vagabond Posted February 11, 2008 Share Posted February 11, 2008 In 2 weeks time we will be crossing to Morocco for the first time and would appreciate some advice / info / reassurance. What is considered the best place / way to buy Dirham ? Any essentials best taken across from Spain? Are there plenty of camp sites or are we likely to be searching for spaces / wild camping ? Any recommended sites or sites to avoid. Thanks B Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hymer C 9. Posted February 11, 2008 Share Posted February 11, 2008 Hi, Vagabond, and wellcome to the forum, we went to Morocco last year, and probabbly the first place to get your dirums is at the Exchange in the Customs area as you go through, most people seem to get thier first lot there. You do get the Cash Machines and get money there. One thing I would say is for going through customes make sure you have plenty of Biro's they seem to smooth the way through, also plenty of small dirims as when you park up you will have gaudians coming up to you to look after your motorhome and it is much safer, and the done thing to have the gaudians looking after your van. We stayed on sites mostly, as officially there are a lot of places you can't wild camp but we did see some wild camping. Do you speak some French as it will help a lot. I would take as much general supplys as you can, although bottled water and bread/milk are easily available. Do not expect the sites to be of european standard they are not but they are adeqate. There is a good site a just out side Marekesh and the site owner runs a mini bus into town as and when you want it only a couple of pounds there and back. Try and see Mekness worth the stop over. Also if you use the search on this site you will find some excellent information off 'detourer' he as some excellent advice. There is also a couple of good sites by Todra Gorge. If you go over the High Atlas Mountains, 'Tizi-n-tichka pass a wonderful experince which takes you to Marekesh, wonderful, as you are going along high in the mountains men will step in the road holding out beautiful coloured cryltals, we paid about £18 for one in the UK we have seen similar for £180. Do take plenty of Biros or sweets to give the children because sometimes you will need them. Well I've rambled on enough if there is anything else you want to know please ask. Have a great holiday. Carol. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vagabond Posted February 11, 2008 Author Share Posted February 11, 2008 Wonderful. Thanks for your help...... just what we need. Really looking forward to the visit..... although we admit to being a little nervous. B Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
panagah Posted February 12, 2008 Share Posted February 12, 2008 Hope you have a good time. It is somewhere I am thinking of going to maybe this year or next. Can you tell me how much the boat is from spain? and how long the crossing is? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
betsy Posted February 12, 2008 Share Posted February 12, 2008 Hi, Just read Stalwarts advice and agree 100% with it from changing money to what to take - only I'd take more than 1 bottle of red wine. You can buy booze there but only at special shops. The customs do not really seem to bother campervan owners but have those "Biros" or a few Euros ready just in case. We went last year on an organized tour (Blue Camel - they are excellent) and loved it. Most restaurants that we went to (and we never had a "bad" meal are BYO. If you can get a back copy of the recent MMM with the Hymers on the front negotiating a stony Moroccan track, just follow the route set out in the article - you cannot go wrong and will see so much more than if you just go to the beaches. We loved it so much that we are thinking of going back this time next year and will have a couple of other pals with us. Anyone else interested in joining us (just off to Spain/Portugal in the next few days so dont worry if you do not receive a reply for a while) just send me an e-mail. Betsy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
valaspden Posted February 14, 2008 Share Posted February 14, 2008 Hi I agree with all that has been said so far. We went with desertdetours com jn february 2006 and are going again in October. If you have room clothing for the childfen is very much appreciated. We also found that they would much rather hav pens, crayons etc. than sweets. Do go to Meknes, we thought it was wonderful. I bought a camping guide - in French in Morocco otherwise we used the Rough guide and Lonely Planet (much cheaper on Amazon) If you go to Essaouira and want the experience of an 'hammam' there is one linked to the Lalla Mira Hotel. About five of us went and it was a wonderful experience. I would add that the 'guardians' were extremely happy to be given a bottle of beer for their services. We were very concerned about gas as we had LPG cylinders on our motor caravan which couldn.t be refilled. People in the same situation used their BBQ point, or as we did fitted a T piece and pipe to enable us to buy the Moroccan gas cylinders. It was very, very cheap! Geo Center World Country map of Morocco 1;800 000 ISBN 3-575-03196-7 which was excellent. Hope you have a great time. Val Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
silverbike Posted February 14, 2008 Share Posted February 14, 2008 I had to smile at reading about buying a crystal at the side of the road! A few years ago we were in Morocco on a coach tour which included some Americans. One couple were very pleased with their crystal 'bargain' - until the next day! The split 'rock' had begun to crack revealing that it was in fact half a lemon, painted grey with the 'crystals' built up chemically! The buyer was furious and ready to throw it away but we persuaded him it was a talking point that would ensure they never forgot Morocco! Glad yours turned out to be the real thing! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vagabond Posted February 14, 2008 Author Share Posted February 14, 2008 Some excellent help provided both through the thread and via email. Very grateful to everyone. Thanks. By all means, if someone else has more to add then keep it coming. Appreciated. Just one other question. I read from some diaries and blogs about some folks using GPS. I can't get this for my Michelin Sat/Nav (Europe). Is Moroccan GPS specialist kit for 4x4 overlanders, etc. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
peterjl Posted February 14, 2008 Share Posted February 14, 2008 I have sent a PM Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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