Finding a Morocco Tour at an Affordable Price. Live Q&A

This is an excerpt of the Live Q&A recording of Friday, May 8, "Finding a Morocco Tour at an Affordable Price."

Watch the full episode on our YouTube channel for even more details and tourist ideas, and particularly for the visuals that accompany our conversation. Maps, photos and more await you there!

Finding Morocco Private-Style Tours at an Affordable Price (YouTube)

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If you enjoy the convenience and security of group tours, but find large coach tours of 50 people a little less appealing, this live session replay is for you.

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Transcript

[00:00:00] 

TED: All right, how are you guys doing today?

AZDEAN: Excellent.

TED: Well, this is our new live stream time here, uh, Friday afternoons. We're going to try to catch a few more people. Maybe a little more useful practical time, of course, as you're heading home or maybe home for the day, the end of the day. So. let's see here today. well, we've been pitching this, people watching, they may have seen our emails and so on that, I [00:01:00] know you guys have been developing this notion of, uh, the feel of a private tour, Well, we all know private tours. I mean, it's kind of the top of the top.

If, if you can afford it and everything, that's great, but it is cost a bit more. It's a little more intense. And if you want something that's more, a little bit more in your price range, but still gives a lot of those similar features, you guys have come up with. A great, let's say compromise, a great another option for that too. So that's what we're going to talk about today. So what is it that you are now offering to people to get them to Morocco? Hopefully this year in 2024.

AZDEAN: Me and Sam have been working on group tours for a while, and we looked into group tours, small, medium, and large group tours, and we realized that there's a lot of opportunities for us. Uh, in group tools, but we really, really like the small group size tools between 8 to 12, uh, because it's a little different.

Then, um, it saves you a little bit of money comparing it to [00:02:00] the, um, the private tools. Obviously, so it still has that intimate feeling. You still feel like, you know, it's just you. Um, there's a lot of attention that it's being paid to you specifically versus a large group of people And then you also benefit from staying out of yards versus hotels then also in terms of price You're saving an average of nine hundred dollars and above probably An average of nine hundred to eleven twelve hundred dollars per person You Tour trip. Yes.

SAM: yeah, that's right, yes. we collected feedback from our audience. Past clients, especially as we are working in the tourism for years, so the people don't like large group tours. This is why we decided to limit it to maximum of 12, like that they experience Morocco as like in, they are in a private tour.

So, uh, yeah, even because [00:03:00] there is like, there will be a tour leader, there will be like a driver. So when, when, when you experience something, let's say for example, cooking class. So you will have a same place talking to each other. You listen to your guide, what he's saying versus when you are like in a bus, uh, 48 person, for example, in a large group, you're just wasting your time.

AZDEAN: Yeah, the experience is different.

TED: spent a lot of time waiting.

SAM: Yeah.

TED: well, we're going to get in lots of details and logistics here. What's included in a typical tour? I know they all different itineraries, but yeah, generally speaking, what's included is kind of a standard features of, of a short, a small group tour.

SAM: In all our tours, we have like, uh, 7 support. from our, office in Morocco, in, in Marrakech based, you have, your own driver and car assigned to you. You have your own manager, which is me and, and stuff in the office as well. You have your tour leader. Which will be with you 24 7 as well to assist you with, uh, [00:04:00] with everything, check in, checkout, the entrance fees, the monuments, uh, everything, especially with the local guides, with your shopping as well during your experiences.

And we have, uh, we have like breakfast included in your accommodations in your Riyadh or hotels. Depends on the place where you are staying. You have like water, water and dry fruits in, in vehicle. During the tour, you have like airport pick up and drop off included, departure and arrival included.

TED: That's good.

SAM: You have one lunch in Fez included.

it's a southern part tour of Morocco, you have like all dinners and breakfasts included as well. We have dinner in Marrakech included. Where, when we meet, our staff here, which is me or one of our staff in the office. 

AZDEAN: Okay. I just want to, just to add to what Sam has just said. he talked a little bit about the private tours, but it's, it's also the, the, the small group tour. So you'd get a, a tour leader [00:05:00] and the difference. Yeah. And the, the, you know, you get a tour leader because that person stays with you in the minibus.

And, uh, then you get local guides. And some people, they may not know the difference between tour leader versus a local guide. The tour leader legally cannot explain to you the monuments and things each city. It's illegal for them, they get a ticket. So that's the reason we get local guides. And they're also different from a national guide.

