Morocco, some advice for first timers
 

Hello all,
Further to my earlier thread about Morocco which I posted in February. My husband and I are in our seventies and very experienced travellers in Southern Africa. This will be our first trip to Morocco, the first time in North Africa. We will leave on April 13th.
We will have a private guide who will accompany us on our 16 day journey through the country. We will spend three days in Marrakech before traveling through the Atlas mountains via Air Ben Haddou, Telouet, Skoura, Dades to Merzouga where we will spend two nights in the desert. We will then travel North, via Midelt to Fes and Meknès.

In Marrakech we can pretty much decide for ourselves what we'd like to see. We would also like some time to acclimatize.
Given our ages (I for one am less mobile than I was 10 years ago due to a knee injury) we are not very big fans of crowds. We have no particular interest in shopping, certainly not at the start of our 16 day journey. I am looking for some advice on things to do and see in Marrakech itself.

In every foreign city we visit we usually start off by taking a hop-on-hop-off bus to familiarize ourselves with the city in question. I know that Marrakech also has several of such bus companies but wonder if it would be worth our while as most of the more interesting sights will probably be in the old city. Would love some advice on this.

• Having visited Granada and Sevilla in Andalucia, Spain before we are already quite familiar with the wonderful Moorish architecture. We watched some video's on the Bahia Palace and wonder if, given the above, it would be worth a visit. It is relatively new, 19th century whereas the much older El Badi palace is 16th century albeit mostly ruins.
• the Jamaa el Fna square is of course a must, we realize that, even though it will be very crowded. What would your advice be: a visit during the day or in the evening? Any suggestions on a roof top restaurant overlooking the Jamaa el Fna?
• The Koubba Almoravide is one of the oldest buildings in Marrakech. We would like to visit it. To my surprise it was not mentioned on the list sent to us by our guide.
• The Mellah Spice market is said to be less touristy and nearby the old Jewish quarter. Would that be worth a visit in your opinion?
• The same question about the Tinsmith's square.
• Which of the museums would you recommend?

In general we prefer the less touristy, less crowded parts of any town. Any suggestions, such as restaurants, places to have tea in the afternoon are most welcome. Shukran!

Re: bus tour. As you note, most sites you would probably want to see in Marrakech are in the medina and so not accessible by bus. FWIW, I greatly enjoyed a caleche tour the circled the medina with bits inside it. You can find a caleche for hire just off Jemma el Fnaa; they would be hard to miss.

I found the Bahia Palace sufficiently different from the Moorish architecture in Andalusia to easily merit a visit. I would think your experiences in Spain might provide an informed perspective on what you will see in Marrakech, not a substitute for it. YMMV.

The older Badia Palace is, indeed, in ruins. You will see a bit of the influence of Moorish architecture; not much more. I found it well worth visiting, but perhaps more for the insight into its harem than anything else. (That, and watching a young boy run around the fountains in one area.) Again, YMMV. With so little time in Marrakech, I think you would have to have a very high level of interest in this particular ruin to make it worth your visit. I could be wrong.

When I was there, the Jemaa el Fnaa was busier at night than during the day, but I was pleasantly surprised at how easy it was to move around at either time – and I abhor crowds. Even during the day, the surrounding restaurants and cafes were packed. If it is possible to reserve any of the roof-top restaurants that overlook the square, all I can say is that I was not able to do so – and I spent a fair amount of time trying.

IMO, the Almoravid Qubba is well worth visiting and is unlike anything else you will see in Marrakech. Not surprisingly, it’s similar in style to Cordoba’s Mezquita; whether you see that as an advantage or disadvantage (given your first bullet) is something I can’t say.

I’m not sure which markets I visited and so can’t advise you on their differences. I thought the Tinsmith’s square heavily geared to tourists; that doesn’t mean I’m sorry to have visited it! You might just want to roam a bit….

Museums in Marrakech … depends on your interests! The museums there that I enjoyed the most were (listed alphabetically)

· Monde des Arts de la Parure
· Mouassine Music Museum (try to see a concert)
· Musee de la Femme
· Musee de Marrakech – which you will find similar, in ways, to the Bahia Palace
· Musee Pierre Berge des Arts Berberes

Restaurants I enjoyed:

· Al Fasia Bueliz (reservation recommended)
· Le Tobsil (reservation necessary)

Places I enjoyed for afternoon breaks:

· Café Clock
· Kozybar
· La Jardin Secret
· La Mamounia
· Odette Rooftop Bar

I hope that helps!

Dear KJA, you are amazing! Thank you so much. We will hopefully be able to make reservations in one of the restaurants overlooking the square through our Moroccan guide.
I also thoroughly enjoyed your long trip report, so thank you also for taking the trouble of sharing your very interesting travel experiences. I loved the pictures too.
A few other practical questions if I may.

• During what time of year did you travel through Morocco?
• You mentioned that the desert can be cold at night. We will be staying for two nights. Do you recommend binging some thermal underwear or would that be too much?
• Beside a good windbraker/rain jacket would I need a separate sweater? We try to travel as light as possible.
• Does one generally leave a tip in restaurants and if so what kind of percentage would you recommend?
• What was your internet solution? Did you buy a separate Moroccan SIM card?

