in each city.  His cell phone from the US is 011 212 61 16 07 30, his fax 011 212 44 43 15 10, and his email is Chaal_Houssein@usa.net

Ismail Bourrakadi works with alumni groups on educational tours and also on birding and photo tours, and is familiar with all of Morocco.  He does individual tours in which he drives a rental car on the route you choose.  His cell phone is 011 212 61 25 17 12 and his fax is 011 212 44 38 12 30. Ismail's email is ismailtour@yahoo.fr but phone is more reliable.

Said Temsamani is a guide for the likes of Maupintour and university alumni groups.  He is very efficient and well organized, and manages to locate and stop at a “necessary”, no matter how rural the area.  His phone from the US is 011 212 88 95 49 81 and his cell phone is 011 212 61 17 80 10.

Hamid Idalihaddou is one of those rare entities: an excellent driver, and in addition he is a lovely, gentle man. He will pick you up at the Casablanca airport (or another) and take you to your hotel, or drive you around the country in his spacious Mercedes taxi. My husband and I use him a lot. The one drawback for some people is that he only speaks Arabic and basic French but no English.  However he has a son who speaks English and can accompany him for no extra charge. His cell phone from the US is 011 212 61 74 11 29.

Mountain Guides

Mohamed Id Hammou is a Berber guide with extensive training and experience in the mountains.  He does hikes, including on skis, plus riding mountain bikes, or desert treks with camels.  My daughter and I took a 5-day trek in the High Atlas Mountains as chaperones for the Rabat American School, and it was wonderful, staying in mountain homes.  I hadn’t hiked in ages and was worried about my endurance, but it was fine.  Those mountains feature some of the world’s best remaining trails for unspoiled trekking, with impressive views and passages through cool irrigated valleys of walnut and fruit groves.  You can email him with what you’d like to do, and he’ll answer with a price.  He’s based out of Marrakesh but will meet you anywhere, including the main international airport in Casablanca.  He speaks English and French in addition to Berber and Arabic, and has guide certification from France and Morocco.  Mohammed's cell phone is 011 212 61 34 27 12, his email is omountain@hotmail.com, and his web site is www.hikemorocco.com.

Back to Marrakesh Express Travel Page