You can get a national guide, That means that you, you don't need the tour leader anymore and you do not need the local guides. but we do prefer tour leaders, um, because of their experience, because of, he's like your personal, concierge, if you would. So he takes care of everything that you need, from A to Z.

And like Sam said, we, we have an office in the U. S. and then we have Uh, an office in Morocco. So you have access to, to, to us 24 7. And we understand that emergencies sometimes happen, you know, late at night and stuff like that. And you may need to go to the doctor, you may need to go to the pharmacy. Uh, so we're [00:06:00] available for you just in case that happens.

Uh, we don't say, Hey, you have access to your car and driver between 8:00 AM and 8:00 PM. we keep it open. And that's the right way to do it. So just to add a little bit of, elevate the experience.

SAM: And we have also hotel taxes included, especially there's many people that don't know about the hotel or riad taxes, in Morocco. It's included in the tour, in the tour of our small group tours.

TED: Yeah,

and let's talk a bit about two things, the transport and the accommodation. So what's the transportation like?

AZDEAN: that's a really good question. Uh, when we talk about 8 to 12, small group, we, we talk about a Mercedes Sprinter, which is up to 17 passengers. So you have plenty of room for everybody to be comfortable and also their luggage. and let's say if we have a private tour that it's smaller, we always, in your vehicle, you'll always have more than enough room for everybody.

So if it's 12 people, then you have the driver, you have, uh, the local guide, then you have the tour leader, you still have some seats empty. So, that's how we do it in [00:07:00] terms of. The transportation and in regards to the accommodations just like what Sam has said earlier We do use the riads versus the hotels only place that we don't use the riads in Casablanca because they don't have any but anywhere else we utilize the riads because of the experience 

TED: Yeah.

SAM: Yeah, yeah, that's right. Because, a riad is something authentic to, to, to Morocco. This is why we want our brothers, our guests to experience this and live this authentic experience when they are staying in the riad.

TED: Oh, it makes all the difference. It really, really does. And you only get it with small enough people. I mean, a private tour or your family or a small group tour, if you're with a group of, I'm sure, like, what would be the limit? Uh, if you were on a tour with 20 people or something, that's probably too many to stay in a riad, right?

Even 

AZDEAN: Yeah. 

TED: So,

AZDEAN: Yeah, the riads, just keep in mind some as small as several rooms because they are privately owned. Just, you know, mom and [00:08:00] dad owns them and that's what makes them really special is, they're not too big. So we're going to get into some of the fun stuff here, which is like the things people are going to see and the inclusions and the itinerary basically of each day. So I got my map here, but maybe what we'll do is if I switch over to the website, so let's see here, there we are.

TED: if for starters, people want to, you know, find out some more information on their own, um, Let me bring this back here, and you can see the drop down menu, Small Group Tours, that's where we want to point people towards. Now here you've got five different options. So this is part of how this works, again, it's a bit of a compromise, it's not so much a private tour, you can request every little stop, but it's a bit of that compromise where there are these itineraries, and they still cover.

Depending which tour you take, you know, a lot of the major sites and the major routes and itinerary. So I'm sure, well, you can tell already there's some differences between each of these, you know, you go for 15, 12 [00:09:00] days, 10 days, eight days here is either the South and then eight days in Imperial City tour, I guess a bit of North and South.

So what do you think? Should we kind of skim through each one

AZDEAN: yes, please. Yes.

TED: and take a look? Yeah. Eight Days Imperial Cities Tour. This is a great picture. This is when you were with, uh, Khalil, is

SAM: Khalil, Khalil, yeah, the local guy in Casablanca, right.

TED: mosque there in Casablanca. We did a great episode, I think it was back in December of last year, when this was, this is the picture of your actual recording with him.

the great walking tour around the, the mosque. It was cool. So of course that's included on this tour. you get a bit of a description here of what's involved. Some of the trip highlights. 

AZDEAN: Yeah, this is really important.

TED: here, Rabat, Chefchaouen.

SAM: That's right, the highlights of the tour, yes,

AZDEAN: what's included? What's included is really, really important. So, uh, I encourage everybody when booking, just look at that, see what's included because it's a lot of valuable information in [00:10:00] there. and then obviously what's not included. Yes.

