I am currently somewhere over the north Atlantic heading home after spending 6 nights in Marrakech Morocco and two nights in London. Why, you say, this combination? Well what drew me to Marrakech was my first invitation to attend a travel conference called PURE- ostensibly for the “purist” who plan experiential travel- which I try to do.
We (my love of my life – Barbara and I) believe in order to be the best at helping people to experience a great time while they are traveling, must not only travel ourselves but go to the meetings where providers of travel go and meet with them to be as prepared as possible. Hence, I traveled to Marrakech with Barbara, who intended to rest up a bit while I attended the conference.
Arriving in Morocco I was reminded of Arizona- lots of sand and a few green areas, and mountains off in the distance. However this was where the similarities ended. We were greeted at the airport by one of the representatives of the company we decided to use to tour the city and surrounding areas before the conference began. Once outside I noticed the mountains off in the distant were snowcapped and while the climate was dry it was not hot with temperatures in the mid-60s.
I looked around thinking we might take a camel to town (really only kidding – but I did think it), but there were modern vehicles and off we went to the Four Seasons. (Yes- that Four Seasons) I was certainly impressed- apparently the hotel had just opened a couple of months ago. Alarm bells should have been going off – maybe I was still a bit groggy from traveling so far – who knows. I was in for a bit different experience than what I was use to – this property wasn’t quite ready for prime time. Very slow check-in, went one day without the room having been serviced, difficulty with room service- i.e. filled out one of those little cards for breakfast that tell you to hang it on the door before midnight and then your breakfast will be served in your room at the time requested- when it didn’t arrive I thought I would check the door before calling room service and voila – there was my card still hanging from the door knob. However on the very positive side – the staff was very warm and friendly and I figure given a couple more months the other difficulties would be corrected.
None of this had put me off- I was in an exotic land and determined to see all that I could. The tour guide was young (again alarm bells should be blazing away) and inexperienced with groups – I was traveling with Barbara and some other travel advisors. Despite the guide’s youth we did experience much of Marrakech and the countryside including a beautiful property in those mountains I mentioned (the Atlas Mountains) owned by Sir Richard Branson (made a mental note that if I came back next year I was going to try and stay there for a couple of nights) and even visited a Berber home in the mountains. The people of Morocco speak French and Arabic and many also speak English and they are a very welcoming people.
Now I had been warned by another advisor to be very careful what I ate- and I always follow a few rules- no unpeeled fruit, or uncooked vegetables; and definitely I do not drink the water or use it to brush my teeth – must be bottled water only; but I try to experience the local cuisine everywhere (after all this is part of the travel experience) and the food was great! And I did not get sick (Yahoo!!) – little things like enjoying the food without a bad experience, having your luggage arrive when you do, people to meet you and get you to your hotel etc… are good and go a long way to adding to an overall good experience.
The conference had (I believe) a couple of hundred travel companies of which I met with approximately seventy over three very long days. Let me tell you- there are some incredible travel locations and itineraries to experience throughout the world! You know you are in the right place when your conversation with your fellow travel advisors is all about how there are so many places and so little time. I mean every continent was well represented – and the trips were spectacular – I found at least a ½ dozen I would take at the drop of a hat. I concentrated on some of my specialties – Africa, Australia, New Zealand, China, and adventure and I came away with some great ideas and learning about each area (which is why I go in the first place). I don’t know how other agencies plan travel without going to conferences each year. Yes, these take me out of the office and cost Great Getaways money and time – but wow they are so important for me to have knowledge and additional contacts and ideas for great travel options!
On Friday night Barbara and I headed off to London (we had to fly through London anyway) to spend a couple of nights in one of our absolutely favorite hotels- the Goring (one hundred and one years in business – same family ownership- in the very heart of where I wanted to stay). Saturday we strolled around Buckingham Palace, and Knightsbridge (of course we visited Harrods- even I love walking through Harrods) and then in the evening we visited the Taj properties – a hotel and suites located in a very private cul-de-sac just a couple of blocks from Buckingham. The suites offer great alternatives for families traveling together and we book the suites for our clients so Barbara and I wanted to see the accommodations first hand. Afterwards we had dinner at a wonderful restaurant (see Barbara’s blog) and retired early for our morning departure home. I was reminded how much I enjoy London – fun city, great to walk around, etc…
Which brings me back to heading over the Atlantic and wishing somehow I could avoid flying altogether and just be Dorothy (you know- click my heels …).
If you have stumbled on to this abbreviated capsule of my week and are just dying of curiosity, call me and I will share my favorite places I learned about (we can all travel vicariously!. )
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