Morocco

[FIYes]

Has anyone been to Morocco? An earlier thread got me looking at some organized tours. Morocco came up as an option. Just curious if anyone has been and has any comments. I would definitely want a tour.

[audreyh1]

I looked at the Nat Geo tour and was interested.

[HawkeyeNFO]

Rocked the Casbah in Tangiers

[bobneardc]

I went three years ago and I might go again.

[Bamaman]

Most people going to Morocco are doing short term trips from touring Spain and/or Portugal.

[brett]

NO...but it is at the top of our list and I have an order in for next months release of Lonely Planet Morocco. TAP have some very attractive fares. If it was not for covid we would have been there this spring or fall.

Our plan is six weeks. Fly into Casablanca and out of Lisbon. If we have had enough of Morocco we can happily spend a few weeks in Portugal. Lots of LC flights to Portugal/Spain or we can take the ferry back from Tangier to Tarifa, Spain. Plus another two weeks somewhere else. We have 60 day out of country medical so we limit our trips to that timeframe.

Plan to go either spring or fall. Spend a two weeks on the Atlantic coast beaches. Then tour.

We looked at package tours. We are fairly independent travelers. We will look at buying an in country tour of the dessert/mountain areas. Not certain yet. Won't decide until we get there.

We like to spend more time in each area than most tours allow for. We are retired and in no rush whatsoever.

[OldShooter]

We went, spent a week, in 2013. It's pretty neat. We're pretty independent travelers except in countries that do not use the Roman alphabet for street signs. We also hate group travel, so we hired a private guide/driver. Traveling this way we go where we want to go, when we want to go, we eat at interesting restaurants at times of our choosing, and learn a lot about a country, history and politics as we drive.

Interntional Travel News might help, too: https://www.intltravelnews.com/2020/...driver-morocco
https://www.intltravelnews.com/2019/...st-three-parts
https://www.intltravelnews.com/2019/guide-and-riad-fez

If your search runs into articles behind their paywall, a subscription costs a pittance.

[Thomas3857]

My wife and I and another couple went to Tangiers in 2017 for a day trip. Took the ferry and had a private guide. Had a couple of moments of unease especially walking through the market when we were swarmed by vendors. Not my favorite. Would not go to Tangiers again. Maybe other places are better. Wouldn't recommend w/o a guide who speaks the language. He was able to help us get through customs for the ferry ride. Whole area felt a bit sketchy.

[CardsFan]

When I was working I went to Morocco at least half a dozen times, but did very little sight seeing. If you are not with a tour, I would recommend hiring a driver, as others have noted. In the bigger cities, like Casablanca, most signage is in arabic, french, and english. Further into the country side the english disappears, and then the french.

I found the people to be very friendly and welcoming. Food is fantastic. I would probably avoid going during Ramadan. Since most folks observe fasting during the day, fewer restaurants are open during the day, and at night they are crowded with folks that have not eaten all day. At least this was the case where I was, might different in the tourist areas.

Morocco and Tunisia are two of the countries that I visited for work and regret not spending more time to explore.

[brett]

Our practice is to hire guides/drivers as appropriate. In country.

I have some French, at least enough to get by in France, so this should help. It 'comes back' after a few day. Have not decided yet whether to rent a car in some areas. Lots of time to research and decide.

[FIYes]

I think that I would be more comfortable on a tour. I agree about countries that use the Roman alphabet….much easier to read street signs, etc.

[bigreader]

Spent a week there about ten years ago with family. For the first half, we stayed at a spa just outside Marrakech and the balance in the city. We traveled independently but with prebooked guides and drivers. I think that it is definitely worth a visit, we had a wonderful time.
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[folivier]

We spent a few nights in Fez about 10 years ago while on a Europe trip with another couple. Interesting country but be prepared for the oppression towards women. Not a problem for us but it is very apparent in the locals.
We took the ferry from Tarifa, SP and hired a driver to take us to Fez. On the drive my wife would ask the driver questions and would be repeatedly ignored until I would ask the same question and he would animatedly answer. Then spent a few nights in a Riyadh so we could enjoy walking and exploring the Medina. Spend time at the leather factory in town. Very interesting area and culture.

[audreyh1]

I was so delighted by the moorish architecture in Andalusia (Southern Spain) that I became interested in visiting Morocco. I know a few that enjoyed the Nat Geo tour.

A couple, I suppose well meaning, Northern Spain Nat Geo tour participants warned that “a bunch of terro****ts come from there”. I didn’t know what to say to that or whether it should influence my desire to visit. Admittedly much of the Middle East is rather intimidating to visit as a tourist, but I’d met so many travelers that greatly enjoyed their visit to Morocco.

[brett]

We were told the same thing about South Africa prior to spending two weeks on our own driving through the county and another four or five days in Cape Town and environs. So glad we went

Same for Thailand. Our first trip was when their was student unrest. The NA news reports put us off. Until we contacted an expat who lived there and was familiar. Let's just say the news reports did not reflect the reality. We liked it so much we returned for five more winters.

We do look at our Government's travel warnings. And those of the US. But so often we have found that it is more about CYA than anything else. The warnings we have seen about London, Paris, and parts of Turkey that we are familiar with come to mind.

I mean really at one time the British Gov't was warning their nationals about going to Miami shortly after a few Brits were murdered.

[OldShooter]

Remember, the Europeans think there is a gangster with an AR-15 on every street corner in the US.

I would say we are "medium" experienced travelers, a little over 40 countries including third world like Ethiopia, Myanmar, Egypt, etc. Sure, some countries have more problems than others, but in almost all cases they are localized (Tahrir square) in cities or well away from tourist areas (Rohingya persecutions). Injuries and other major risks to tourists are statistically negligible. In most case, too, the governments are desperate for tourist revenue and go to great lengths to protect us as valuable revenue sources. Egypt actually has "tourist police" whose job it is to help and protect tourists.

Of course there are a few places to avoid, like maybe South Sudan, CAR and, recently, northwest Ethiopia, but most are not usual tourist destinations anyway.

Re CYA, yes on that and on politics. Warnings about the West Bank, for example, are a total political joke.

Morocco with a guide? Near zero risk. Be careful at the Hassan II Mosque mosque. Some really irregular steps there.

[SheitlQueen]

I was there about a year and a half ago on a Gate 1 tour. I really enjoyed it, but it is not my favorite trip. Not much historically to look at (apparently each regime that came in tore down everything from the previous regime), buildings are all brown and square and look the same. But the culture is interesting, loved riding the camels and sleeping in the desert one night, loved going shopping. I would recommend going.