I finally got the chance to travel to Morocco, so close to France and so cheap for flights…

It’s probably one of the easiest African countries to visit, with its rail and bus network. Springtime seems like the ideal season, autumn should be nice as well. Morocco is incredibly diverse.

Important: This trip is for 15 days, starting in Marrakesh and ending in Tangier. The reverse route, or starting from Spain, should be easily done. The duration was pretty much perfect! Doesn’t happen that often, tbh.

• If you go back from Marrakesh, take the train from Tangier. It’s easy.
• If you have fewer days: Fes and Casablanca are easy skips.
• If you have more days: Add a day or two in Essaouira. Perhaps one more in Tangier or Marrakesh.

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Itinerary done quick

Morocco

Day 0 to 4: Marrakesh and the desert

^Old part of the city, near the tombs

I departed from Rennes (RNS) arrived in Marrakesh in the evening after a very short flight.

Us Frenchmen are blessed with many connections to African countries and very regular flights, thanks to our big cosmopolitan community.

And also because of the colonial era. Very uncool.

Once I arrived, I went straight to my hostel, a riad-style hostel that was of poor quality despite its high prices.

The interesting part of Marrakesh is quite small, actually. As long as you’re near the centre, everything is easily done on foot.

I spent my first day around Jemaa el-Fnaa, the Bahia Palace, the Koutoubia Mosque, the jewish district and some random places throughout the city. Jemaa el-Fnaa is exactly as busy and chaotic as expected, not my vibe. The Bahia palace was overcrowded, most museums were pricy. I didn’t especially like Marrakesh, too crowded, too busy and just not my vibe. The best activity I did was photographing cats around the city, I got a whole collection of cat pictures.

Note the Marjorelle Garden needs to be booked weeks in advance, I couldn’t go.

For the following three days, I joined a desert tour from Marrakesh to Merzouga.

Linky link here

The tour cost around €140.

The first day crossed the Tizi n’Tichka Pass before stopping at Ait Benhaddou.

Ait Benhaddou is touristy, obviously, but still very impressive. The village is built into the hillside, and the view from the top is worth the climb. Probably my favourite place in Morocco, scenery-wise. The viewpoint of Ait Benhaddou is the one in the cover picture.

Then the first day also included the Rose Valley and several smaller stops on the way towards the desert.

On the second day, in the pretty town of Tinghir, we stopped mainly in the pretty Todra Gorge and made our way to Merzouga with small stops along the way

^The dunes of Merzouga

The highlight of the second day was the dunes near Merzouga, pictured above.

The tour returned to Marrakesh on the third day. It is a lot of driving, especially on the way back, but three days is probably the minimum needed to do the trip.

I had one final evening in Marrakesh before heading north.

And also, my feelings of the tour, since it’s the most important here:

Food was usually poor in quality and uber expensive Days of driving are loooong Organization was absolutely dogshit, I got moved around groups every so often. The highlight was Ait Benhaddou, I liked Tinghir as well, it’s low-key.

Day 5 to 6: Casablanca and Rabat

^Rabat, a world of contrasts

Instead of returning directly to Marrakesh, I joined a tour that left from Marrakesh and dropped me in Casablanca afterwards.

Casablanca is super boring.

The Hassan II Mosque is worth visiting, and it is easily the main reason to stop there. It is enormous, beautifully located beside the sea and much more impressive than the rest of the city. Apart from the mosque, I did not find much reason to stay. The Habous district was okayish, and that’s it.

From Casablanca, I continued to Rabat with the ONCF, it was painfully slow and late, but it did the trick for a few euros.

Rabat is very underrated. It is quieter than Marrakesh or Fes, but it still has plenty to see and feels much easier to explore. Plus, the crowd is infinitely nicer, the population is hip as well.

I visited the Kasbah of the Udayas, the Hassan Tower, Chellah and the Villa des Arts.

The Kasbah of the Udayas is filled with cats, with narrow streets, blue-and-white houses and views over the river, plus a nice café and a good artsy library.

Chellah was the main highlight: Pretty ruins, gardens, old walls, tombs, birds and views of the modern side of Rabat all condensed in one site. 100% worth the cost. The picture above is in Chellah. Also note, no one ever bother you in Rabat, chance are people are of higher socio-economical status than you (It’s not true for me, technically, but I felt it that way, lol)

The royal palace or whichever bullshit in the embassy district can’t easily be accessed, you can’t get there with a bag and you need an ID

Day 7: Meknes and its surroundings

Few make it to Meknes or stay there for a night. Many trips are rushed day trips. I would say that it’s a mistake?

Between Moulay Idriss Zerhoun, Volubilis and the city itself, it’s easy to get busy.

I took the train from Rabat to Meknes, which took around two hours. (Easy to find, easy to go!)

From Meknes, I visited Volubilis and Moulay Idriss by taking the public bus. I had to wait 40 minutes to get one that wasn’t full. I don’t really recommend.

If you really want to, the bus 15 goes to Moulay Idriss.