TED: this is why it's great to have the tour guide with you, or even the driver, perhaps, but to get recommendations of where to go for meals when you're on your own for lunches and some of these dinners, right? And then at least have a bit of direction there if you're looking for advice.

Yeah.

SAM: Yeah, that's right. Because there is some places where the dinners are not included. So, so we give you advices, but you still need the tour leader to take you there. Because sometimes you finish dinner late, like after midnight, for example. So this is why you should have like a tour leader to accompany you to your accommodation.

AZDEAN: Yes. And also if needed, we make reservations for you, for example, because some restaurants They really need a reservation. For example, Rick's Cafe in Casablanca We need to make those reservations for you. And again, you know, we'll do it ahead of time Plenty of time to make a reservation for you. So The other thing that I want to talk [00:11:00] about is when you look at, for example, the story, look at the price, 21.

95. The 21. 95, it's all in. Everything is included on your fees, taxes, and everything. And then what do you need to keep in mind? That price really fluctuates depending on the season. Let's say you're booking for July or August. The price is going to drop down. if you're booking for a high season, for example, and you can see the high season, then the price really increases.

but the system it's set up in a way. It may show you that number, but then afterwards it's going to increase. And you may think that, you know, there's something is wrong, but it's not wrong. It just, according to the seasons, that's why the price fluctuates. and also,

TED: That's low

AZDEAN: yes. Yes, that's the regular price.

And then the system calculates if it's a regular season, then the price stays the same. If it's summertime, the price drops. If it's a high season, then the price adjusts automatically. also, I want to mention that we're doing, some special on all [00:12:00] small group tours. we have it on the website in banner, 15 percent off.

All the small tools. it's right there to the right hand side. it's limited time offer. It cannot be combined with any other offer. It doesn't have any cash value. as well. but, you can make it a booking for 2024. You can make it a booking for 2025. We're not limiting it at that.

So it's, it's pretty open. people really need to take advantage of that. we're not putting a lot of restrictions. Like you have to book between this date and this date, and you have to take the tour between this date or this date. So we're leaving it. You can take the, you can take the tour all the way to December 31st, 2025.

TED: Yeah. and what's the latest they can book for a tour? He says here 45 days. So what's the actual cutoff to book a tour?

AZDEAN: Well, this is a really good question, but I would like to hear what Sam has to say that I can, I can chip in because, this is a

SAM: we have

AZDEAN: question, Ted.

SAM: Yes, in most of the tours we have like 60 days to 90 [00:13:00] days

cut off. before, before that date, for example, if you want to go, let's see, we are in May. So if you want to go, in September, you have to book it, before July. Else, you will find that this tour is not available.

And we have the departure warranted every day, so every day, even if you are two people, you can go, you can still go in a, in, in, yeah, in a, in a small group too, yes. It's a guaranteed departure.

TED: Guaranteed. Yeah. Okay.

AZDEAN: We have some bookings already for, for September 2025. So there's, you know, you can book as early as, as you can. And, um, I'll give you just, just another example.

Um, I know we did this back in, um, I think it was Thanksgiving, Black Friday. We had some people, two ladies, actually, they wanted to go to Morocco, but, they needed more time to think about it. So when we did that promotion, we let them know. So we let everybody know how we're doing this promotion.

and then they took advantage of it and they got really, really, really excited. Good value for the private soul. [00:14:00] So we'll do the same thing for you. If you miss it We'll communicate it to you and say hey, by the way, You know Just want to let you know that when we're doing this promotion You may want to take advantage of it and it's totally up to you.

TED: Yep.

SAM: That's right. Yes. and, for the available options, it's very important

to our clients to read this, because most of the agencies, they just hide these things from, travelers during the booking. So we mentioned everything here, just to be honest and clear so people can see, local experiences, the unique experiences we have, for example, and we still have other unique experiences when you are traveling with us in Morocco.

And like for single room occupancy, This is the price, for the hot air balloon, for example, because there is some other agencies, when people want, the airport departure, They just, price it half price of the tour,

AZDEAN: Yeah

SAM: which is not normal, which is not reasonable at all.

So we have everything sit here. So our clients, when you want to book, you have [00:15:00] everything clear in front of you.

AZDEAN: we actually have an episode Takeoff about what Sam just mentioned, and it's one of the scams, it's going to be part two of the scam that we have. I'm not sure when we're going to publish that one, but, a lot of companies when they do is, it's new country, new experience, everything is new to you.

