Marrakech had always been on my to-visit list but, as a tall blonde woman, I thought it best to visit with a man. As such, I didn’t arrive until 2013, when I visited with my boyfriend.
My strongly feminist leanings rage at such a situation but nonetheless it seemed sensible, and in retrospect I don’t regret holding off as long as I did. Still, in practice, I’d say that Marrakech is a reasonably safe environment for a woman, solo traveller or otherwise, and (unlike India), I haven’t advised any other female travellers against going.
Marrakech was, nonetheless, something of a starting-off point for our travels. We had ten days in total and I was keen to explore the souks and soak up the atmosphere of this ancient city. Still, we only hung around for two nights at the start before heading off to pastures new.
“Flashpacking” as a term has been around for several years now, although it’s only recently begun to gain prominence.
It’s the evolution of backpacking; the inevitable next step for scrimpers who spent their student years taking chicken buses from one “budget friendly” Lonely Planet suggestion to the next. Our hotels these days have balconies, and bedding is provided in the cost of the room . . . even if there’s chipped tilework and a strange smell near the window. We no longer share bathrooms but we do still rent bicycles. We like breakfast to be included but local-style, not Full English. We take cookery courses instead of booze cruises. We choose AirBNB over Couchsurfer.
Welcome, fellow Flashpackers!
This blog intends to document, inform, suggest and inspire.
It’s aimed at 30-something travellers (although there’s no age limit either way!) who maintain the ethos of their penny-pinching backpacking twenties but, these days, have a little more cash to play with.
