When she can, Juliet Kinsman tries to take the railroads rather than the air. Our sustainability editor's most recent flight-free hybrid excursion makes returning from Morocco by train, ferry, and bus while sampling Spain and France sound like a very alluring idea.
When we travel to Europe, we should take things more slowly as a romantic homage to slower travel. The problem is that it might be difficult to sell when you could complete the same hop with a cheap plane ticket. On a recent trip, I hired experts who create routes without planes including stops at quaint locally owned hotels, which turned my journey from North Africa into a slow-travel adventure.
I divided my journey into two sections. I utilized Intrepid for the first trip, and they chaperoned me from Morocco to Madrid with a private tour guide. For the second trip, I used Byway to arrange my travel arrangements and accommodations while I went it alone with no plans and no guidance. They both operate as ethical, eco-friendly, B Corp-certified tour operators, and they turned what would have been a challenging, multi-stop journey by train, bus, and boat into gold for leisurely travel.
Love this piece from @JulietKinsman on her journey by boat, train and bus from Marrakech to London with @Intrepid_Travel and @bywaytravel. A perfect example of how to make the journey part of your adventure @cntraveller https://t.co/Gf10LHBcx9
— Chloe Berman (@chloe_travel) January 13, 2023
First part
Day 1: Morocco
After taking a one-way low-cost flight into Marrakech, I began my environmentally responsible getaway with a night at a Moroccan-owned Riad Nesma, which is surprisingly uncommon in the city. This unassuming little hotel provides underprivileged women employment and promotes independence. The first woman from her Berber town to work as a professional tour guide, Chama was my Intrepid private tour guide and she gave me a unique tour of the Medina.
Want to purchase some socially responsible necessities? Visit the Al-Nour Association, where women with disabilities create lovely embroidered apparel and home decor items out of cotton, silk, and linen. The inclusive and empowering workplace of this social enterprise sets it apart.
Day 2: Fès to Marrakech
Even though I've visited this historic, ochre-hued city of Mahgreb several times, eating breakfast with a local family in their cozy, windowless home was a first. Zineb and her daughter made us feel so welcome in their home, which was hidden down a small alley off a Medina backstreet. It was really special to have homemade Moroccan pastries and pancakes with brand-new acquaintances.
Then, in a beautifully Wes Anderson-esque six-seat cabin, we boarded a train for a direct seven-hour trip from Morocco's fourth-largest city to its second-largest.
At Fès station, Moroccan-Canadian twins Omar and Othmane welcomed us to family-owned Le Grand Alcazar, a gallery of this ancient cultural hub's world-famous classic zellige tiles, beautifully repaired stucco, and hand-carved wood paneling. Now that the repair is complete, the incredibly beautiful, hand-decorated interiors of the new wing will seem museum-quality.
I had the honor of enjoying freshly baked pastilla for supper at a private residence in the Medina while we navigated the city's medieval maze. We had a taste of Intrepid's unique sustainable travel experiences on our ladies' night since they have such respectful and meaningful relationships with the places they take you to. We had a henna ceremony suitable for a bride on the night before her wedding, complete with singing, dancing, and a female band.
Day 3: A day in Fès
We spent a day in the city, seeing on foot the mosques, Quranic schools, a leather tannery, and the university, and learning about the local culture and food from our knowledgeable guide Hakima. The most valuable lesson I took away from a day filled with amazing tales was... Al Quaraouiyineand, the first university ever established, was created by a woman in 895, preserving the girl-power spirit.
Day 4: Chefchaouen to Fès
By dawn, we had boarded a plush local bus and traveled for many hours over the Rif Mountains to the renowned Blue City of Chefchaouen. The city of Chaouen, as its friends call it, has the prettiest cobblestone streets that wound through ridiculously picturesque blue landscapes. One of my all-time favorite views was from the balcony of my rooftop room at the adorable hotel Dar Echchaouen, which overlooked this picture-perfect city.
In the 1900s, Jewish and Moorish residents were ahead of their time when they painted this North African hamlet in beautiful powdered cerulean hues. The benefits are being reaped by their successors, who are promoting their periwinkle porches on social media. There are hash farms and hikes at this Rif resort. Some go there to get high, but I got my kicks ascending to the top of the Spanish Mosque, where my guide Chama informed me that the picture-perfect vistas are more captivating after dusk.
Day 5: Tangier to Tarifa, from Morocco to Spain
We took a cab together to the port city in northern Africa, where we boarded a boat for the brief 17-mile journey across the Mediterranean. It's not as simple as I'd anticipated boarding a bus from the most southern point of Europe to the opulent, architecturally rich Andalusian city of Seville, so it could be a good idea to book a night in Tarifa. If you kitesurf, you must stop at this wind-whipped stretch of shoreline near Cadiz. Two hours north, with rich flavors and flamenco waiting for me, I had 36 hours of culture and gastronomy planned. A reminder that a quarter of Spain's electricity comes from wind power is the abundance of wind turbines you see as you drive down the highway.
Day 6: Seville
This passionate metropolis merits your undivided attention for a few days. Thanks to Marina Pomares' expertise at Casa de La Memoria, I managed to squeeze in a finger-clicking, heel-stomping flamenco dancing session, leaving me with one of my most treasured memories of Spain. You've had to give it to dance because it contributes so much to a culture that it has UNESCO status. A benefit of using a knowledgeable local guide was learning about the history of flamenco and seeing where the costumes are created.
The solar-powered e-boat river trip along the Guadalquivir River is perfect for eco-conscious travelers. After the cruise, look around Triana, which is located over the bridge from the city center. This historic neighborhood, which originally housed seafarers, seems to be overflowing with things to tell. The Triana neighborhood serves as a good reminder of how the most interesting secrets are sometimes hidden from view.