You're not familiar with, with the land, with the people, with the system and everything. so they'll pick you up, for example, at Casablanca, but then the departure, they'll drop you off in Marrakech. But then, you need to go back to Casablanca to catch your flight, so they'll book the transportation a la carte, it's not included on your tour, then, you know, what Sam was mentioning, they'll sell you a tour for 10 days for 800, I don't know how they do it, but then, just that transportation, they'll charge you 300.

So beware of what you're getting, with us. we're very transparent. when we say this is what's in the tour, it costs 2 and 100, then it costs 2 and 100. we're not going to do tours that cost 500. And when you sneeze, we're going to charge you for it. we've had people, you will hear the stories.

We have plenty, plenty of [00:16:00] stories. you know, if you want the air conditioning turned on in the car, you're going to pay for it. And I mean, some, some insane stories coming up with the, with the two scam episodes that we have lined up for you guys. It's gonna be incredible. So you see you this is what you get what's included.

really what's included I've seen people having, you know, charging the entrance fees to to Marjolein Garden 275 per person which is outrageous. It doesn't cost that much. mean,

SAM: yeah,

AZDEAN: in and have a good time and come back out. So 

SAM: I just want to want to mention, for example, if you see our prices here, uh, experience is the same price. If you look everywhere on Google or on the Internet, you will find this same price. So we are hiding anything from our travelers.

TED: And are these just examples? Like, there's other options, other activities they can add on to, depending on the tour, maybe?

AZDEAN: Yes. Yeah, of course. We have some already [00:17:00] included. And then these are just extra. I'll give you an example. we have a group of 12 people. Let's say, tomorrow they have a half day in the morning, the first half day. Then, the second half, there's nothing. They can choose to take the rest of it off.

If they decide to do something else, yes, we can do it for them and we can book it for them. Definitely. but most of everything that they need, we have already included. So, even with nothing addition, they'll still have an amazing experience.

TED: Yeah, that's it. Yeah.

SAM: and we have some typical, a unique, lunches with local families, which is not there, for example, already included. This is why I told you, when you come, when you travel with us, there is some unique and special things that we do for our travelers.

AZDEAN: Nobody else does.

TED: that's just it. It's the surprises and I, well, It's different for every tour and every person. And then you get to know people and what their interests are and you kind of point them in certain directions. Right. But that's, that's another great fun thing is a surprise. Oh, [00:18:00] I didn't expect that to happen today, you

AZDEAN: I know. I Yeah.

TED: Yeah, we got something special for you,

AZDEAN: Yes. And you know, for us, you know, it makes us really feel good because that's what we really want. We want everybody to have an amazing experience. And it's a different experience, versus going with somebody else or a different company or, or their own, for example.

Yes. And the other thing that I wanna mention when we talk about groups, there's two different types of groups.

For example, it can be a family of. 8 or a family of 12 or a church, you know, um, 12 people within the same group. It's still called a group, but it's private. So when you say the itinerary is set, this one we can play with. It becomes kind of a small group with a private itinerary. 

SAM: right. Something else that I want to add, So the accommodations and experiences, local guides, we picked them and all the places we visited. Especially last summer, we did a tour of Morocco. So we selected the [00:19:00] accommodation.

The places we, we, we picked is the places we already experienced and the local guides, we know them and we have been there. And we experience, for spa, restaurants, yachts, hotels, for example, hot air balloon.

So we know, we know, we know everybody we deal with.

TED: Yeah.

AZDEAN: And by the way, we pay. We don't get anything for free.

SAM: Of course, of 

AZDEAN: Yes.

TED: If people want that, if they're asking for some kind of, you know, differences or exceptions or whatever it is, how do they do that? Did they just give you a call?

AZDEAN: Yeah, they just give us a call. That's the best, the best way to do it, you know, what are we trying to do and get from all of this is to set up an appointment because, um, you're going to have tons of questions, the best thing to do is just set up an appointment and we'll take care of it, whether it's a private tour, whether it's a group tour, we'll get you the information.

And if we can't, give us an opportunity, we'll find out for you and get back with you. 

TED: So let's look at some more tours. This again, is [00:20:00] the fun part. So when you're in the pop up menu here, uh, we looked at the Imperial Cities tour. Let's look at Jewels of the South. There you guys are.

my impression would be that this is, focusing on just the South of Morocco. So let's look into the itinerary or we'll see what all the stops are, but that's kind of the first impression when you look at the jewels of the South.

