u/morocco_travel36

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i spent the last 3 days actually writing this ... so here's the honest version.. what to skip in morocco and what's genuinely worth your time. world cup year is coming and the country is changing fast :)) , more on that at the bottom.

== WHAT TO AVOID ==

==> the "this way is closed" guy at the medina gate. nothing is closed. he walks you in circles and then bills you, sometimes 200 dirham per "detour." say LA SHUKRAN and keep walking, you'll find it.
==> anyone grabbing your wrist for henna in jemaa el-fna. it's "free, for luck" right up until two relatives appear wanting 200-300 dirham. pull your hand back before the paste touches you.
==> the tannery "tour." a guy leads you in, then you can't leave until you pay. if you want to see a tannery just walk to it yourself.

==> snake charmers and the monkey-on-a-chain photos. you get cornered for money and the animals are treated horribly. just don't feed it.

==> "amethyst" geodes and trilobite fossils in the souks. most are painted rocks and resin. fine as a fun souvenir, not as anything real.

==> the taxi with the "broken" meter. oldest trick going. agree the price before you sit down or make him run the meter.

==> in chefchaouen, the guy who sells you hash and then his "police" friend turns up for a shakedown. opens around 2000 dirham and climbs. don't buy it and there's no problem.

==> newer one.. random qr codes stuck up at tourist spots, and slick "agencies" on instagram that take a deposit then vanish. book your stay on a real platform and pay tours in person where you can see who you're paying.

== WHAT'S ACTUALLY WORTH IT ==

==> fes medina at 5-6am. empty. just bakers and the call to prayer. genuinely the best hour you will have in this country.

==> the atlas mountains. under an hour from marrakech and it's a completely different planet. asni, imlil, toubkal if you want to hike. easiest escape from the crowds there is.

==> eating two streets back from any famous square. same food, half the price, tastes better, no laminated photo menu. this is the whole game, learn it day one.

==> the train between cities. casa to marrakech is like 10-20 bucks, comfortable, on time. skip the tourist-priced private transfers, they're a rip for the same trip.

==> fes over marrakech if you only have time for one medina. 20-30% cheaper, bigger, older, far less hustle.

==> the coast without the chaos. essauira is great but getting busy, so el jadida and oualidia are quieter and just as good.

==> a sahara night near merzouga done properly. silence like you have never heard in your life. just book a real operator, not a guy who approached you at a gate.

== MONEY + THE WORLD CUP THING ==

==> rough rate is 1 usd to about 10 dirham, 1 euro to about 11. so harira soup at 5 dirham is 50 cents, fresh orange juice 4, sardine sandwich 8, kebabs 10-15. lunch for under a dollar fifty is completely normal.

==> use the al barid bank atms at the post offices. lowest fees by a mile. most other atms hit you 20-40 dirham per withdrawal, so take out bigger amounts less often.

==> come in summer if you can handle heat. june to august is 40+ inland and in the desert, and because of that hotels drop their prices hard. walk early and late, nap in the afternoon like everyone here does, and it's one of the cheapest times to come.

==> the one nobody mentions.. we're co-hosting the 2030 world cup with spain and portugal. the whole country is under construction for it, new high speed rail to marrakech, airports expanding, 25000 new hotel rooms going up. and riad prices in marrakech and casablanca are already up 15-20% since 2024 and climbing every year until 2030. if morocco is on your list, going sooner is just cheaper. that's not a sales pitch, it's the math.

that's the list :))

btw moroccans and anyone who's actually been.. what did i miss. drop your worst scam story and your best "worth it" thing below, both sides, and i'll add the good ones to the list.

that's me with the big hair. the green one always gets the best reaction. she could not keep a straight face the whole time :))

the Family :)

ok so i am moroccan. i lurk here alot . but i keep thinking about you guys landing this week with only one night booked and nothing after. normally thats fine in morocco. not this week.

it is eid al-adha. the biggest holiday of the year. the whole country closes for 2-3 days, more in small towns. and the way you like to travel here is the way that breaks during eid. so just be ready.

