ℹ️ Quick info
📅 When to go
Best period based on climate data · Open-Meteo
Spring and autumn are ideal: perfect temperatures, green landscapes and few crowds. Summer is scorching in the desert (45°C+). Winter is mild on the coast but cold at night in the Sahara.
💶 Costs
🛡️ Safety
Men who offer to guide you and then demand outrageous fees or steer you to friends' shops.
How to avoid it: Hire official guides through your riad or a certified agency. Ignore anyone who approaches you in the street.
In the souks, opening prices are often 5–10x the real price.
How to avoid it: Start by offering 20–30% of the asking price. Be polite but firm. You're never obliged to buy.
Tap water is not drinkable in the cities.
How to avoid it: Drink bottled water only. Choose restaurants with visibly good hygiene.
During Ramadan (dates vary) many restaurants close during the day.
How to avoid it: Avoid eating/drinking/smoking in public during Ramadan. Different hours, intense nightlife.
🚌 Transport
Always use the meter or agree the price BEFORE getting in. Never set off without a deal.
For intercity routes — cheap, but you wait for it to fill up (6 passengers). An alternative to buses.
Excellent between the main cities: Casablanca, Marrakech, Fes, Rabat. Comfortable and punctual.
Reliable luxury buses between cities. Book online at ctm.ma.
🧳 What to pack
- Clothes that cover the shoulders (cultural respect)
- A scarf/foulard (multi-use: sun, mosques, desert)
- Comfortable shoes for the souks (uneven ground)
- High-SPF sunscreen
- Cash in dirhams (cards rarely accepted in the souks)
- Sunglasses
- Mosquito repellent (coastal areas)
- Valid passport (min. 6 months)
- Withdraw dirhams at the airport or a bank
- Covering clothes (shoulders and knees)
- Bottled water — never the tap
- Install Google Maps offline (poor signal in the souks)
- Book a riad in the medina in advance
🎉 Seasonal highlights
The "Valley of the Roses" turns pink for weeks. The festival celebrates the harvest with processions, music and markets of rose products. Three hours from Marrakech.
Sleeping in a tented camp in the Merzouga Sahara is a life-changing experience. Endless stars, absolute silence and sunrise over the dunes. October is the best time: cool at night, warm by day.
Ramadan transforms the medina: silent by day, festive by night. The Iftar (breaking of the fast) is magical. If it falls during your trip, embrace it: a unique cultural immersion.
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