AZDEAN: Yes, that is correct. Yes.

TED: So we can see here. I mean, there's lots of Marrakech for sure, but then you are heading south, that kind of Southeast, Ait Benhaddou and over through the, the gorge here. We did some podcast episodes about that when you guys did your tour and you're talking with, uh, with this guy who owned the riad there, remember?

um, and then you made it to Merzouga and of course the

AZDEAN: Yeah, that's that's Sam's cousin, right? Yeah,

TED: Oh, okay. We got

AZDEAN: that's his cousin. Yes That's his grandma's house.

TED: Oh,

SAM: Yeah. My, yeah, it was my grandma's house. 

AZDEAN: we did another episode with the tour leader Hamou Hamou is just beyond incredible. He's just amazing amazing Super [00:21:00] nice guy. And then we did one inside the, the, the gorge, uh, which that

SAM: Todra Gorges. Yeah. Todra, Todra Gorges. Yes.

AZDEAN: It was very nice. And, uh, we met some, some really nice people, some, you know, some, uh, it was a lot of fun, a lot of fun, a lot of memories. Yes.

SAM: Yeah. So, uh, what, what makes this tour different from the others, for example, because when, when we hit Southern part of Morocco, there is now like local restaurants. So most of the, of the time you have your dinner in your accommodation. So starting from Warzazat, to Dadisfali, to Todra Gorges, to Merzouga, and back to Draa Valley, to Eyt Ibn Haddou.

For example, there is no local restaurant, so all the meals, as I say, dinners are included with the breakfasts in your riad. And you have breakfast at your accommodation. They have like restaurants, special for dinners, in each accommodation.

AZDEAN: That's really good. Also, I want to [00:22:00] mention, we have five tours. We can create more, we can do more, but. All of them ultimately are the same. So, and you can see we did eight days twice and we did eight days for the North and eight days for the South. Um, you know, throughout our podcast, we always talk about if it's your first time, do the North part of Morocco, and that's why we split them.

Eight days to the north, plenty of time to see everything and experience it without rushing anything. Then eight days in the south and they are totally different. Then when you look at the, you know, uh, Morocco unplugged, the essence of Morocco, the majestic Morocco, those are 10, days. It's the same experience in just extended days, extended stays, extended a little bit more experiences, but you'll still get see it.

But it's really, really, really important for us to have that split. We don't want to do just the north by or just the south by itself. We had to separate them. Now, the south, for me, um, you know, I am from [00:23:00] the south. You know, Sam is from the south. Sam is from Timreir, which is the biggest village in Morocco.

Um, and we have done the south tour of Morocco, and things that we have seen, things that we have experienced, I swear to you, and you know this, Ted, not a of people get to experience it. So that's, that's what really makes us special. is the networks that we have, the access to things that nobody else has access to, uh, access to the inaccessible, and that's what makes the experience very, very, very unique.

Um, and the South, you know, on a personal level, we feel that it's a little bit neglected, but that's, it's just as important as the North. Um, it will, it will change your life. It will definitely, uh, change your life. 

TED: Yeah, it's different. It's a lot more remote. It's more rugged. You know, you're right. You're in the desert or you're close to it. It's a different feel.

SAM: remember the last, our last family, McDonald's, they said they want to plans last minute [00:24:00] a lorry. And we did it. It's it's for us. It's okay. This is why we are here. So we are here for, for you, priority is you, is our travelers.

So we make it happen. And they say that I want to change, I don't want to stay, for example, in this place. And e even if they are already in the tour and make it happen, that we change them and we add another night in somewhere. So this is, what makes us unique than the other two operators,

AZDEAN: and we had so much fun hosting them and the funny part, you know, they thanks to this It's like I didn't think you were gonna make those changes happen, but we did so

TED: Mm

AZDEAN: so Sam does an amazing job, you know staying on top of the tools When, when the guests are in Morocco and we communicate daily, uh, on a group and me and him all the time.

So I may, you may not see me, uh, you send a text or reply to a text, but, um, I watch everything. I'm aware of everything. We overcommunicate, we overshare. Um, [00:25:00] and you know, so that's what makes us really, really different is the communication part is the attention to details. So, and also we're very grateful for the opportunities.

