Marrakech is the ancient capital of Marocco and one of the imperial cities along with Fes, Meknes and Rabat. The destiny of few cities worldwide is linked so closely to the history of their country as to even lend it its name. From its nine-century-long history Marrakech has had its ups and downs: moments of illustrious glory alternated with long years of decline. Again and again, the city was destroyed, rebuilt and embellished, punished and venerated.

Marrakech is still the capital of the south, and it is a city of contrasts: a mosques and minarets, magnificent palaces and gardens testifying to their architects genius, built as if to defy the surrounding dry and desert like earth, and dominated by the snow-capped peaks of the Atlas mountains. In the evenings the unforgettable sunsets seem to put the red city on fire But what charms its visitors most, are the crooked little alleyways in the medina, the hidden corners, the original craftsmanship that is to be found in the stalls of the souk, The often long but always friendly bargaining, the little museums with its treasures of Berber and Arabic art, and the typical scents in the air: of herbs, sometimes delicate, sometimes overpowering, as well as of the sweet perfume of roses and jasmin.

The magic of Marrakech lies in all in much more: Who could resist the charm of the Gnawa music being played on the world-famous Djemaa El Fna square with its snake charmers, its open-air canteen an its entertainment, or the enchantment of the innumerable fountains murmuring in the peaceful calm of the riads inner courtyards.