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Research the places in Morocco you’d like to visit but leave wiggle room for changes along the way and enjoy the spontaneity that Morocco allows. While it’s possible to pre-book tours and activities, it’s usually just as easy to reserve them when you arrive in the country. 2. Take public transport, especially in cities The Tizi n’Test is one of the most beautiful, and most dangerous, drives in Morocco. An impressive feat of French engineering, this High Atlas pass reaches a vertigo-inducing 2100m (6890ft). It’s not for the fainthearted – only one-car wide in places, there are precipitous drops aplenty, and local drivers often barrel around blind bends at speed. But take your eyes off the road for an instant – preferably at a roadside cafe – and the views will take your breath away.
Morocco’s rich musical culture boasts influences from Amazigh to Andalusian, Arabian to sub-Saharan, and it’s fast becoming a top spot for music festivals showcasing eclectic rhythms.The souqs are filled with fake tennis shoes, which are just that: fakes. Many Moroccans don't care whether their Nikes are original; they just want the best price for the latest styles. 6. Cash or card? I am originally from the UK and have been living in Morocco since 2018. There are things I wish I'd known before jumping headfirst into the seemingly lawless world of Moroccan taxis and bargaining in the souqs. The award-winning Yves Saint Laurent Museum Marrakech reopens on September 17 after the summer break with a new temporary exhibition that will feature paintings of Morocco by French artist Théophile-Jean Delaye.
Along the beach you'll find restaurants serving fish, some with playgrounds for kids. Take a dip to cool off, or rent a jet ski or paddleboat from the marina to mix things up. At night, beach clubs bump and shimmer for the party crowd. 5. Sfiha With great fish and seafood – the town is renowned for its oysters – and a range of accommodation options, it's a popular weekend and summer retreat for Marrakshis and Casablancais, and the perfect destination for those in need of a break from the city hubbub. The ferry between Spain and Tangier takes just one hour, and seeing Spain from Africa's coastline brings to light Morocco’s proximity to Europe. The 'white city,' so-named for its whitewashed buildings, has a buzzing art scene, tapas restaurants and cafe culture – Cafe Hafa has some of the best ocean views. Spanish is still widely spoken, adding to the Euro-Afro vibe, and open plazas such as Grand Socco and beautiful Mediterranean beaches make it a smooth entry point for travelers to Morocco. While many Moroccans speak English, the local language is Darija (Moroccan Arabic), with some French thrown in (and Spanish in the north). If you want to impress the locals, Darija Direct is an app that will help you get to grips with the Darija language. Toolkit - all of the planning tools for solo travellers, LGBTQIA+ travellers, family travellers and accessible travel
During May and October, you can travel comfortably to Morocco’s portion of the Sahara Desert, avoiding the intense heat of summer and the cold nights of winter. If you come in summer, expect to find most desert camps closed from June to August due to the excessive heat, which soars over 100°F . Conversely, days are shorter during the winter months from December to February and the nights and early mornings can be freezing, particularly when sleeping under canvas.
If you want to get off the beaten path and explore Morocco at your own pace, you can rent everything from a compact Fiat to a 4WD, which is useful for navigating the Atlas Mountains and desert roads. This country has a ton of beautiful places to visit, but don't try to see it all at once. Instead, select a few places based on your interests and start making plans for your next trip. Avoid driving after dark – thanks to poor road conditions, inclement weather, or just stopping to explore, journeys will often take longer than you think. On the road, keep numbers for emergency services to hand in case of breakdowns, and drive slowly – speed limits are strictly enforced – and defensively. Moroccan cuisine is a genuine melting pot – alongside Amazigh (Berber) influences, Arabs, Moors, Ottoman Turks, and French all left their culinary mark. One of the best ways to discover it is on a street-food tour. Fearless foodies sample everything from snail soup to boiled sheep’s head, plus tempting sweet treats such as chebakia (deep-fried dough coated in sesame seeds) and wild honey.
The High Atlas is a hiker’s paradise, running diagonally across the country for around 1000km (620 miles), from the Atlantic coast to northern Algeria. Imlil, sitting in the foothills of the High Atlas 90 minutes from Marrakesh, is the jumping-off point for scaling Toubkal, North Africa’s highest peak at 4167m (13670ft), a two-day ascent. Outside July and August, it's quiet, with little more to do than relax, surf and gorge on shellfish. In spring and autumn, birdwatchers arrive to observe migrating pink flamingos, terns, egrets and more on the lagoon and surrounding coastal wetlands. Iriqui National Park So if you're one of the tourists planning to visit Morocco soon, what do you need to know before you go? Only a handful of top-end hotels have accessibly designed rooms. Booking ground-floor rooms is essential as few hotels have elevators, but accommodation in Gueliz is more likely to have them. Vision- or hearing-impaired travellers are poorly catered for. Hearing loops, Braille signs and talking pedestrian crossings are nonexistent.
Ride-hailing apps, such as Uber, Lyft and Careem, are not available in Marrakesh, and getting a taxi can be a stressful experience. All drivers will insist their meter is "broken" and will quote prices up to 10 times the metered rate. Avoid getting taxis wherever possible, but particularly those waiting at stands that get a lot of tourist business: the airport, train station, Jardin Majorelle and virtually all those around the medina gates. You can usually get a better price by flagging a taxi down from the street. Keep your papers to hand for any dealings with the police. There’s no legal drunk-driving limit, so drivers should strictly abstain. Planning tip: While you're in the area, visit the imperial city of Meknes and the fantastically preserved ancient Roman ruins of Volubilis. 8. TangierDetour: Stay atop the hill overlooking Plage Sfiha at Casa Paca, a friendly bed-and-breakfast run by the half-Spanish, half-Moroccan owner, Joaquin, and his wife, Nabila. Dinners here are delicious. Open June to October. 6. M’Diq A mixture of French, Arabic, Amazigh and English is spoken in Morocco, depending on where you are in the country. Don't expect everyone to speak English. Apps like Google Translate can be useful, but learning some basic Arabic phrases will reward you with feeling more connected and engaged with people you meet. 8. Respect the motto of ‘God, king and country’ From Unesco World Heritage–listed cities to modern metropoles, arid deserts to snowy peaks, wild Atlantic beaches to secluded Mediterranean coves, Morocco has a place for all types of travelers. If you have more time, the week-long Toubkal circuit follows centuries-old trails between remote Amazigh villages, crossing fertile valleys, rugged massifs and panoramic passes.
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