Private tour is, is definitely the way to experience Morocco, if you can. Um, if you cannot, the small group tour has its benefits as well, especially saving the money, also for a lot of solo travelers, for female travelers. You're still traveling in a group, but you still have that sense of individuality.

You, you know, you feel, okay, I'm safe, I'm good, but I feel like I'm just doing this on my own, but I have, you know, a group of people next to me. So. Um, it adds a little bit of safety and security.

SAM: That's right, yeah. That's right.

TED: just to give a sense then, this is the general area, at least, we don't have the exact itinerary traced out on the map, but you can see Marrakech, and then you're heading out through the High Atlas Mountains here, Ouarzazate, and Merzouga's way over here, so when we talk about the Jewels of the South tour, this is [00:26:00] the general area, right, that people will be seeing.

SAM: right. right. Yes. From Marrakech, Ouarzazate we covered Ouarzazate, to Dadès Valley, Toudra Gorges, Erfoud, Merzouga, and back from Merzouga to throw the Zoraha Valley to Ouarzazate again, Aït Benhaddou, and then to Marrakech. Yeah.

AZDEAN: Okay. I want to say something. Thank you for putting in the map. Uh, this is a really, really good visual, Ted. The reason is, um, you know, again, um, I'm just going to jump out of the subject and come back up. We talk about scams. Um, when you go to Morocco, you know, in every street, maybe you'll, you'll see 50 people with banners.

They want to sell you tools, you know, come here. We'll take you to Melzouga, 150.

TED: that.

AZDEAN: you know, between Marrakech and Melzouga, that's a 10 hour drive. And it's one of the biggest, biggest scams that people have no idea. It's a three day or a four day to the desert and fast.

You know, you're just, you're just driving, you know, it just, you know, [00:27:00] you're not doing anything. So you can't go between Marrakech and Merzouga. It's a 10 hour straight drive. Um, then between Merzouga and Fes is

TED: you can tell it's not a straight line by any means.

AZDEAN: Yes. And then from Fes to Marrakech, depending if you go through the mountains, it's nine and a half hours.

So that's 30 hours just driving without. without a single break. So what are you going to see? How, you know, what type of experience are you expecting to get? You're not going to get anything. You just, you just, you know, you know, you get what you pay And at the end of the day, yeah, it's, it's the biggest scam.

Uh, And, you know, when we do it, we split it, you know, like, you know, um, Sam just said, you go through, you know, Ouarzazate, you go through the Atlas Mountains, you go through Aït Benhaddou, there's a lot of stops. Um, you know, through the Dadès Valley, you spend the night, or you spend the night in Eid al Adha, then you go to Merzouga.

Merzouga, you know, a lot of people, they just spend one night. Merzouga, we realized, it's worth more than just one night. Um, you know, and we learned this, you know, by going there, by, by [00:28:00] experiencing this. And, and also, we sent Eric. If you remember, during the summertime, um, and we sent him, I mean, and he was just, you know, I think it was him, his wife Ali, and, um, and his brother in law, um, and they were just, they were blown away by the experience.

They, they have never thought they could see something like that in Morocco. We sent them to, to spend some time with the nomads, and, you know, the tour leader was, was funny, was, you know, very playful, you know, a little bit silly, but, you know, he, he did an amazing job. And there's like, wow. I mean, that's, that's, that's what they described to me when we met when I went to Morocco in June of last year.

So we met, we sat down and we talked about that experience. It was just beyond incredible. They know that's something that can not get anywhere else. Then the other thing is with Sesha, when she went and she wanted just to go to Merzouga, that's what she wanted to do, just stay in the desert. And she [00:29:00] accomplished what she went to Morocco for.

So the experience that we give you, it's, you're making a lifetime memories. You know, it's, Morocco again and again, it's a bucket list country. Merzouga, you can spend one week in Merzouga and not do. One thing twice, you know, when we send you, we send you Saeed. Saeed remodeled his camp. So it's even better than how we left it in, in, in the summertime.

Now it has conditioning. You can so much stuff. It's, it's, yeah, it's, it's

SAM: food, the food was incredible. Yes.

AZDEAN: And that's, you know, I mean, look at me and, and you know, my connection with food. I mean, I don't miss any meal. You know, the food was one of the biggest surprises because he just, he didn't feel the profile and was like, Hey, uh, what's up with the food? It's so good. It's so delicious. But yet it's very different.