the cheap food closes first. this is the one that hurts. the 15dh bissara, the msemen cart, the small place with 30dh tagine.. all family run. the family is home for the holiday. all closed. tourist restaurants stay open but now you pay 90-120 a plate, not 25. so your budget is gone fast if you dont expect it. go buy bread, cheese, fruit, water TODAY while the shops are still open.

money is the next problem. everyone takes out cash for eid, so the ATMs in small towns go empty for days. i have seen people stuck in a town with no working machine and no way to pay the room lol. take your cash out now, in a city, more than you think you need.

oh and if you drink, thats finished for a few days. shops stop selling alcohol before eid and start again a few days after.

transport is the big one. all moroccans travel home before eid, so CTM and the trains sell out days early. if you have a marrakech to fes trip or a chefchaouen trip this week and you didnt book, you might be stuck where you are. grand taxis still go but the driver knows you have no choice, and the price shows it.

anyway i dont want to say dont come. its the opposite really.

the medinas get very quiet for those days. fes at 6am during eid, no touts, nobody shouting "my friend where you from", just empty streets and the smell of bread. people here say the real morocco is gone. it is not. it just comes maybe 2-3 days a year, and you booked the right week by luck.

and the best part.. if someone calls you in for the eid meal, go. just go. you will get boulfaf (grilled liver in fat, sounds crazy, tastes amazing), mechoui, too much food, lots of tea. and it costs you nothing. feeding strangers is the whole point of this holiday. some of you broke backpackers will eat better than your whole trip, for free, with a family that will ask about you next year.

so quick version if you are already here: take out cash today, buy 2 days of food from a shop, book any bus or train seat now before it is gone, dont count on cheap restaurants for a few days. then go enjoy the quietest these medinas will ever be. for real.

anyone else got stuck here during eid with no money? what happened lol. and if you are here this week and not sure what is open, just write your route in the comments, i will tell you.

edit: just to be clear, the tourist things mostly still work. hotels feed you, big sights are open, guides work (we need the money after eid haha). it is the cheap unplanned parts that get you, not the trip itself.

local guide here, so. it's eid al-adha right now. biggest religious holiday of the year here, think christmas-day-level shutdown but for 2-3 days. and a LOT of families book late-may morocco trips without realizing they've walked straight into it. if that's you, don't panic. but read this.

what actually changes:

shops, regular cafes, most non-tourist restaurants, grocery stores, pharmacies.. a lot of them just close. for 2-3 days, sometimes up to 5 if the owners take the full week. the medina that's normally chaos goes weirdly quiet on the first day. it's honestly kind of beautiful but if your plan was "we'll figure out lunch when we get hungry" you might be wandering a while.

every family that can afford to sacrifices a sheep. this is not symbolic, it's real and it's everywhere. your kids WILL see it or at least see the aftermath. some kids find it fascinating, some get upset. just.. know it's coming so you can decide how to handle it rather than getting ambushed on a side street. (you know your own kids. plan accordingly.)

transport gets slammed in the days right before as locals travel home. trains and ctm buses sell out. if you've got an intercity leg this week and didn't book yet, do it now, not the morning of.

now the good part, because it's not all logistics:

tourist stuff mostly keeps running. guides work (we need the income after the holiday spending lol), riads serve meals, the bigger attractions stay open, your hotel breakfast isn't going anywhere. so a planned trip is mostly fine. it's the unplanned gaps that bite you.

and if you get invited into a moroccan home for the eid meal, say yes. boulfaf (grilled liver wrapped in fat, sounds wild, tastes incredible), mechoui, endless tea. it's the most genuine hospitality you'll ever see and kids are treated like royalty. some of the best family memories my guests ever get happen exactly this week, by accident.

tl;dr if you're here right now: stock snacks and water today, confirm dinner is sorted at your riad, book any train/bus seats immediately, and prep the kids for the sheep thing. then relax, it's actually a special time to be here.

parents who've done morocco during eid, what did I miss? and anyone arriving this week, ask away, I'll answer in the comments.