I cannot tell you how happy I am with this Fodor's travel forum. It is wonderful that so many people all over the world are willing to share their experiences. Thank you again!

As the first line of my trip report states, I visited Morocco in October 2024.

People differ in their experience of various temperatures and, while in the desert, what they choose to do between dusk and dawn, so I can't tell you how to pack. You might ask your guide about nighttime temperatures at the camp you've chosen and make your decision based on that.

Any decent guidebook (and certainly the Moon Guide) can provide tipping guidance. I dined at upscale restaurants and so generally left 10%. For casual cafes, 2 to 5 durham.

For internet, I made sure to book lodgings that offered it.

My eSIM was through NOMAD, but before you purchase a SIM or eSIM, make sure you check with your guide about the services available at your camp. Service can be spotty in the desert and not all companies provide equally reliable service at all locations.

Again, KJA, you are a wonderful guide. Thanks again. Unfortunately in this case: I live in Europe and have not found a way to order a Moon guide on Morocco.

We don't want to have to rely on wifi provided in hotels and restaurants but prefer to use the local 5G or 4 G network if at all possible. For that you need a local SIM card of course.

Our last trip to South Africa was seven years ago. We always used to buy a local SIM card as soon as we entered the country. The same in South America. That meant, however, not being able to use your own SIM card at all. In the meantime things apparently have changed for the better.
Re internet and in particular data of course: we were advised to buy an extra digital SIM via Orange. According to my information this network runs paralel to your regular network. You switch off data roaming on your own cell phone number but can still call and be called on it, provided you don't call e.g. via WhatsApp. You use the secondary, Moroccan number for internet data only. I am still in the process of finding out more about this. Anyone with better advice is welcome.
Afterthought: my goodness, I have been traveling internationally for over 50 years! How on earth did I manage to survive in the "old days" I often ask myself.

I readily admit that I don't understand all the niceties of various internet / data / text / phone options. Good luck determining what you need!

In lieu of the Moon Guide, the Rough Guide is nearly as good.

Ebook versions of Moon Guides, including Morocco, appear to be available from Amazon in Europe. Also handy while traveling.

Thanks MmePerdu. In general I use an E-book but when it comes to travel guides I prefer the old fashioned printed ones. So much easier to browse and write notes in the margins.

Incidentally, I forgot to ask: has any of you ridden a camel in the desert? Given my age plus the fact that I have several orthopedic implants I wonder if it would be a good idea. In your opinion are they safe enough?

I agree, much prefer a paper book of any kind. However, with trips getting longer, last one was 5 months, & suitcases getting smaller I’m a recent convert to ebooks. I’m not happy about it but something had to give. Now I use a paper copy for planning & downloads of the same books on the road.

Yes, I road a camel in the desert. If you are going to a decent camp with reasonably competent staff, they should be able to either advise you against it or plan a ride that suits you in terms of length (time and distance) and camel (they differ in how easy they are to ride). If you have health concerns, I'd want to be sure the camel ride was not provided at an extra cost -- I wouldn't want a profit motive to overtake appropriate evaluation.

Like MmePerdu, I plan using hard copy books and download at least one to take along in case something catches my eye that I want to investigate. I would NEVER try to plan a trip without at leas one decent guidebook in hard copy; I usually use 5 or 6.

We're on the same page, KJA and MmePerdu. To me, the planning of a trip is half the fun. Unfortunately this time we are just recovering from a big house move preceded by five months of renovating the new one. With hindsight I just didn't have enough head space to properly plan this trip.
If it weren't for the fact that our private guide (a friend of friends) happened to have two weeks available in April, I would have rather postponed this trip to October. For the first time in my life I have left most of the itinerary to our -luckily very experienced- Moroccan guide and I trust him to have made the right decisions.
However, given the great number of places to visit within cities like Marrakech, Mèknes and Fez we have to make our own choices. I am very grateful for your suggestions and advice. Shukran!

Best wishes with your continued planning!

Restaurant you can book in advance; offers views of the square; one of several with those views.

https://lemarrakchi.com/en/

Thank you very much Ekscrunchy. It's on my list! :)

Greetngs from Marrakech and a big Thank You for all your advice and tips, KJA. We are enjoying this bustling city immensely. It'a a completely different world, isn't it? Wonderful hospitality everywhere.

Thank you for suggesting Le Marrakchi, Ekscrunchy. It was indeed a wonderful experience and the food was delicious too!

I'm glad you are enjoying it. I certainly did!

We did a private tour in March. Jardin Majorelle and the YSL Museum (same location) are well worth visiting in Marrakech. We also stumbled upon Maison culturelle du tapis (museum of rugs). It had just opened. The space is lovely, the local history of rugs interesting, and you can even take a rug making class. Other than the sights mentioned, we also visited the Slat Al Azama Synagogue and nearby Jewish cemetery.

As far as camel riding, our group was about your age, +/- a few years. Our ride lasted about an hour, including a break. The worst part about it was the camel is wide, so your legs are stretched to a wide open position that became uncomfortable at about the 30 minute mark. We did get a break to watch the sun start setting. We needed it. Then we had about another 10-15 min to camp. I would say it was definitely worth doing once, the desert is stunning. That being said, I would not do it again.