Golf in Morocco: Marrakech, Agadir and the winter that feels like spring

Four flight hours from Frankfurt, one hour of time difference, and then you are standing on the first tee at Al Maaden: palms, a water channel, a red sculpture – and behind it, snow-capped, the High Atlas. Morocco is the golf destination that changes not only your game but your perspective. A guide to Marrakech and Agadir, to riads and resorts, to the winter that feels like spring.

Morocco for golfers: a brief orientation

Golf has tradition in Morocco: the Royal Golf Marrakech was laid out in 1923, King Hassan II was a passionate golfer and had courses built in Rabat, Agadir and Marrakech in the 1970s – the Hassan II Trophy remains a tournament with European Tour status. In the past 15 years the offer has tripled: designers such as Kyle Phillips, Jack Nicklaus’ team, Colin Montgomerie and Robert Trent Jones Sr. have built modern championship courses that hold their own in any European ranking.

Two regions interest us: Marrakech, the red city at the foot of the Atlas with more than ten courses, souks, riads and the most famous course backdrop in Africa. And Agadir on the Atlantic, with ten kilometres of sandy beach, 300 days of sunshine, beach resorts and six courses between eucalyptus forests and the cliffs of Taghazout. Both can be combined in one trip – three hours of motorway lie between them.

Marrakech: golf in front of the Atlas

The courses lie in a ring around the city – most to the south, on the Route de Ouarzazate and the Route d’Amizmiz, with open views of the mountains. Al Maaden by Kyle Phillips is the course to play first: 18 holes between water channels, palms and the sculptures of a land-art park, open and fair, with the Atlas as backdrop on almost every hole. Samanah (Nicklaus Design) is the championship test south of the city – long, with lakes and deep bunkers amid olive groves. The Montgomerie Marrakech is Colin Montgomerie’s modern design with water and a strong finish, only 15 minutes from the medina.

Add the Royal Golf Marrakech with its old cypresses and 27 holes of history, Amelkis (Cabell Robinson, 27 holes), Assoufid (Niall Cameron, a desert course with world-class greens) and the Palmeraie Golf Club (Robert Trent Jones Sr., 27 holes) in the palm grove – surrounding the Pickalbatros Du Golf. A week in Marrakech is not enough to play them all. Five is a good plan.

Where to stay in Marrakech?

Marrakech offers three hotel worlds. The Palmeraie north of the city is resort country: sprawling properties, pools, calm, often with a golf course. The Pickalbatros Du Golf (formerly Hotel du Golf Rotana) lies here in the middle of the Palmeraie Golf Club – all inclusive, large spa and a shuttle to the medina. The Hivernage is the garden district between medina and new town, with hotels like the Kenzi Rose Garden: central, five minutes to the Jemaa el-Fna, free parking, spa – the choice for anyone who wants city and golf in equal measure. And the Kasbah on the southern edge of the medina with the Jaal Riad Resort, an adults-only property with four restaurants, indoor and outdoor pool and 24-hour room service – quiet, stylish, ten minutes on foot from the Saadian tombs.

Birdie at Al Maaden in the morning, tagine on a roof terrace at noon, the scent of spices in the souk in the evening – Marrakech is the golf holiday you talk about most when you get home.

Agadir and Taghazout: golf on the Atlantic

Agadir is Morocco’s beach city: rebuilt in modern style after the 1960 earthquake, with a wide promenade, marina and a sandy beach that curves ten kilometres around the bay. The climate is the most even in the country – 20 to 25 degrees in winter, rarely above 30 in summer because the Atlantic cools. For golfers there are three facilities: Golf du Soleil with 36 holes (Championship and Tikida) between eucalyptus and dunes, the home course of most Agadir guests; Golf de l’Océan with 27 holes and sea views on the hills above the city; and 25 minutes north Tazegzout in Taghazout Bay – Kyle Phillips’ cliff course with argan trees, Atlantic wind and a 15th hole on the edge that ranks among the most beautiful on the continent.

You stay on the beach. The Sofitel Agadir Royal Bay is the bay’s luxury property – built like a sprawling riad with courtyards, private beach, Sofitel Spa and four restaurants. The Pickalbatros Palais des Roses is the all-inclusive resort for families and groups: recently renovated, lagoon pools, aquapark, thalasso centre, right on the sand. And the Iberostar Waves Founty Beach is the fair, relaxed base with Portuguese-inspired architecture, pools and spa.

Riad or resort?

A question we hear often. A riad – a traditional townhouse with courtyard in the medina – is the most intense Marrakech experience: mosaics, roof terrace, silence behind thick walls, breakfast with mint tea. But: narrow alleys, no pools for lengths, golf baggage has to be carried from the taxi drop-off, and no buggy shuttle collects you at the riad. A resort offers pool, spa, parking, shuttle and room for golf baggage. Our recommendation: resort or city hotel for the golf week, and if you want to experience the medina, add one or two nights in a riad at the end – we organise both.

The caddie: Morocco’s greatest golf luxury

In Marrakech and Agadir the caddie is still part of the game – and once you have had one, you will not want to do without. The caddies have often been on their course for decades, know every ripple in the green, every wind direction in the afternoon and every bush where balls disappear. They carry the bag or drive the buggy, hand you the right club (they are usually right), read putts and tell stories between holes about kings, film stars and the Atlas. Budget 200 to 300 dirham per round plus tip. Reserve the caddie in advance – we take care of it – and let yourself go: it will be one of the best memories of the trip.

