krishnan

We’re going to Morocco for 2 weeks in April. At the end of our stay, we plan to take the train from Marrakech to Casa (where we stay overnight before flying out) – we’re planning to take the 9am train on a Saturday. My minor question is whether we can just show up at the train station and buy tickets, or should we buy tickets in advance, given that we’ll be traveling on a weekend in peak tourist season? I’d like to make sure we catch the 9am train so that we get in time to Casa to see the Hassan II mosque on their 2pm tour (last of the day). If we should buy the train tix in advance, can we buy them at local travel companies (or even from a website) or does it have to be only at the train station? Thanks very much for any help.

Fabio

buy them and reserve the first class seats at least 2 days in advance at Marrakech station.
Without reservation we would have been standing all of our 3 trips:

Casa-Rabat
Rabat-Marrakech
Marrakech-Casa

If you just show up at the station it might be that they sell you anyway the first class tickets but then you have a first class "standing" place !!

Fabio

check www.oncf.ma for fares and timetable but I am not sure you can buy online... !!

krishnan

thanks for the heads-up, Fabio. I've done my share of standing long distance train travel in India and even in the US northeast corridor, and have no desire to add to the experience.

I did check out the oncf website, but with my limited French I could not find a place to buy tickets online. Will try to get to a train station a couple of days earlier to buy the tix. Or we have a longer stay in Fes early in the trip - perhaps we can buy the Marrakech-Casa tix at Fes. Thanks again.

Fabio

yes

you might buy and reserve your marrakech-casa tix in Fes.
I do not understand french as well and had to check only prices and timetables on their website. I could not understand the rest.

Anyway we had a memorable stay in Morocco and wish to go there again.
We only had 8 days and during the peak period of 30th dec until 6th january.
We had no problem to reserve the seats 2-3 days in advance.
have a nice trip !

krishnan

thanks, Fabio!

filmchef

Krishnan, Where are you stating in Casablanca for your last night in Morocco. We too would like to stay central in Casa.

krishnan

filmchef: we're staying at the Guynemer hotel which is very central. It is recommended by the Lonely Planet and is midrange (580 dirhams for a double). We're staying in midrange riads or kasbahs pretty much everywhere else (e.g Dar Roumana in Fes, Riad Ariha in Marrakech), but we're not expecting much charm in this one, nor do we care since we have an early morning flight the next day. If you're also going to the desert, mountains, Essaouira etc and want to know where we're staying, pl let me know since we've done a reasonable bit of research into the options and I'd be happy to save you the legwork.

pg

We travelled at the end of November '06. I am not sure if April is busier than November, but we bought our tickets at the train station for the 11am train. There are trains from Marrakesh to Casa every 2 hours from 9am to 5pm. The second class that we travelled in was equivalent to the 2-tier AC in India, the seats were comfortable, the train not at all crowded, and yes, you get a good chance of meeting everyday Moroccans - which is so easy to miss if you are doing the tourist circuit.
The 2nd class tickets itself are bout 70% or so of the first class. We did 2nd class because of recommendations from others who had done this before - and looking back, the 1st class wasn't that much different.
Also remember, the train starts from Marakkesh, and the 2nd class tickets to the best of my knowledge didn't have any seat/ bogie numbers. So, getting a ticket in advance might defeat the purpose anyway.

filmchef

Krishnan, Thank you for the help. We booked into Guynemer in casa. They have great reviews on tripadvisor.

We are already booked into dar anebar in fes and dar dallah in marrakech. Did tons of research and looking forward to the trip. Rather than training it from fes to marrakech we are having a guide drive us on the scenic route.

have fun on your trip.

krishnan

thanks, pg.
and have a great trip, filmchef.

wintersp

krishna - would you share on this board the culminationn of your research for Essaouria and the desert =-that you refrer to. I'd like to save some legwork since I have so many irons in the fire.

thanks

krishnan

wintersp: Here are the other places where we're going to stay that I consider the pick of the litter given our criteria (smaller and atmospheric places in the upper middle price range - mostly around US$100-150 double; in the smaller towns this includes half board):
Erg Chebbi sand dunes: There are several options near the dunes - we went with Chez Erremal because it's recommended by i-escape (whose picks I tend to like)
Ait Benhaddou: Dar Mouna appears to be the best option of the places with a view of Ait Ben Haddou
High Atlas mountains: One night at the Kasbah Toubkal in Imlil. This has received so much hype (incl front page in recent New York Times travel section) that our expectations are suitably tempered. It's also very pricey, but I figured we'd give it a shot for one night to see what the buzz about this area is all about. We're spending a second night at Au Sanglier Qui Fume in nearby Ouirgane. La Bergerie also appears a good option in Ouirgane; and maybe Chez Momo. Residence de la Roseraie appeared a bit prone to the tourbus crowd.
Taroudant: Two possibilities. We picked Riad Maryam (small, highly touted food; but riad itself is modest) over Hotel Palais Salam (great architecture, gardens and is in the kasbah, but large and impersonal).
Essaouira: Many choices, given the artsy vibe of the town. We happened to pick Dar Loulema.
And in the cities: Riad Kasbah in Rabat (in the old Kasbah des Oudaias) and as mentioned earlier, Dar Roumana in Fes and Riad Ariha in Marrakech.
Most of these riads/hotels have websites with pricing info and photos.