Entertainment For Lively Minds
40th birthday venue - Marrakech??
Posted by kbhr on 3 November 2009 - 8:19pm.
Another appeal to the worldly wise word massive:
You seem like a well travelled bunch to me and one or two of you may have, ahem, faced this landmark already. I'm trying to figure out what on earth to do that would be memorable for my 40th. Did the parties with friends & family all through 20's & 30's and thought maybe a trip to somewhere out of the ordinary would better fit the bill this time round?
Have been reading up on Marrakech but the feedback there seems to be you either love it or loath it.
Anyone have any first hand experience or suggestions for somewhere else?
- More from kbhr.
- Login or register to post comments
-
Exotic Coastal Town
Fileys cheap this time of year and has the country's last remaining Maynards Sweet Shop.Pop in and tell the owner my name and he'll give you a bag of pear drops at a discount.
Maynards
the other half is very partial to a Maynards wine gum. I'm more of a monkey nut girl myself.
Maynards
My late Uncle Tony was on the board of Directors at Maynards. I enjoy a wine gum, even now.
Went to Marrakesh
in 2001 - once you have been to the Souk and main square that is pretty much it. Food is pretty good but the begging and hassling is horrendous. Good for a long weekend. Alternatively Reykjavik is excellent and substantially cheaper following the collapse of the Icelandic economy.
I really liked Marrakesh
It was about 2004. I beg to differ about there being nothing to see - the Souk itself is a couple of days' worth of fun, the main square I was happy to sit around in for ages, and then there's tons of old town that you can just wander around (we felt pretty safe wherever we went), plus it's easy to do organised trips out to historic sites outside the city.
The "begging and hassling" is really a matter of perception - certainly there were a few cheeky kids around, but they could be bought off with a felt-tip pen or two, and the degree of begging was absolutely nothing compared to what you'd get on a trip to anywhere in India; the hassling by hawkers can feel intimidating at first, but you get the hang of a firm "no" first... the haggling too takes getting used to because you feel bad about driving down people worse off than you, but both the hawking and haggling are intrinsic to the way people interact there and you're considered rude if you're not firm/pushy back to people. If you can get used to that, it fades into the background pretty quickly.
If you are really pushing the boat out, the Mamounia Hotel is just amazing, pure old-world luxury - we couldn't afford to stay but went for cocktails and tea there a couple of times and enjoyed hanging out and walking around the stunning grounds.
HOWEVER
if I was going somewhere for an extended party, wanted zero hassle and the guarantee of finding fun and interesting and beautiful things round every corner, I would go to Barcelona. And I would stay in one of these apartments: http://www.destinationbcn.com/
I've been half a dozen times now and I never, ever get tired of Barcelona. I would live there if I could.
Barcelona
Thanks Joe Muggs for your feedback on Marrakech. Interesting what you say about Barcelona. I went on a trip there in the mid-nineties and my had a lovely experience, but still have a vivid memory of getting accosted by this woman in a cathedral, hounding me for money, who wouldn't take no for an answer. She chased me round the place for ages before one of the officials had to intervene.
Looking on the bright side I'm hoping that age has brought on a more determined look of 'no, ta' to my features these days.
Yeah Barcelona is not without its downsides
pickpockets and hookers abound in the central tourist bit - but they are easily avoided if you have an ounce of good sense. It sounds to me like your encounter was just a nutter, such as one might find anywhere.
A shout for Madrid
Muy caliente.
All About My Mother
another great from Pedro Almodovar - some bits set in the dodgy old underpasses but some pretty chic lookin apartments too in 1999. Think his apartment set designer is as spot on as Woody Allen's any hour. Oops, think I've gone a bit woman's hour with this one. Sorry.
Looking back
I see my "zero hassle" was an ambiguous phrase. I meant it terms of "there's no faffing about or difficulty" - i.e. people speak English / basic Spanish is not hard, you have all mod cons, the shops, restaurants and bars are plentiful and available - rather than "you won't get hassled".
But like I say, bar the touristy bit down the Ramblas and one or two slightly dodgy areas, you won't.
Good comments on Marrakesh Joe Muggs
pretty much what I was going to write and you do it far better than I could.
I was thinking that Essaouira might be a good option - it's on the coast not too far from Marrakesh and has a much more laid back hippy vibe - and has a few musical connections too.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Essaouira
The Eternal City
Sorry can't comment on Marrakech as not been - but for my 40th - The Light organised a long weekend in Rome - staying in a hotel near the Spanish steps. It was magical. A wonderful place
It's unlike London, Paris, Berlin - which although great places each and all - have a kind of homogeneity. Rome has a more genuinely unique flavour. Recommended
According to AA Gill:
"No other city has been so copiously blessed. Rome has barely had a bad hair day in 2,000 years. There has been a bit of a decline, the odd fall, but these have only added to the astonishing gorgeousness of the Eternal City. Imagine being the first international metropolis in the daddy of empires, the premier city of the civilised world — and when that’s over, you get the bonus ball of the Renaissance, then mannerism, then operatic baroque, futurism and the only good bits of fascism.