It's not what you expect in, in, in the middle of the desert. And it's like, well, I made it myself. And it's like, no way. I mean, he does, you know, he was [00:30:00] dancing. He was, you know, after dinner, uh, and the drums. I mean, the guy is just, just beyond incredible, super hospitable, amazing, amazing guy. And I think his camp just got certified by the tourism board.

SAM: Azad Luxury Camp. Yes.

TED: right.

AZDEAN: yeah, so

TED: Do you remember which one? We don't have all the

SAM: Sahara Sky,

TED: in Her Sky, yeah, right.

AZDEAN: Yeah. There's the thing in Morocco. Everybody names the same thing. Sahara Sky Dash, Sahara Sky underscore Sahara Sky. But then again, everything,

TED: I found it here. Let me, uh,

AZDEAN: was organic. You know, that, and he has 

TED: this is what we're talking about.

AZDEAN: Yes.

TED: I'm on a better map here, so, Merzouga is down here, these are all the big sand dunes, and when I was zooming in before, you could see that the sand dunes are ringed with all these camps, essentially. And his, the one you went to, is up here, Sahara Sky

SAM: Sahara Sky. [00:31:00] Yes.

AZDEAN: And by the

TED: familiar, right?

AZDEAN: by the way, uh, just to, you know, with the, the Witcher, the episode, I mean, um, Season 3, uh, the, the little princess when she got lost in the Sahara, that's what she got lost, that's, we went, we were in that place, the exact same place when she was lost, yes, that's we did, where we did the, the quad bikes, yeah,

TED: right, right. 

SAM: There's many activities to do in Merzouga. As Azdean mentioned, it's Even three days, even four days, there is always some things and activities, extra activities do and to, and to, to experience in Merzouga. Yeah, fortunately, I want to add something to what Azdean just said about the, the, the guys, they're sitting in small group tours in the, on the square. The Jamef Nesquare in Marrakech, for example. And they told people that small group tours, for example, when you go to the Dis, for example, the first night they spend it in the Dis, and have to sleep with eight people in the same room, you want.[00:32:00] 

If you don't want, you have to pay extra, which is like another hundred fifty dollars. When you go to Mirzou Gassim, they stayed in a very, very, very dirty places, camps, old camps with tents. I don't know how they even stay there, and, uh, if you want a luxury camp, you have to pay another 300. So if you go on this trip, you're just going to have to pay, to pay, to pay, else you just, you want to just to Marrakech and just say, Oh my God, Morocco.

Morocco good and beautiful. You have just to choose the right operator to go

TED: sure, sure.

AZDEAN: so,

TED: All right, let's see what else you got here. So I think we get the gist of the, you know, the itinerary, if it's the imperial cities, you're talking like Casablanca, Rabat, you head north, up to Chefchaouen, Fès, Meknes, uh, Volubilis, down to Marrakech pretty much covers, the eight days. The eight days of the [00:33:00] South is as we saw there, it's exclusively in the South.

So these others, I guess, are going to expand on some of that, you know, and

AZDEAN: Those others, it's, it's a combination. The combination basically is both. So, um, if you have eight days, we recommend picking the north or the side. If it's the south, if it's your first time, go with the north. If it's your second or third time, go with the south. Well, if you have more time, this is, uh, you know, we recommend 10 days.

10 days should give you enough time to cover both. If you have a little extra time, 12 days, you'll do the same thing. We'll just add another city, another stop, and 15 days, uh, you know, not everybody does 15 days, but we do have some itineraries for 15 days, which is just, it's, it's, it's just incredible. And, and again, I want to, you know, give a lot of props to, to Sam when he creates these itineraries, when, when, you know, uh, it takes a long time to do, by the way, because there's, there's a lot of ins, you know, Things to take care of and back and forth.

So we [00:34:00] create itineraries that we would love to go into when we're going to Morocco. So, uh, and even the tour for us, when we went to the North side and the South side of Morocco, Sam created those itineraries for us. He set up all the appointments for the podcast. He did everything from A to Z. So, um, um, I'm very grateful for you and I cannot really, really, really thank you enough.

TED: Mm.

SAM: Yeah. I want to add something else. when you go to the south or the north, the north, eight days, and you still want to spend like three days or four days, for example, in Marrakesh.

TED: Mm.