A day in Marrakech: golf in the morning, medina in the evening

7:00 breakfast on the terrace, 7:40 departure by shuttle, 8:20 tee time at Al Maaden – the sun is still low, the Atlas glows. By 12:30 the round is done; the clubhouse serves mint tea and tagine. Pool or hammam at the hotel in the afternoon; at 5 pm the shuttle leaves for the medina: Jemaa el-Fna at sunset, when jugglers, musicians and food stalls fill the square; then dinner on a roof terrace overlooking the Koutoubia. Back at the hotel by 10 pm – tomorrow at 8:20 Samanah is on the schedule. Four days like this, and on the fifth the clubs stay in the room: Jardin Majorelle, Bahia Palace, souks with a guide, hammam in the evening.

Agadir or Marrakech: the honest comparison

	Marrakech	Agadir
Courses	10+, three world-class courses	6, with Tazegzout one world-class course
Backdrop	Atlas, palms, art	Atlantic, dunes, cliffs
Hotels	resorts, city hotels, riads	beach resorts, all inclusive
Non-golfers	culture, souks, excursions	beach, spa, pools
Winter climate	18–28 °C, fresh mornings	20–25 °C, even
Summer climate	too hot for golf	playable thanks to the Atlantic
Transfer to courses	15–35 min	10–25 min

Our rule of thumb: golfers hungry for culture go to Marrakech, golfers with beach-loving companions to Agadir – and anyone who wants both combines four plus three nights.

When to go to Morocco?

Morocco is the classic winter destination. From October to April temperatures in Marrakech are 18 to 28 degrees, in Agadir 20 to 25, with sunshine almost every day. December and January are fresh in Marrakech in the morning (8 to 10 degrees at the first tee time – pack a jumper) and glorious at noon. Rain falls mainly in November and February in short showers. Summer in Marrakech is too hot for 18 holes at 35 to 42 degrees; Agadir stays playable at 26 to 30 thanks to the Atlantic and is then an inexpensive beach-and-golf destination. Ramadan (2027: roughly mid-February to mid-March) changes opening hours of restaurants outside the hotels; golf courses and resorts operate normally.

Practicalities: entry, money, safety, tipping

EU citizens need a passport valid for at least six months on entry; no visa is required (up to 90 days). The currency is the dirham (MAD), roughly 1 euro = 10.5 dirham; cash machines are everywhere, credit cards are accepted in hotels, golf clubs and better restaurants, in the souks you pay cash. Tipping is customary: 20 to 50 dirham for the caddie master or buggy service, 10 per cent in restaurants. Caddies are available on many courses and a joy – they read greens, find balls and tell stories; budget 200 to 300 dirham per round.

Morocco is a safe, well-organised destination. We have known our partner hotels and transfer companies for many years; airport and course transfers are included in our packages so you need not worry about taxis and haggling. Better not to drink tap water – bottled water is available everywhere, included at all-inclusive resorts.

Morocco for groups

Marrakech is an incentive classic: riad dinners under the stars, quad tours in the desert, cookery classes, hammam rituals – and in the morning three world-class courses with tee-time blocks. For corporate groups of up to 40 we recommend the Pickalbatros Du Golf (all inclusive, meeting rooms, course at the house) or the Kenzi Rose Garden as central base; we play the tournament at Al Maaden and hold the prize-giving in a riad. In Agadir the Palais des Roses and the Sofitel are the group hotels with terraces for 50 guests and beach access for the supporting programme.

Beyond the fairways

Plan at least two afternoons without golf in Marrakech: the Jemaa el-Fna at sunset, when the food stalls open; the Jardin Majorelle and the Yves Saint Laurent Museum early in the morning; the souks with a guide who knows where the leather workshops are; a hammam at the hotel or in a historic bathhouse. As a day trip the Ourika Valley in the Atlas with Berber villages and waterfalls is worthwhile, or Essaouira on the Atlantic with its Portuguese fortress and the best grilled sardines in the country. If you want a night in the desert, drive over the Tizi n’Tichka pass to Ouarzazate and the dunes of Zagora – two days you will never forget.

In Agadir it is the Souk El Had (one of the largest in Morocco), the kasbah on the hill overlooking the bay, the surf village of Taghazout and Paradise Valley with its rock pools in the hinterland.

Our packages and recommendations

The classic Marrakech week: seven nights at the Pickalbatros Du Golf (all inclusive) or Kenzi Rose Garden (breakfast), four rounds at Al Maaden, Samanah and The Montgomerie, all transfers, reserved tee times, optional flight. The Agadir week: seven nights at the Sofitel or Palais des Roses, four to five rounds at Golf du Soleil, Golf de l’Océan and Tazegzout. And the combination: four nights Marrakech, three nights Agadir, transfer across the Atlas included – for anyone who wants mountains and sea in one trip.

Morocco is not the destination for a first golf trip – for that we recommend Belek or the Algarve. But it is the destination about which our regulars most often say: “We should have done this much earlier.” Ask us – we know every one of these courses and which tee time shows the Atlas in the best light.