Morocco in April/May 2017 - any recommendations

Lord Snooty

Well-known member
UKGSer Subscriber
Joined
Jan 6, 2002
Messages
10,430
Reaction score
609
Location
Redditch, Worcs
Six of us (3 riders and wives) fancy a tour of Morocco in Spring 17.

Considering an organised tour where the ferries and hotels are pre-booked for us and want to use our own bikes and not hire.

There are a lot of companies offering these types of tours so I am wondering what you would recommend from personal experience.

Thanks:thumb2
 
Need to decide if it's ferry and accommodation only or route planning with a support van following. The ideas / suggestions very different if a led tour versus your own agenda.
 
Depends on your budget. You could pre-book the first two/three nights in Spain after taking the Santander ferry. Then make for Algeciras, just turn up and take the return ferry to Tanger Med, dead easy to make the booking, loads of info on Tim's website: http://www.morocco-knowledgebase.net/forum/forum.php

Then take the usual tourist route round Morocco i.e. Fes, Erfoud, Ouzazate, Marrakesh, Meknes and back to the ferry port. It's so easy to use the excellent roads and difficult to get lost in Morocco. Don't bother with Casablanca, it's a shit hole.

Return though Spain. 17 days all in including return ferry from Portsmouth.

I led eight bikes last year and five this year. So easy to use booking.com to pre-book all the hotels on the way round for each day as you go.

Expect to pay about £1500 all in for fuel ferries food etc. if you do your own thing. Otherwise £3000 if you use a tour company plus fuel, drinks and food about another £500 for each couple.

PM me if you want further details.
 
The problem with going on an organised tour (we went to Morocco with an organised tour last month. PM me if you'd like more info) is that you do everything at their pace. You stop when they say, eat when they say, ride at their pace (more or less. They had to wait for me on more than one occasion as I am a bimbler) etc.

The benefits are you don't have to find hotels at the end of a long day's riding that ended with a battle with Marrakech/Agadir/Casablanca traffic, plan routes for the following day and they know some of the best routes.

Having toured Europe on our own and Morocco as part of a tour, I know which I prefer. I won't do another organised tour, which, I'm sure, will be good news to tour operators too
 
Organising myself a trip to Morocco in April next year, and as my holiday year ends at the end of April. Looked at organised trips before and they seem to pad it out with days in Marrakech and / or Fes, but bimble down through Spain. It'll be the first time into Africa for me, but it's not as if it's not been done once or twice before by others!

Living near to Aberdeen meant I looked at courier options for the bike, and if the flybikefly option to Malaga was still available then I'd have probably used it. Booked all the hotels in Spain and Morocco using booking.com, just need to do the UK ones and the 13 nights will be about £800.

Current plan is ferry from Plymouth on the Sunday, then night stops at the following Plasencia, Asilah, Midelt, Merzouga, Bouamalne Dades, Ouarzazate, Cascades d'Ouzoud, Moulay Idriss, Tetouan, Salamanca and then ferry from Bilbao to Portsmouth on the Thursday. Some long days, but I want to see Morocco so accept the need for it, and as I won't have a pillion / in an organised group I can go as fast / slow as I want, and take pictures whenever I want as well.
 
As others have said above, DIY is best, did the same trip, same time, in 2016 and apart from 2 punctures and a lot of rain for a few days all was good.:)
 
Six of us (3 riders and wives) fancy a tour of Morocco in Spring 17.

Considering an organised tour where the ferries and hotels are pre-booked for us and want to use our own bikes and not hire.

There are a lot of companies offering these types of tours so I am wondering what you would recommend from personal experience.

Thanks:thumb2
Hi Your Lordship

I have the perfect tour company for what you need.
I have a company called Moroccan Motorcycle Tours....we take upto 10 bikes , meeting at Algeciras and touring around Morocco on superb routes.
I am a much travelled biker who has spent many many years touring and exploring....I can take you to some amazing places and should you wish to let your ladies have a break at a spa hotel I can build that in too.....this is a tour which will not be beaten in both value and jaw dropping scenery .....should you wish to know more please pm me or call me on 07557 652420

Regards
John
 
Depends on your budget. You could pre-book the first two/three nights in Spain after taking the Santander ferry. Then make for Algeciras, just turn up and take the return ferry to Tanger Med, dead easy to make the booking, loads of info on Tim's website: http://www.morocco-knowledgebase.net/forum/forum.php

Then take the usual tourist route round Morocco i.e. Fes, Erfoud, Ouzazate, Marrakesh, Meknes and back to the ferry port. It's so easy to use the excellent roads and difficult to get lost in Morocco. Don't bother with Casablanca, it's a shit hole.

Return though Spain. 17 days all in including return ferry from Portsmouth.

I led eight bikes last year and five this year. So easy to use booking.com to pre-book all the hotels on the way round for each day as you go.

Expect to pay about £1500 all in for fuel ferries food etc. if you do your own thing. Otherwise £3000 if you use a tour company plus fuel, drinks and food about another £500 for each couple.

PM me if you want further details.
Try us if you want a tour company that goes that bit further and ensures you have a memorable time...not just following the main tourist routes......and food, hotels...11 days in Morocco.....1950.00. This is a tour with a biker who cares about customer enjoyment not just making a fat profit.....
 
