Hi,

Can anyone help us find a free guided tour in Marrakech or Fez?

Many countries offer free guided walking tours around a city. They tend to last 2-3 hours & you tip the guide at the end.

I did a web search & I found one page but it's in Spanish.

Thanks in advance.

I don't know of one but you also don't need one. Just dive in and explore. You don't have to buy anything you don't want to. A firm "no thank you" or "non, merci" is sufficient. If you do buy, negotiate everything and except for the smallest of purchases, make a starting offer of around 1/3 the asking price.

I juts found a company called Morkosh Tours which offers a free walking tours in Marrakech. the itinerary looks great! exactly what we wanted to do.

Anyone has done this tour before in Marrakech???

The free walking tour page is : http://www.morkosh.com/free-walking-tour-marrakech

Please understand that your tour won't, in fact, be free. Morocco is a country where every service requires a tip, it's how people feed their families and in the description for the tour you're looking at, it says right on the first line "...'name your own price' Marrakech tour." Expecting anything like this, or any personal services at all, no matter how small, to be free is thwarting the rules of their culture and will earn you considerable ill will if you ignore their way of doing things.

It's our duty to learn how things work in places we visit and this is a big one. Always have money in small denominations with you and tip as move through the country. A professional guide who spends 3 hours showing you the city will have earned a substantial, not a small, tip.

I got it!!! We will name our own price We've done the same in Amsterdam, New York, London and Paris. I just contacted them and it seems like they are leading walking tours for free but based on tip. Which fabulous. Thank you

Very good.

In case you are planning to be given a hard time during the so-called "Free Guided Tours" as you would expect not to receive anything for free. It is, most of the time, a shrewd trick to attract victims "like you" to join their tours - I anticipate you will be hassled to make purchases for the sake of getting commissions...I would rather suggest conducting a thorough research, read the reviews...before booking a professional tour guide..

I STRONGLY suggest you do not use what are called 'faux guides' (false guides). They are unlicenced, subject to arrest, and won't give you much of a service as they are looking over their shoulders all the time for the Brigade Touristique (Tourist Police).

Read: http://riadzany.blogspot.co.uk/2010/...de-in-fez.html and http://riadzany.blogspot.co.uk/2012/...ed-in-fez.html

Good links. I am still trying to figure why someone would think it is "fabulous" to take a tour "for free but based on tip". I would infinitely prefer to use a properly trained and licensed guide (not one who has memorised a script full of tourist tales) and pay them a proper fee. Since I do not shop, and either kind of guide would therefore miss out on expected commissions, I would expect to pay a bit more. Paying a proper guide a proper fee I would expect to avoid pushy shopping ops and reiterated sales pitches for the companies other (paid) tours.

I, too, think "free" is a less-than-optimum place to start and this may turn out to be an example of "you get what you pay for". But who knows, if it makes them happy. They may even get someone good.

Hi Jona,

You can also ask your Riad manager/owner to set one up for you when you get there.
Have fun! Morocco is wonderful!