Moroccan odyssey Jewish heritage tour
Morocco current cultural diversity is a reflection of its historical role as a doorway to the rest of the globe and Europe.
Through Morocco’s Jewish legacy, tourists can witness ancient historical traditions, customs, architecture, monuments, and destinations.
For millennia, these factors have shaped Moroccan culture.
Travellers with a sense of culture may enjoy the Jewish Heritage Moroccan Odyssey Tour.
Visits to old synagogues, cemeteries, architectural sites, and the surrounding natural splendour are just a few of this tour’s attractions
Jewish Heritage Tour – Trip Highlights
- Visit Temple Beth- El Synagogue, Em Habanim & Neve Chalom in Casablanca
- Explore the Museum of Moroccan Judaism in Casablanca
- Attend Shabbat Services in Fes
- Dinner at a Rabbi’s Home or Kosher Restaurant
- Up Close Meeting with the Local Jewish Community in Morocco
- Historic Sites of Jewish Heritage in Fes, Meknes, Sefrou, and Marrakech
- Stays at the BEST BOUTIQUE RIAD and Hotels in Morocco
Tour Itinerary
- Arrival at Mohammed V Airport in Casablanca.
- Dinner in a Casablanca kosher restaurant.
- Visit Casablanca’s Jewish Synagogue, Temple Beth-El.
- Beth-El is regarded as the epicentre of a former thriving Jewish community.
- This synagogue draws visitors because of its stained glass windows and other artistic features.
- As time permits, there is an option to visit Neve Chalom and Temple Em Habanim.
Overnight in BOUTIQUE HOTEL CASABLANCA.
Visit the Museum of Moroccan Judaism in Casablanca.
The 700-square-meter Casablanca Jewish Museum is the first institution of its sort in the Arab world.
The Museum of Moroccan Judaism was established by the Jewish Community of Casablanca with funding from the Foundation of Jewish-Moroccan Cultural Heritage in 1997.
It is a museum of history and anthropology.
Casablanca’s Jewish Museum, the only one of its kind in the Arab world, is tucked away in a residential area but is the repository of a wealth of knowledge.
It uses top-notch conservation practices for both its domestic and foreign holdings.
The Museum of Moroccan Judaism displays a variety of ecclesiastical, anthropological, and artistic artifacts that highlight the influence of Moroccan civilization on the Jewish people’s history, religion, traditions, and daily life.
Visit Casablanca’s Jewish Cemetery, Mellah & Synagogues :
The Casablanca mellah is relatively new—less than a century old—by Moroccan standards.
The sea of women selling and lugging fruit and vegetables along the congested, tiny lanes shocks the senses in the evening.
Despite the fact that Jews no longer live in the mellah, kosher butchers and butchers who sell horsemeat can still be found there.
The well-kept white stone grave markers at the expansive and peaceful Jewish cemetery in the mellah have inscriptions in French, Hebrew, and Spanish.
Every year, Casablancas hold a hiloula, or prayer festival, at the grave of the Jewish saint Eliahou.
The 4,500 Casablanca Jews, who live outside the mellah in the city of Europe, go to Jewish schools, social service agencies, and synagogues, as well as kosher restaurants, to pray.
The largest synagogue, Beth El has 500 seats and serves as a major community hub.
Visit Temple Beth-El, the Jewish Synagogue in Casablanca.
Beth-El is the focal point of a once-thriving Jewish neighborhood.
The stained glass windows and other artistic aspects of this synagogue attract tourists.
Ettedgui Synagogue in Casablanca Medina is well furnished.
The El Mellah Museum, which houses works of art and photographs tracing the development of Judaism in Morocco, is located right next to the area of prayer.
Twelve synagogues received financial aid for restoration, and King Mohammed VI personally attended the joyful reopening of one of them.
The Ettedgui family, who founded the business, was once thought to be a wealthy family in Casablanca.
When the land was entered in the cadastre in 1873, the “Makhzen” legacy was carried by the land.
The synagogue’s construction was authorized by the French administration in 1920.
