HIGH TIMES IN MOROCCO

Petra Shepherd joined Travel Channel for its launch back in 1994. She looks after our research and works on all original productions. Petra’s one of the most recognisable faces in the travel industry and when she’s not on the canapé circuit promoting the channel, she spends every free moment travelling. She’s visited over 70 countries and prefers back packing to 5 * luxury, unless of course it’s in the name of research!

One of the perks of working for The Travel Channel is that I get to attend travel conferences around the world where new travel ideas and stories are sourced. And destinations that host travel conferences pull out all stops to give people in the travel industry a good time and showcase what they have to offer.

Last November I headed to Marrakech, host city of the ABTA (Association of British Travel Agents) Annual Convention. It's four days of relentless sessions, keynote speakers, schmoozing, networking and partying; I end up with a hangover and the viewers end up with the most up-to-date travel stories. Check out this month's Travel 2006 for example, where we predict 2006's summer hotspots and report from Poland's latest up-and-coming city break destination Wroclaw. I can't deny I don't have fun, and afterwards there's always an opportunity to properly explore the host destination.

It wasn't my first visit to Marrakech. I was there back in 1999 filming for Travel Channel's then flagship holiday programme HOLIDAY MAKER. Having just seen Hideous Kinky (the film starring Kate Winslett about hippie misadventures in North Africa) I was anticipating a city as colourful and as captivating as the film portrayed. We were all however severely disappointed. Marrakech had none of the pre-imagined magic or beauty as it poured down for three days. This time however, I encountered only gin-clear blue skies and an altogether different place.

Marrakech, the second imperial city of Morocco and the capital of the south, has been attracting visitors for centuries. It was the colours this time that most impressed me; the combinations of green palms, ochre towers and pink ramparts in the old city, surrounded by the snow capped Atlas Mountains. The focal point of Marrakech is Djemaa el Fna. It's a colourful market square by day, which turns into a carnival of the weird and wonderful at dusk. Here you'll find acrobats, tumblers, jugglers, fire-eaters, magicians, and rows and rows of brightly lit food stalls. By the way, don't be afraid to sample their wares; it's simple, freshly cooked on the spot, and cheap. The entertainment itself isn't just a show for the tourists. The spectators that gather around the singers and dancers, snake charmers and storytellers are mostly locals enjoying what is often referred to as 'the greatest free show on earth'. Of course, it's not altogether free for the visitor. Woe betide those who don't pay for the privilege of watching or even worse, for that secret snapshot for the folks back home. Be sure to take lots of small currency with you, or you really will be fleeced.

Marrakech is also famous for its souks, a huge network of lanes which surround the square made up of hundreds of tiny shops selling everything from leather goods to live chickens. If you buy anything, it's essential to haggle. Aim to pay 50 per cent of the first asking price, so start even lower than that. It's not unheard of to offer 30 per cent and raise your offer slowly. You'll need patience. Walking away as if you'll never come back often does the trick.

Marrakech is flat, good for cycling or take a caleche, horse and carriage. And it's so flat that from almost anywhere in town you can see the landmark minaret of the Koutoubia Mosque. First built in 1147 but subsequently demolished, as it was not correctly aligned with Mecca, the "mosque of the booksellers" was finished in 1199. It has ever since been the landmark of Marrakech, towering over the surrounding single storey houses and low lying markets.

Morocco has always been popular with film stars and celebrities and at the moment, it's hotter than ever. Even the Beckhams have given their seal of approval. Richard Branson is another fan, so much so that in 1998 during one of his famous ballooning expeditions, he bought Kasbah Tamadot. Kasbah Tamadot is a magical walled building located near the village of Asni in Morocco's High Atlas region, a mere forty-five minutes drive from the centre of Marrakech. It's been transformed into a luxury North African retreat with the requisite 5 star spa, infinity pool and extensive gardens. There are a few of those famous Virgin touches, no televisions in the rooms for one. It's a place to escape everything, and that includes CNN and Travel Channel. Two pet camels Pumpkin and Pickle and two pet donkeys, Pudding and Plum merrily have the run of the place and are adored by both staff and visitors. Branson has coached his favourite chef, a South African lady named Jean Mundell, away from Necker Island (his privately owned island resort in the Caribbean) to bring a dash of Raymond Blanc trained flair to the wholesome and hearty flavours of Morocco. You get a sense that Branson really loves this place, with its courtyards, intricately carved walls, staircases and terraced gardens. It has a fairy tale quality and I highly recommend it.

Of course, celebs don't only come here to relax. If you're a film star then you're more than likely to be here working. The mountains and deserts of Morocco regularly blaze across our screens. Legions of directors have converged on the town on Ouarzazate, formerly home to the French Foreign Legion and now the African Hollywood. Credits include Moses, James Bond and Cleopatra, though not all in the same movie. As a movie buff it was the one place outside of Marrakech I was most keen to visit. Near the Kasbah are the Atlas Film Studios, which make for a fascinating visit. As location managers have discovered, Morocco is a manageable and plausible stand-in for places like Egypt. Lawrence of Arabia, Jesus of Nazareth and the Last Temptation of Christ were all made here rather than in the Middle East and Martin Scorsese chose to make his film Kundun here, Morocco masquerading as Tibet. As a fun alternative, many of the sets can also be visited by quad bike.

About 20 minutes outside of Ouarzazate, the utterly magical kasbah of Ait Benhaddou is a World Heritage Site. If the place looks strangely familiar, that's because it's been used as a backdrop for a thousand fashions shoots and dozens of films including Gladiator (it was the school where Russell Crowe learned his murderous technique). Parts of the Kasbah were rebuilt during the filming.

Ouarzazate is an ideal base for visiting the surrounding kasbahs and nearby oases, dunes and gorges. The most popular trip is to Zagora, the gateway to the Sahara, but if you've seen vast sand dunes before as I had in Namibia and Dubai, head instead to the Dades Valley, the valley of a thousand Kasbahs, and the Todra Gorge. Heading roughly east from Ouarzazate, the Dades Valley is between the mountains of the High Atlas to the north and the rugged Jebel Sarhro range to the south. The valley has some of the most spectacular scenery I have ever encountered; vast stony deserts with the odd herd of goats surrounded by the snow capped Atlas Mountains. Along the way you encounter stunning "palmeraies", tiny Berber villages and ruined Kasbahs. Photographic opportunities abound.

The Todra Gorge is a great place for donkey trekking or rock climbing; at its narrowest, the Gorge is only 10 metres wide with vertical cliffs reaching 250 metres in height. Parts of the Gorge reminded me of the siq in Petra in Jordan but sadly there was no ancient treasury at the end of it. However, the journey to the gorge itself was full of surprises.

Morocco is a place not entirely African, Middle Eastern or European. I found it to be curious composite of all three and came back from this, my second visit, a lot more satisfied than I felt after my first. This time I returned with a sense of complete awe at the breathtaking landscapes, colours, architecture and scenery plus of course a suitcase full of "tat" from the souks as Christmas presents. It's amazing what a difference blue skies can make.