This wasn't a work trip. Four friends, a long weekend, and a plan to play golf in North Africa. We flew in with fairly low expectations — coming from Scandinavia, you don't assume every course will be at the level you're used to. We were wrong.
Royal Palm Golf blew us away. Incredible service, immaculate greens, and the Atlas Mountains sitting right there in the background no matter where you stood on the course. You don't quite grasp how powerful it is until you're lining up a shot and realise those snow-capped peaks have been watching you the entire round.
Assoufid Golf was equally impressive — same level, great caddies who knew every break on the greens. All of it for around $150–200 with caddy and golf cart. That's serious value for what you get.
Evenings were spent at Kabana — a rooftop bar in the heart of the city. Don't be fooled by the entrance downstairs. Once you get up there, it's a completely different world. We drank local Moroccan wine that was genuinely good. Not what you expect, but that's kind of the theme of this trip — Marrakesh keeps surprising you.
Walking through the Medina, feeling the energy of North Africa — that hit me in a way I wasn't expecting. My father is from Egypt, and being this close to that part of the world brought something up that's hard to put into words. The sounds, the smells, the rhythm of the streets. It felt close to home. It felt familiar in a way I hadn't felt in a while. That surprised me.
We stayed at the Savoy Le Grand — it had the right energy for a weekend like this, easy and no friction. Service could've been tighter in places, but none of us cared. That wasn't what we came for. Marrakesh is one of the best long-weekend trips I've taken. Easy to get to, plenty packed in, and the kind of place you leave already wanting to come back. We came home rested, and ready to put our boots back on.
