The air is cool in the palm groves around the city and the mud ramparts and towers go

The air is cool in the palm groves around the city and the mud ramparts and towers go pink in the dusty sunlight. Re-enter the walls from the south, beside the mirror-smooth Menara pleasure lake.Take a hikeLeave the carriage by the forbidden palace of the ruling Sultan Hassan and visit the Al-Badi ("The Incomparable") Palace Open 9am-12 and 2.30- 5.30pm. My two tips are both close to the centre of the Medina: the Club Med (00 212 4 44 4016) strangely ignored by all the guidebooks I've ever read on Marrakesh, is a haven with idiosyncratic rooms, a great pool and a hammam (traditional Moroccan sauna). Now you can explore the (scary, unlit) dungeons and wander through the echoing courtyards and roofless pavilions where huge white storks nest. This is the vast ruin of a 16th-century complex so luxurious that it took the mad Sultan Ismail 10 years to strip out its gold, marble and jewels. From the old city walls to the Djma al-Fna costs about 70 pence. Ignore the "guides" who hassle you as you walk through the Medina.

It isn't hard to navigate the bazaars, and if you want to be guided you can hire an official guide through your hotel. For about pounds 10 for a half-day you can get someone who is reliable and knowledgeable, and will keep off the touts.Check inThere are plenty of cheap hotels around the central Djma al-Fna, the most popular being the Tazi and the Foucauld I wouldn't recommend any of them. There are plenty of "international" five-stars in the Nouvelle Ville I wouldn't recommend them, either. You need a shortcut to the soul of Morocco's most entertaining city Jeffrey Lee prescribes the perfect weekend there. Why go now? Because February is dry, clear and warm (average 20C). Because the towering High Atlas mountains provide a snow-capped backdrop to a vibrant, exotic world just three hours away.

And because Ramadan is over.Beam downBritish Airways (0345 222111) and Royal Air Maroc (0171-439 4361) fly from Gatwick and Heathrow respectively to Marrakesh. Through discount agents such as Hamilton Travel (0171-344 3344) you can get a fare of around pounds 250-pounds 260 return; booking direct can cost pounds 100 more.Get your bearingsMarrakesh is in fact two cities side by side. The walled old city, or Medina, is a bustling warren of winding bazaars and medieval buildings, centred around the colourful square of Djma Al-Fna and the towering minaret of the Koutoubiya mosque; the new town, the Nouvelle Ville, is all modern blocks, broad boulevards and French colonial town planning, built around the wide Place de la Liberte. The two city centres are connected by the wide thoroughfare of the Avenue Muhammad Cinq.The small airport is just a few kilometres away and a taxi to either town centre should cost about 60 dirhams (pounds 4) Make sure you agree a fare in advance. Within Marrakesh, taxis tend to use their meters, and it is very hard for a trip to cost more than about 70 pence.Most of your time will be spent exploring the Medina, and here it is easiest to walk through the maze of alleys and markets, or travel by horse- drawn carriage Again, fix a price in advance. I remember it as a fish-and-chip stop, coming home from childhood holidays in South Wales.