If that weren’t enough, you also blag the headquarters of the richest, campest, most decoratively extravagant religion ever conceived. Rome won the civilisation lottery every time it bought a ticket."
...before wandering off to blast the head off a gibbon for fun.
He turns a mean phrase, and yes Rome is nice, but my GOD Gill is full of bumguff.
Rome for me too
That's exactly where I went for my 40th.
Football
18th April 2010: Lazio vs AS Roma
Stockholm
Went on a week's work there recently and it's a beautiful place - but expensive.
San Sebastian
Old and new and an amazing array of bars serving pinchos and excellent restaurants. Lovely bay with excellent architecture around. And a day trip to Bilbao for the Guggenheim (and have lunch in the restaurant at the Guggenheim - great value).
Paris, Venice or Rome
Every one will be fantatsic for a long weekend and if you haven't been to any of them before there is so much to see.
40th ideas
Thank you kindly massive. Couple of new destinations thrown into the hat. Pitty there's no Wooly's to stock up on the felt tip rainbow pack of twelve if Marrakech wins out..
We spent Christmas and New
We spent Christmas and New Year 07/08 in Marrakesh and other bits of Morocco. NEVER. AGAIN. We just kept wishing we'd gone back to India, where the people were charming, friendly, funny, beautiful. Everything Moroccans were not. Mumbai is HIGHLY recommended, as is pretty much anywhere in Kerala.
Marrakech
Blimey, that bad. It's not just irate Califonians on Tripadvisor then. Was thinking about Sri Lanka actually as a once in a lifetime sort of thing. Might have to bring plans forward a bit...
Again, a matter of perception
I found the level of poverty and children begging in Kerala rather more distressing than Morocco. The Moroccans are just a bit more brash and upfront than people in India - it's a more noisy, in-your-face culture, but I don't think that makes them rude as such, they just have a different idea of what is polite!
I didn't say...
...Moroccans were rude.
I have stayed there
This was a lovely hotel, 30 mins from Marrakesh. The hotel organised cheap taxis to/from Marrakesh where nice restaurants and the souks were, where you buy no end of tat for next to nowt.
http://www.tigmi.com
Florence is also a top notch venue for a long weekend away.
If you want to go to a really lovely Italian town...
that isn't full of tourists then try Lucca. It's so beautiful with a wonderfully relaxed atmosphere.
What's wrong with Blackpool?
Elvis impersonators, Funny Girls tranny bar, Uncle Jocks Glaswegian ex-Pat bar and all the culture you can shake a stick at...
Another reason for Madrid
On the 11th April 2010
Small matter of Real Madrid vs Barcelona..beg borrow and steal for tickets. May disenfranchise femail members of party but...
Or 28th March 2010
Real Madrid vs Atletico Madrid
Football
I've been to the Santiago Bernebau and the Camp Nou on several occasions, and you can get tickets in advance for Madrid games from here or Barcelona from here. But El Clasico? Forget it. I've been trying for years - pulled strings, the works. No dice. Unless you buy a weekend package from the UK from one of the travel agents specialising in European football breaks, and spend many hundreds of pounds doing so, it's a tough game to access. Not as hard as getting a table at El Bulli, mind, but that's another story.
Daydreaming
now there's a fantasy weekend. El Bulli and El Clasico.
Could be the subject of a very interesting thread.
Disenfranchising myself
Erm, I am the female party! Get a bit fanatical about rugby but football doesn't seem to deliver for me...
Right behind all the votes for Madrid by the way, but have been visiting best friend there for last odd 20 years hence looking for new kicks (if thats still allowed at 39+)
Reykjavik
Not only interesting and groovy, but also very cheap at the moment. A visit to the Blue Lagoon is a must. But you don't want to be there for more than about four days.
Agree, but...
... sadly I went to the Blue Lagoon but had left my trunks in the hotel. Luckily (?) they had ones I could borrow and I managed to forget about their 'history'.
A lovely place to go with the woman of my dreams.
Sweden
Gothenburg and Stockholm are ideal for short breaks. Gothenburg is more of a Glasgow against Stockholm's Edinburgh if you get my drift.
Gothenburg is more down to earth and rough & ready but has it's nice parts - good football and music too whereas Stockholm is the more classically beautiful city.
However, when I said ideal I meant if you are all teetotal monks fasting for Lent - Sweden is not cheap!
Sweden is for cheapskates
Come to Norway, we're really expensive.