SAM: Or in Fez or in Casablanca, you still, we still have like some unique experiences and some unique excursions or day trips that you can do in Marrakech, for example, like Essaouira, like Imlil valley or Atlas Mountains.

You can even spend a night in Agafey Desert, for example. And can do another, tour of Marrakech. There is plenty of unique experiences and activities that you can add after the group [00:35:00] leave, and you want, you still have like four days or three days in Marrakech, we suggest that contact us and we organize this special activities and 

TED: Sure. Yeah, that's great.

AZDEAN: those are add ons, uh, they are not included in our price, just, just to clarify,

SAM: Yeah.

TED: Right. Yeah. but that's just it. You're already there. You're so close if it's pretty straightforward to add a couple extra things or maybe even a couple extra days. And yeah.

AZDEAN: And also, a lot of people may not know, uh, for the golfers, for the people who like to surf, we have some amazing beaches surfing, Sabra is one of them, Dakra is one of them, there's, there's plenty of, you know, places where you can surf. And also golfing, there's, there's, uh, some, Incredible golf, courses in Morocco that in Marrakesh, whether in Fes, in Rabat, in Essaouira, and also, wineries, we, we have a winery in Essaouira, we have one in, in Meknes.

TED: Yeah.

AZDEAN: we recommend.

Essaouira, it's closer to Marrakech.

SAM: Yeah, there's one in Mazagan, one of the best in Mazagan, in [00:36:00] El Jadida, in Rabat, Everywhere in Morocco we have golf, it's amazing. Especially when it's snowing, for example in Canada, or in the everywhere, you can come to Morocco to enjoy Playing golf in Morocco because the weather is amazing the whole year.

So we don't have snow in Mar, especially and fast. For example, the big cities where there is golfs, so

TED: there's a Hamam, that's nice.

AZDEAN: Yes. Yeah. A lot of memories. Wow.



TED: Well, that's just it. I mean, you take a tour with you guys and I can attest. It's true. These are the types of experiences people get, right? it's a wonderful thing. It's, it's just the right size. And you know what I love about. The idea of a small group tour is that you're going to make new friends.

I mean, you could be with another couple of couples, right? Like maybe there's four or six of you in total, something like that. And after 24 hours, you're already starting to get to know each other. To share something like that with people, you know, from wherever else they are in the world or in the different parts of the country.

And you get to share that. That's a [00:37:00] pretty neat experience, too. Well,

SAM: is. Yeah. And we, we make sure every time that's each member of the group experienced and had a good time and experienced the

AZDEAN: Oh,

SAM: experienced the whole experience with the group.

AZDEAN: I just saw the comments. Laura.

SAM: Yeah, I saw, yeah. Laura and

AZDEAN: Laura and Christy. Oh my

SAM: Laura. Yeah. you, Laura. Thank you.

AZDEAN: Amazing. Oh my goodness, yeah. They're going in September. Oh my god, I can't wait. Yes. Yeah, this is fun. Yeah, this is fun. Oh my goodness. 

TED: Do you else you want to add?

AZDEAN: You know, I can't thank everybody enough, you know, uh, it takes really a really good team to do what we do and I'm very grateful for everybody. I really, really, appreciate you and your support and, you know, the ins and outs of everything that you guys do. You know, you, Ted, Sam, Hiba, The guys behind the scene, tons and tons of people. [00:38:00] that's what sets us apart, you know, we are, we are small. small family owned business. we are still unknown and we, we, we're working hard to be. and We are super grateful for all the opportunities for all the people that have traveled with us.

I know we changed your life and you changed ours as well. So it goes really, really, really both ways. and we're very grateful. So that's all I, I really want to say just, you know, super appreciative.

TED: Mm hmm.

SAM: tours or trips is a lifetime experience. And you have to do it the right way, either in group tours or private tours.

we are here to support you. We want you to visit Morocco and we will be more than happy to help you to enjoy your trip in Morocco with us.

AZDEAN: Thank you.

TED: Well, thanks guys. It's been fun. It's been nice hanging out, chatting about the tours, fond memories. I think people know where to go. Go to the website, of course, Destinations Morocco, and the phone number there. There's lots of ways to reach out and ask more questions. And, uh, we hope to get some more people to Morocco this year.

AZDEAN: Absolutely.[00:39:00] 

TED: Great.

AZDEAN: you. Bye bye.

SAM: Thank you very much. Bye bye. Thank you.