Overnight in a Riad or Boutique Hotel in Rabat.
Visit the Royal Palace’s Hassan tower, which is perched on a mountaintop and offers views of the Wadi Bou Regreg.
The enormous mosque is known for having an unfinished minaret where storks nest and serves as a symbol of Rabat.
Visit the magnificent Mausoleum of Mohammed V, which is right next door and has a spectacular dome, white marble, stained glass windows, and a wrought-iron entrance.
Take a trip to the Jewish Mellah, which is currently home to only a few Jewish families.
Visit the Palace of Rabat, the adjacent gardens, the Chellah Necropolis, and the Kasbah of Chellah likewise Kasbah Oudaya.
Possibility of visiting Sale, the beach town where Rabbi Hayyim Ben Moses Attar was born.Attar, a Moroccan-born 18th-century Kabbalist famous across the Jewish world for his mystically infused Bible interpretation, was born in 1696.
Drive to the Imperial City of Meknes, “the Moroccan Versailles,” and the Volubilis “Walili” Roman Ruins.
Start your journey by exploring the fascinating Roman ruins, which are embellished with magnificent mosaics and bright tiles that honor Roman mythology.
The ruins, which are spread out over a number of acres, contain a number of wall parts, portions of substantial columns, the capitol, the basilica, and a triumphal arch that can still be seen. After that, you can continue on to Fes.
Spend the night in a Riad or Boutique Hotel in Fes.
Day 4: Fes Historical Tour of UNESCO World Heritage Sites & Jewish Heritage Sites
Your tour guide will draw a parallel between Jewish and Muslim Morocco.
The eighth-century city of Fes was founded by Idriss I, and it was once home to one of the greatest Talmudic scholars in history.
Fes (also known as Fes El Bali) and Jerusalem are the two most well-known cities in medieval Jewish history.
Fes, the historical, cultural, and intellectual center of Morocco, is known for having a sizable and long-standing Jewish heritage.
Since it was established by Moulay Idriss in the eighth century, Fes has served as Morocco’s historical center for the arts and sciences.
Due to its historical value and its past Jewish population, who lived their Jewish identity freely, Fes is a must-visit city for all Jewish tourists.
Fes gets its name from the word “pickaxe,” a hand tool that, in myth, Moroccan ruler Idriss used to chisel out the boundaries of the old city from silver or gold.
Your tour guide will compare Morocco’s Jewish and Muslim populations.
This charming suburb, which is next to the royal palace, is renowned for its recently built brilliant brass doors.
This castle served as a haven for Jews during the massacre of 1912.
Solica, a martyred saint who was assassinated for rejecting Islam, is one of the more revered figures.
Maimonides fled the Almohad dynasty’s persecutions to avoid being coerced into conversion.
The Jewish community of Fes is working arduously to maintain its sense of community and save its history and customs in the face of a diminishing population.
One of Morocco’s best-run community centers, the Centre Communautaire “Maimonides,” has a contemporary synagogue and kosher restaurant on the site.
One of the oldest and most complete synagogues in Morocco is the Ibn Danan Synagogue.
This synagogue is a unique relic of a crucial period in Moroccan Jewish history and is found in the center of the mellah (Jewish district).
- University of Al-Karaouine
- Zaouia Moulay Idriss II
- Dar Batha Weavers Cooperative
Overnight at a Boutique Hotel or Riad in Fes
Day 5: Fes Guided Excursion to Jewish Seffrou
Visit Sefrou, the capital of cherries.
Because of its significant Jewish population and vibrant religious community, Sefrou, which is south of Fes, was known as “Little Jerusalem.”
When Morocco earned its independence, a Sefrou rabbi was selected to sit in Parliament.
The mellah makes up half of Sefrou’s ancient city.
On your journey to Sefrou, take a little detour at the Bhalil cemetery.
Sefrou was once the primary city for Moroccan Jews, and the wooden-balconied residences still stand out in the pedestrian medina’s white walls.
Sefrou, a city in Morocco, is an excellent illustration of interfaith dialogue.
in Sefrou, Muslims and Jews lived side by side and practiced their own religions concurrently.