Follow my culinary footsteps to Alfarero 21 in Casa Montalván for some tangy tomato Salmorejo! Your meals are served with a display of repurposed tiles from the former ceramics factory. Pionono at the Triana Market! At De La O, the "cupcakes" made of fish and rice and a Dulas Tinto deserve awards.
Day 7: Seville to Madrid
More consistency is the Spanish term that best describes the texture and content of this portion of my experience. Intrepid Travel's seamless chaperoning made every second enjoyable. I don't normally sign up for tours, but this one made me realize how important it is to have knowledgeable professionals design your schedule so you don't have to worry about paperwork, hassles, or even thinking about what to eat for dinner.
My last scene on this journey from Morocco to Madrid was boarding the train at Santa Justa station. We were transported in a matter of hours to the capital by Spain's fast railway, the AVE. Agatha Christie gushed, "Trains are magnificent," evoking admiration for a bygone, gilded age of travel. Train travel allows one to see both the natural world and people, as well as towns, churches, and rivers.
@me_marco Cph-Köln-Paris-Madrid-Algeciras-Tangier. Last leg is by boat. Then train and bus within Morocco to get to final destination.
— Jennie K. Ferrara (@jenniecph) October 23, 2011
Day 8: A Madrid day
I visited a neighborhood food market where I had the greatest vermouth I've ever had and delectable deli foods as my introduction to the city. I suggest setting aside half a day for an Intrepid Urban Adventure day tour; we went on the tapas and taverns tour, stopping sometimes to take in the local street art.
Intrepid provides a 15-day route from Madrid to Marrakech through Portugal. Prices begin at £1,936.
Phase 2
Day 9: San Sebastian to Madrid
By handling my travel arrangements and housing, Byway relieved me of the hassle of my upcoming days, leaving me free to navigate on my own from Madrid to London. They carefully plotted and organized the entire getaway, including lodging, transportation, a route planner, WhatsApp assistance, disruption management, and package protection. They even provided me with a list of recommendations for things to see and do, should the mood strike.
If there was ever a reminder of how opulent train travel can be, it would be the spectacular Madrid Atocha with its contemporary terminal built by Moneo. After churro pastries and hot cocoa for breakfast, I was content to give up a few hours to see Spanish sceneries pass quickly by. Having only truly experienced Northern Spain via the windows of trains and buses, I can't add much to Ernest Hemingway's classic description of the places. "The terrain in the Basque Country appears to be exceedingly fertile and lush, and the towns and villages have an air of prosperity and cleanliness... As the road diverged and began to climb, we were traveling very closely beside a hillside with a valley below and hills extending out toward the sea. The buildings in the towns had red tiled roofs.
I was only in the Basque Country for one evening, but it was enough for me to look for some pintxos and learn a little about Donostia's appeal to Hemingway. This little stopover gave me a taste of the main character in the 1926 novel The Sun Also Rises, which won the Pulitzer Prize and the Nobel Prize. Don Ernesto, as the locals called this literary genius, adored this region of the world. Sincere confession: I was unaware of the city's Basque name until I spent the night in Donostia-San Sebastián's Old Town. One benefit of traveling alone was getting lost in a book about Hemingway's life while munching on delectable pintxos. He would certainly have approved of this train tour from Madrid via San Sebastian to Bordeaux to Paris to London.
Day 10: San Sebastián to Bordeaux, from Spain to France
After spending the night in the Old Town, I traveled to Amara station to board the 40-minute local train called the Euskotren to Hendaye. I had to catch a TGV after that. I found myself unexpectedly in France without even realizing it. The top seats on French trains are an incredibly pleasant method for digital nomads to continue working while on the go, which is something I appreciate as a freelancer. I've been able to make up for missing out on teenage Euro-railing exploits with some leisure travel.
By nightfall, I had checked into the prettiest hotel, Maison La Course, and was sipping Bordeaux in the city bearing its name. I had a Goldilocks-like experience at this 19th-century home because everything was exactly right, including the bedding, wine temperature, and the way my eggs were prepared in the morning.
Read about Olinto, in Morocco's Atlas Mountains, first.
Day 11: From Bordeaux to Paris
Knowing I could pick up some canalés at the station made it easier to pry myself away from this cozy, independent, five-room Bordeaux shop. For my final trip to Paris, I boarded the following TGV from the southwest of France, and my last connection required me to navigate the Métro from Montparnasse to 25Hours Terminus Nord. My culinary experience on the continent was the Balagan-style Middle Eastern-influenced cuisine at 25Hours' charming, art-filled bistro, Neni.
Day 12: Paris to London on France to the UK journey
It was a breeze getting out of bed and crossing the street for my last train from Gare du Nord to St. Pancras. Never before has a journey given rise to so many ideas for Tgskryt, which is Swedish for "train bragging." It's the less negative alternative of flight-shaming or flygskam. Eurostar's been modeling it for years, and I'll choose the Channel tunnel over the clouds any day.
"Of all kinds of transportation, the train is undoubtedly the finest help to contemplation," writes Alain de Botton. Sharing travel diaries of our vacations on social media is always enjoyable. There is nothing wrong with some virtue signaling if it encourages travelers to choose an overland connection instead of a short-haul flight.
What have I discovered from my most recent low-carbon odyssey? As slowly as you can, move. Never depend on WiFi. Make sure to book window seats that face the front. If you don't want to bump into other passengers, pack a small wheeled suitcase instead of a big backpack. Happy travels, indeed. I'd love to hear your train-related advice, @JulietKinsman.