Maps link to Bus stop

Moulay Idriss is built on a hill nearby and is quite small, but it’s easy to get lost. Don’t miss the unusual cylindrical mosque tower, far up, close to the city viewpoint (From where you can find Volubilis)

Note: The place is full of scammers, beggars, weirdoes and all kind of crooks. Most sacred place in Morocco my ass…

To enter the mausoleum, you have to be muslim. Not that long ago, it was reserved to Morrocans, I kinda understand why, it’s not that significant inside. Plus the spectacle of weeping grannies in front of the main tomb is uncanny. Not something I can understand.

If you’re not muslim, don’t cheat your way in, it’s disrecpectful. Idriss 1st was the great-great grandson of the prophet (PBUH)

I walked to Volubilis, because I could.

Volubilis is one of the most impressive Roman sites in Morocco. The ruins are spread across a large open area, with several mosaics still visible. I had a guided tour I shared with some visiting frenchies, which were so kind that they also brought me back (otherwise I would have asked a tour bus or smth)

Then, I had an evening walk in Meknes. Meknes is much calmer than Fes, and it is easy to visit without spending the entire day fighting crowds.

The next day, I visited Bab mansour, walked in the city then took the train to Fes, which only takes around 40 minutes.

Day 8 to 9: Fes and the Middle Atlas

Fes is probably the most boring city of the trip. The medina is huge, crowded and extremely easy to get lost in, full of unsavory characters trying to cheat you. It’s impressive, but not my kind of stuff.

I visited Bab Bou Jeloud, the Al-Attarine Madrasa and the tanneries, among other random stuff. Just follow the stream of people and the main street. Don’t stray. Really, do not stray. The tanneries are worth seeing, although small & the smell is indeed bad. Better than the parisian metro or a locker room tho. Best thing I did was getting out of the Medina, towars the walls/cemetery to soak in the view.

The next day, I booked a tour through GetYourGuide to visit Ifrane and the cedar forests.

Here’s the link, I wish they gave me money

The berber house was more of a museum than anything else, but they served a nice tea./ The cedar forest was a highlight, just because it’s nice to walk in a forested place surrounded by animals. Home to Barbary macaques, they are easy to spot around the forest, but are mainly concentrated near the parking

Don’t feed the monkey. And don’t shock the monkey.

Ifrane is completely different from the rest of Morocco, with wide roads, parks and European-looking houses. The tour was a convenient way to visit the area without dealing with several transport connections and the tour guide brought us to the best restaurant I’ve had the pleasure to visit in Morocco. Food was nicely priced and absolutely yummy. Best Tajine I had. Really.

Day 10 to 12: Lovely blue city - Chefchaouen

I took an early morning bus to Chefchaouen. The journey took around 5 hours.

Chefchaouen is very touristy, but it is still one of the nicest places in Morocco. The old medina is small, walkable and, yes, extremely blue.

I once saw a review that said “You go to Chefchaouen, you say ‘wow it’s blue’ and you’re done”. Damn, the guy was bitter as fuck. His salty tears didn’t deter me from visiting. Honestly, just go and enjoy, explore the city and walk around the surrounding hills, see the viewpoints, the sunsets, the cats. Eat the food, taste the bakeries, take it in…

On the second day, I went to Akchour for the waterfall hike and God’s Bridge. It’s an easy one, easily reached by shared taxi right next to the bus station. My wait time for each way was around 5 minutes.

The landscape around Chefchaouen is completely different from the southern part of Morocco, much greener and more mountainous. I did two hikes, the second one was in the National Park starting from the northern wall. A weird guy wanted to spit on me because I refused to buy weed.

Fun fact, they sell weed right in front of the police station in the center. Most people visit only for the weed, some only for Instagram pictures. Not that many people go to Akchour

Chefchaouen was also a good place to slow down after moving around constantly for almost two weeks.

Day 13 and 14: Tangier and sights of Spain

^The Kasbah

I took a bus from Chefchaouen to Tangier, which took around three hours.

I spent the day walking around the city, the medina and the Kasbah. Additionally, I also visited the old tombs overlooking the sea. You can see Spain across the Strait of Gibraltar when the weather is clear.

Tangier worked very well as the final stop. From there, you can continue to Spain by ferry, fly home or take the train back south.

As you notice, I’m getting lazy writing this, I didn’t stay that long, mostly went shopping as I got home on day 14. Exactly two weeks, yay!

Practical Notes

• Transport: ONCF is just like the SNCF or the german trains, they don’t know what on-time mean. Otherwise buses are good enough.
• Booking: Easy on most apps/websites, lot of choice, even trains can easily be booked the same day
• Budget: around 30–40 € per day once you’re there. Biggest cost are activities
• SIM card: Easy to find, most european carriers will also work with some data in Morocco (check if it applies to you).
• Best season: Shoulder seasons, late april heat is already coming in.
• ATMs: Scams everywhere. They will steal your money, give you high rates, abusive fees and no one will help you.

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