You're arriving in Marrakesh through Marrakesh Menara International Airport, and as you fly in you'll get a sense of the vastness of the surrounding desert area and watch as irrigated lands become a beautiful patchwork below you.

Enjoy the flight in.

You've landed in Marrakesh! Or is it Marrakech? Fun fact: it's OK to spell it either way (and you'll find both spellings as you take this tour).

The French occupied much of Morocco for many years and they spell the city's name with a ch at the end, while the English-speaking world often uses an sh -- but no matter how a person spells it, the city is full of wonderful people, great sights, and delicious food! So now let's leave the plane, head through the airport, pick up your luggage, and get on your way.

And here we are at your hotel. (We like to make sure you have comfortable accommodations on your Staycay Tour.)

We hope this hotel is a good choice for you. Enjoy taking a peek around the property, and then we'll show you your first big sight.

Welcome to the Bahia Palace! One of the most popular tourist stops in the city, the palace's construction first began in 1859 by Si Musa, grand vizier of Alaouite sultan Muhammad ibn Abd al-Rahman. It was later expanded by his son Si Ba Ahmed ibn Musa, grand vizier of Sultan Moulay Abdelaziz.

In 1912, France established a protectorate over Morocco (a result of the signing of the Treaty of Fez) and that year the palace was converted into the city's home of the French resident-general. After Moroccan independence, the palace was again used as a royal residence for King Mohammed V, and then it was later transferred to the Moroccan Ministry of Culture under King Hassan II -- that's when it was turned into a tourist attraction, and one we hope you will enjoy seeing!

Just a quick 15 minute walk from the Bahia Palace (and a trip back in time to the 1500s), we now find ourselves at the Saadian Tombs inside the royal kasbah (citadel) district of the city.

While not much is known about the beginnings of this historic royal necropolis located on the south side of the Kasbah Mosque, the tombs largely date to the time of the Saadian dynasty, particularly to the 1578-1603 reign of Ahmad al-Mansur.

This final resting place of many royals was sealed off and hidden in the mid 1600s and remained that way until being rediscovered in 1917! And now you can marvel at the ornate decor which surrounds the many tombs found here.

Visiting a new city frequently includes a trip through a local museum. And so here's a peek at some of the displays in the Marrakech Museum just up the road from the Saadian Tombs. We hope you enjoy this quick look around!

We're going to double back on our path a bit now to visit the Koutoubia Mosque -- the largest mosque in Marrakesh.

The mosque was originally founded in 1147 but was replaced by a second version which was built in 1158, and that's the mosque you'll see today. Construction on the minaret -- which is 253 feet tall (77m) and can be seen from all around the city -- was completed around 1195.

And now, a super quick peek a little farther back in time to see the Almoravid Koubba which is believed to have been built either in the year 1117 or 1125. Koubba (qubba is another way to spell the word) is an Arabic word for dome and is used for tomb structures and Islamic domed shrines.

The Koubba Almoravid is one of the only examples here in Marrakesh of Almoravid architecture remaining from the dynasty of the same name -- and it was the Almoravid dynasty which founded Marrakesh as its imperial capital of the empire around the year 1070. Have a look!

Have you worked up an appetite?? If not, this tour of Marrakesh street food will make you hungry for sure!

Starting with breakfast, rolling through snacking veg and pastries, and exploring many tasty meaty lunch and dinner dishes, you're going to get a great tour of what Marrakesh has to offer in the way of street food delights!

Now we're going to go off the beaten path a bit. Marrakesh is known around the world for its many marketplaces. In fact, we're going to explore one of the city's most famous markets at the end of the tour. But before seeing that, let's take a walk through one that is visited more by the locals than by tourists.

It's a great privilege on any trip -- especially a trip to a famous, touristy city -- to get to get a glimpse of how the locals live, where they go, what their daily life is like. This tour stop, a walk through and around the Bab Doukkala Market, is that little peek into marketplace shopping local style for you. And then after this, we'll take a relaxing visit to a surprising museum and walk through one of Marrakesh's most famous gardens.

Have you heard of the French fashion designer Yves Saint-Laurent? You may be surprised to learn he owned a villa in Marrakesh where he spent quite a bit of time. Saint-Laurent died in 2008 in Paris, and Marrakesh is where he was cremated and his ashes scattered.

In 2017, a museum dedicated to him was opened here to showcase his life and work. You get to take a quick peek into it now. He really was a remarkable designer, and you'll see examples of his work in this short glimpse into the museum that was built to celebrate him.

Backing right up to the Yves Saint-Laurent Museum is Majorelle Garden. Created over a period of about forty years beginning in the 1920s, the garden and villa were purchased by Yves Saint-Laurent in the 1980s with his business partner (and onetime life partner) Pierre Bergé. The two revitalized it from a sad state brought about by years of neglect.

As you will see, the garden is gorgeous. Remember the mention of Saint-Laurent's ashes having been scattered in Marrakesh? This garden is where his ashes were spread -- a dynamic final resting place for a dynamic person.

Enjoy the quick look around.

And now, the pièce de résistance of your Staycay Tour -- the icing on the cake of your visit to Marrakesh: Jemaa el-Fna -- the world-famous market and main square of the city.

Visited by tourists and locals alike, the market is home to vendors, snake charmers, food sellers (SO much food), musicians, fortune tellers, performers of all kinds -- everything a person would expect and more! Commerce and social life have been happening on this spot since the founding of the city nearly a thousand years ago -- and we know you'll find this walk-through of the market -- which really comes most to life at night -- both fun and fascinating! Enjoy!!

Well, travel-at-home friend, all good things must come to an end, and so it is with your Staycay Tour of Marrakesh. It's time to take this trip through the airport and make our way to our gate while looking around the departures terminal of this modern airport gateway to a very ancient city.

As you take off and fly away from your Marrakesh staycay, think about friends of yours who might enjoy this trip as much as you did -- we hope you'll share word about the tour with them. And we really hope you've enjoyed this Staycay Tour and that you'll take another one soon!

Wherever the rest of your day takes you, be well and safe travels!

Welcome Home!

You've finished your tour. We hope you had fun!

Of course, no vacation seems complete without souvenirs. So, here's our version of a gift shop -- links to some places where you can find fun souvenirs of where you just visited.

(We don't make any money off of your purchase or you clicking the link or anything like that, so don't worry about the prices being inflated. Happy shopping!)

Buy a souvenir of your Staycay Tour from:

• Amazon.com
• CitySouvenirs.com
• Etsy.com

Send a postcard to someone to share where you went (while staying home):
mypostcard.com

Want to take another tour? Click here to see our destinations!

To restart this tour, just advance to the next screen to begin once more at the beginning.