Morocco tips

[xrv_jim]

July/August 2005 I'm hoping to get away on my AT - possibly Norway or Morocco, I haven't decided which yet (and may end up somewhere completely different!). Norway seems quite straightforward and I guess Morocco won't be too bureaucratically demanding but...

Are there any special document requirements for Morocco above those you'd need for mainland Europe?

Can you just turn up for the ferry (Spain - Morocco) or do you have to book in advance?

Which crossing would you recommend? (I've heard the crossings to the Spanish enclaves are less busy than Tangier?)

Any Morocco travellers tips?

[YEN_POWELL]

You need a green card or an insurance document that has the words Morocco clearly shown on it. Alternatively you can buy insurance as you enter, but I don't know if you'd get any thing if you claimed.

A logbook and a passport is all you should need apart from the above.

You can just turn up and buy a ticket from the port at Algeciras. I think it costs about £20 for a return. The return is open ended. I went from Algeciras to Ceuta (Spanish version of Gibralter), it was okay although it's a bit of a culture shock when you carry on to the border proper.

My top tip is don't accept anything off small children waving a badly made object at you and saying "cadeau" (gift) over and over again. Uncle Achmed is waiting round the corner to stop you after you accept and demand to know why you have bought the thing and tried to leave without paying etc. Other than that you'll love it.

ps The tarmac in town is lethal when it rains. It has an interesting mix of diesel/mud/vegetables and is much more difficult to ride than the unsurfaced roads.

[iswoolley]

Are there any special document requirements for Morocco above those you'd need for mainland Europe?

Just need passport for you, logbook for the bike. You can either get insurance at the border, or get it added to your European cover. Make sure the word Morocco features somewhere on a document also featuring the work Insurance. That'll be good enough to get you in. Whether either form of insurance is actually worth anything once in the country is an open discussion. Best practice is to try really hard not to need it, i.e don't ride after dark, go really slow through villages, and generally assume every will drive worse than Italians or my grandad.

Can you just turn up for the ferry (Spain - Morocco) or do you have to book in advance?

Are you near the port you will see loads of roadside "ticket offices" offering great deals on tickets for the African ferries. My advice is to go to the port and buy yours there. I haven't had a problem, but you know that the port ticket office is going to be selling pucker tickets, and you probably won't save yourself too much by going to a tout.

Which crossing would you recommend? (I've heard the crossings to the Spanish enclaves are less busy than Tangier?)

I've done both Ceuta and Tangiers and I would recomend Ceuta. At Tangiers you come off of the ferry with a screaming mob of returning Moroccan families in overloaded Pug504s, clueless tourists, and lunatic HGVs. I had an armed policeman actually instruct me to ride down a pavement and through a crowd of pedestrians. Everyone is processed through the same channels. Meanwhile at Ceuta you come off of the ferry, wander around looking for a cheap fuel station, then proceed to the border, where there's a tourist channel. Much easier.

Any Morocco travellers tips?

1. Buy a Michelin 959 map. All the detail you need for a road based tour.


The Atlas mountains

2. Definately go to Chefchaouen, an easy ride from Ceuta. It's a typical north Moroccan town, with a maze of whitewashed alleys, brightly painted doors, a reasonably intact kasbah, and a very laid back atmosphere.

3. Also try and get to Erfoud and the Erg Chebbi. In fact if that's all you go for, it's enough. Head out on the tracks to Mezouga (just follow any minibus) and try and see the dunes at sunset. Avoid the Soleil Bleu hostel.

4. The Todra and Dades gorges. A long day's loop takes you up either of the gorges, along a rocky piste, and then back down the other gorge. The Dades gorge is hairpin heaven , the Todra gorge is breathtaking.


The entrance to the Todra gorge

5. If you're more of a town person then Fes old town will give you big-time culture shock. Stay in the new town, hire a guide, and go to the tanneries and shops in the old town.

6. If you're going anywhere near a piste, take a spare inner tube and know how to change it.


100km from the nearest bike shop

7. Learn a bit of French. My schoolboy French was enough for me to converse with most folk, although cafes, banks, etc. will generally have someone who can speak English.

8. Technically you can't take the currency out of the country. However you can buy your Dirham in the south of Spain. Don't deal with the blackmarket people, you won't get much of a bargain and they may be waiting around the corner to retrieve their money.

It's a nice place to go riding, but if your dates are fixed as July or August I would suggest that Norway is a better bet. It will be pretty warm at that time of year in Morocco, especially below the Atlas and Rif mountains. I've timed my trips for Easter, and generally it's been hot (25degC) but not too hot to make riding a sweaty pain.

Iain

[xrv_jim]

Thanks for the Morroco info - I will put it to good use sometime (it looks brilliant!). However, I'm now 99% certain the Norway will be my destination next year as my other half is going to accompany me (she gets a bit tetchy in the heat ) so, no point in making it difficult for yourself is there!