You guys may remember L. and I went to work in Morocco's surf capital Taghazout, 20 km above Agadir last winter to teach some surf, photograph and bask in the sunshine for 6 months. We left without being able to take some time off and actually experience the place while being on holiday. Since I was able to take a week off work at the end of January, I decided to go back and spend some time with friends, the sun and the waves. I hadn't travelled alone for a while, not since before I knew L. and so I was a tad bit nervous to be honest.
Luckily, I was invited to Deepcurl Surfhouse in Aourir (Bananavillage), a gorgeous surface overlooking the King's Palace, and surfspots K11, K12 & Bananapoint.
Deepcurl Surfhouse is a wonderful, quiet place situated on the hill overlooking the bay. The terrace is gorgeous and a lovely place to chill out and enjoy the sunset. The rooms are clean and staff is very friendly. Being a feminist girl myself, I find it very important there is enough female staff in not particular 'female' roles and was glad to see Deepcurl does not only have a lovely female host, from Germany, but also a fierce female surf teacher, Meghan from the US. The other teachers, Ilias and Bambucha, are also very nice and professional (Bambucha is a mean ding specialist, great if you are clumsy with your board like me!). They offer daily lessons and surf safari's to the beach where the waves are best that day. I was not in need of lessons but decided to tag along and join for a free surf. We went to Devils Rock, a right hand point break and homespot of Morocco's female champion Meryem El Gardoem.
Great to be in the sunshine again, and out of the 6/5/4 wetsuit! The waves were pretty big (to me!) but nice and clean, and good riddance because this spot was to be the venue of the annual Agadir Open later that week. The surf lessons Deepcurl offers are very professional with a lot of personal attention, and even second lessons during the day, which is something rare amongst the surf camps I have come across. Lunch is a pre-packed sandwich from the breakfast buffet, quite basic but fine for most.The evenings are provide breathtaking sunsets on the terrace and basic meals. Perfect for most, but if you are not used to eating wheat (pasta, couscous, bread) and have a mainly vegan diet you might have to bring some food of your own.
Pro's:
✓ Great view
✓ Surf safari included
✓ Infinity pool in the making! (expected summer 2016)
✓ Wonderful staff
✓ Perfect for couples & groups
✓ Waterfilter so you can drink the tapwater!
✓ Waterfilter so you can drink the tapwater!
Con's:
✗ Nervous house doggy, do not approach!
✗ Not ideal for single female travellers
☞ If you want more information and/ or rates, please let me know, I can get you a discount on your stay!
After a nice and easy start of the week I decided to move on to my friend Mohammed's place in Taghazout. Formerly known as Adventure Keys (they have relocated) this surf hostel is now known as Taghazout Waves, and located in my nameless old street, the first place L. and I ever lived together! It was wonderful to be at the same spot again ❤︎. Mohammed is working very hard on his place but for now it remains a very basic hostel. The upside is that it is amazingly cheap with quite a good breakfast included (lot's of fruits and a cake everyday!) and right in the middle of the Taghazout hustle & bustle.
Pro's:
✓ Great rates
✓ Safe for single female travellers
✓ Right in the middle of the action
✓ Decent brekky, suitable for vegans: lots of fruit!
Con's:
✗ Very basic
✗ Sometimes no hot shower (on my own floor)
☞ If you want more information and/ or rates, please let me know, I can get you a discount on your stay!
Being back in my former hometown was very nice. I went straight to my favorite healthy food spot, cafe Mouja. Khadijah makes a killer coffee, and it's the only place in town that offers decaf coffee, soy milk and several vegan options for meals. Expect higher prices than the Moroccan average, for me it's very much worth it though! The other wonderful thing of being in Taghazout once more was visiting my friends.
My enlightened friend Chanti, who is a mandela artist (she does custom board design), masseuse and yoga teacher, has a yoga class every night on the roof terrace of Surf Berbere. Yoga starts at 17.30 and costs DH100 (€10,-). Classes are an amazing experience, including meditation, loads of back & ab work and a little challenge every day, Chanti made me discover I can do a headstand and even a handstand! I couldn't get enough and went to Chanti's class 5! times. Another nice feature of being in Taghazout is you have acces to wonderful waves right outside the town. If you are fine with medium sized waves and a mellow vibe (me!), Panorama Point is great when it's working. If you are a go-getter and more into overhead waves, you might want to head to the other side of town where you will find Anchor Point ( 10 mins walking) or La Source & Killers (20 mins walking).
My enlightened friend Chanti, who is a mandela artist (she does custom board design), masseuse and yoga teacher, has a yoga class every night on the roof terrace of Surf Berbere. Yoga starts at 17.30 and costs DH100 (€10,-). Classes are an amazing experience, including meditation, loads of back & ab work and a little challenge every day, Chanti made me discover I can do a headstand and even a handstand! I couldn't get enough and went to Chanti's class 5! times. Another nice feature of being in Taghazout is you have acces to wonderful waves right outside the town. If you are fine with medium sized waves and a mellow vibe (me!), Panorama Point is great when it's working. If you are a go-getter and more into overhead waves, you might want to head to the other side of town where you will find Anchor Point ( 10 mins walking) or La Source & Killers (20 mins walking).
I do like it here in Morocco. Be prepare to haggle, half of the first asked price is usually what you want to come out on. One of the main things to buy here, and bring back home for your friends, is Argan oil (hull d'argane). I use it for everything: face cream at night, hair oil, body lotion, after sun...Do not wear in the sun though, if you don't want to come out lobster red! For about DH25 (€2,50) you should get a small bottle that will last you a year, perfect as a gift and perfect for you too! One shop to not walk by is Talisman, the first real vintage shop in town, owned by awesome photographer Dounia. Handpicked clothing, hand made jewelry and analogue photography are the goods on sale.
Even though I was on a holiday, I couldn't resist the opportunity to teach some surfing. Linda is a 60 year old heroine that lives in a cave (!) in Spain. Besides building this cave into a house and adding guest rooms along the way, she has been everywhere and done everything, like shark fishing in Papua New Guinee. One thing Linda hadn't done before, was surfing though. She did great and in the end even stoop up for a moment. ✓ Another stoked surfer is born, never too old to learn :) The last night of my stay I spent in the Bagus Mountain Riad. My friend Mourad and his team have really made this place into something special. About 15 minutes up the hill by car, the mountain riad overlookes the whole bay of Taghazout and is amazingly beautiful especially at night when you see all the little lights below, and the bright shining stars above you. A more perfect conclusion to my trip wouldn't exist. ☆
Overview:
※ Weather: 25°c (at night is gets cold!)
※ Wetsuit: 4/3 (I'm always cold!)
※ Waves: between 50 cm and 3 m
※ Coffee: €3,- decaf soy latte, €1,- black 'expresso'
※ Smoothie: €2,-
※ Salad: €2,-
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