Spend the night in a Riad or Boutique Hotel in Fes.
Day 6: Fes Departure to Marrakech via Ifrane & Beni Mellal
ake a break along the journey to see the surroundings of Ifrane University and stroll through the garden.
Ifrane is referred to as the “Little Switzerland” of Morocco because of its architecture, cedar forest, and potential for a winter ski resort.
This Moroccan city seems stunningly European, like an Alpine village.
Due to its Alpine climate, it was created by the French during the protectorate era for their administration.
The town has a cool climate during the summer and snow during the winter because of its elevation.At a cafe outside in Ifrane, treat yourself to coffee, tea, and pastries.Stop briefly in Zaouia Cheikh.One of the thirty dams that will be constructed in Morocco by 2030 is this one.The current King Mohammed VI is carrying on Hassan II’s initiative to construct one dam annually to irrigate the nation.
Beni Mellal stop for lunch.
Overnight at a Boutique Hotel or Riad in Marrakech.
Day 7: Marrakech Guides Historical Tour, City Visit, Yves Saint Laurent Gardens & Berber Museum, UNESCO Sites & Jewish Heritage Sites
In addition to painting the beautiful ceiling area at the La Mamounia hotel during this time, he also offered his gardens to the public in 1947.
Later, the gardens were bought by French fashion designer Yves Saint-Laurent.
Along with the Berber Museum, the Majorelle Gardens now feature a distinctive assortment of plants and animals.
Around the vicinity of the Kasbah, this Quarter was founded in 1558.
Despite the fact that Jews were prohibited from owning property outside of the Mellah and had complete control over the sugar trade, the Jewish community was autonomous.
There are about 250 Jews left in Marrakech, and the majority reside outside Medina.
The Saadian Tombs
Overnight at a Boutique Hotel or Riad in Marrakech.
Day 8: Marrakech Day at Leisure – Exploraiton of La Mamounia Gardens & Hammam/ Spa Experience
La Mamounia Gardens
This well-known historic landmark hotel and its gardens are maintained by 40 gardeners in the center of Marrakech.
To enhance the grounds and maintain the neatly manicured grass beneath the citrus and olive orchards, the desert garden, the rose garden, the tropical garden, and the numerous fountains, they plant 60,000 annuals twice a year.
An avenue of 200-year-old olive trees leads to a garden pavilion where you may relax with a cup of Moroccan mint tea and silence.
Overnight at a Boutique Hotel or Riad in Marrakech.
Day 9: Marrakech Excursion to Coastal Essaouira, Jewish Heritage Sites of ESSAOUIRA
Leave for the Seaside
In addition to its hand-painted attractive blue, white, and yellow painted cottages, fresh seafood, and artist population, Essaouira is a seaside fishing town famous for its Portuguese and Jewish history.
Essaouira’s quaint artist community is home to colonnades, thuya wood workshops, art galleries, and delectable seafood in addition to stunning whitewashed and blue-shuttered residences.
Essaouira, formerly known as Mogador by European sailors and traders, is well-known for its yearly GnaouaMusicFestival, which draws more than 300,000 visitors in June.
Plage de Safi, a sizable surfing beach, is another feature.
– The Star of David is still prominently displayed above Jewish families’ doorways in many of Essaouira’s painted residences.
Religious Jews from all over the world make an annual trip to Essaouira to pay respects at the grave of Rabbi Haim Pinto, who passed away in 1845.
Every September, Rabbi Haim Pinto is honored during a hiloula.
The synagogue and Rabbi Haim Pinto’s house are still standing today as important religious and historical sites.
When tourists or Jewish tour groups travel to the city, the structure serves as a synagogue.
Essaouira once had Jewish residents, but as of today, Joseph Sebag is the only Jew left in the city. His ancestors escaped Spain with other Jewish families during the Spanish Inquisition.
The head of the Jewish community in Essaouira is Jacky Kadoch.
Overnight at a Boutique Hotel or Riad in Marrakech.
Day 10: Marrakech Departure
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