Organising myself a trip to Morocco in April next year, and as my holiday year ends at the end of April. Looked at organised trips before and they seem to pad it out with days in Marrakech and / or Fes, but bimble down through Spain. It'll be the first time into Africa for me, but it's not as if it's not been done once or twice before by others!

Living near to Aberdeen meant I looked at courier options for the bike, and if the flybikefly option to Malaga was still available then I'd have probably used it. Booked all the hotels in Spain and Morocco using booking.com, just need to do the UK ones and the 13 nights will be about £800.

Current plan is ferry from Plymouth on the Sunday, then night stops at the following Plasencia, Asilah, Midelt, Merzouga, Bouamalne Dades, Ouarzazate, Cascades d'Ouzoud, Moulay Idriss, Tetouan, Salamanca and then ferry from Bilbao to Portsmouth on the Thursday. Some long days, but I want to see Morocco so accept the need for it, and as I won't have a pillion / in an organised group I can go as fast / slow as I want, and take pictures whenever I want as well.

John pm me and I will talk to you about a tour I do......far better than the run of the mill stuff and excellent value.....

Regards
John
 
John pm me and I will talk to you about a tour I do......far better than the run of the mill stuff and excellent value.....

No a subscriber, so can't send a PM.

The problem that I see with any organised tour, is just that, it's organised. I can go on a package holiday to Tenerife if I wanted to be swaddled in cotton wool. Sure there's a risk of me going on my own, but then each day I get up, and the the sensible thing would be stay safe and stay in bed.
 
I guess it's down to choice..... information and knowledge of good routes and hotels / riads...food etc... not all tours are "hold my hand" tours.
If you have 7 to 11 days and want to see the best and enjoy some camaraderie with others then it could be money well and wisely spent. I understand also the lone wonderer and as I said.... it's up to the individual....


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
Thanks for your replies all, some great information.

Bluesweeper - I will be in touch, I have looked on Tim's website, great source of info but it is not accepting any registrations.

Jon Bailey - what is your website please, I'd like to take a look and share it with my co-travelers.
 
Thanks for your replies all, some great information.

Bluesweeper - I will be in touch, I have looked on Tim's website, great source of info but it is not accepting any registrations.

Jon Bailey - what is your website please, I'd like to take a look and share it with my co-travelers.
Hi
We have just pulled the website for a complete overhaul....it should be up and running again in about 3 weeks ....take a look and see what you think..always appreciate feedback.....Moroccan motorcycle tours
 

Attachments

  • IMG_4814.jpg
    IMG_4814.jpg
    62.7 KB · Views: 612
Hi Lord Snooty

Registrations on Morocco Knowledgebase were only needed to post contributions, and I was getting so much spam I closed it off.

I would strongly encourage you to plan your own trip. The research will mean you will have a much better idea of where you are travelling through and it means you can stay flexible. Plenty of people on here will chip in and give advice on where to go, where to stay, and so on.

April/May is a great time to visit and you will be amazed at how green the country is, though in early April it can still be chilly in the mornings in the north or in the mountains. Try to avoid Semana Santa (holy week) running 9 to 17 April 2017 as Morocco will be inundated with Spanish visitors and their 4x4 clubs.

As far as ferries are concerned, Brittany from Portsmouth to Santander is really relaxing and a great way to start the holiday. PM me and I will give you my Club Voyage number which gives you 10% off bikes and passenger rates. I tend to use the Economié service on the Baie de Seine, but the wives might prefer the flagship Pont Aven ferry. Algeciras to Tanger Med is the easiest crossing of the Strait of Gibraltar and you can check rates at aferry.to which will give you all the companies and all the route options.

Allow one and a half days for a leisurely crossing of Spain on the excellent (and mostly free) autovias, see routes and ferry information.

I always do a lot of research about places I *could* visit on the next trip, but I tend to then make things up as I go along. It helps that I normally ride solo and don't have to worry about pleasing other people or having—in your case—to book three sets of rooms. But I would still suggest you stay loose with arrangements rather than booking things more than one day ahead and trying to unravel arrangements when a bike breaks down or when you change your minds. Wifi (pronounced wee-fee) is widely available for free at cafes and it's easy to use booking.com to check out places that you could stay and then book for that night.

My main guidelines for visiting Morocco are to get off the major roads (minor ones are quieter, safer, often more scenic) and not to be too ambitious with distances. I guess the wives would agree with the latter, especially as you will have done some major milage crossing Spain. Chill out, stop often for coffee at the pavement cafes and engage in people watching. The speed limit on non-motorway roads is 100 kph and I tend to ride at 80-85 kph and take in all the scenery.

Don't bother with major cities such as Fez or Marrakech unless you are planning to stop there for a rest day, otherwise you will go through all the hassle of fighting your way through the evening traffic just to fight your way out again the next morning. Leave these for weekend city break flights.

The roads are well-signed so you don't need GPS unless you are planning off-tarmac routes. Get the plasticised Reise KnowHow map of Morocco from Stanfords or Amazon and try to plan your routes using green-edge scenic side roads.

For example, stop overnight at Hotel Panorama in Azrou (80km south of Fez) then in the morning visit the wild monkeys and volcanos, then take the side roads heading south through the cedar forests and limestone karst scenery of the Middle Atlas. Stop off and walk uphill to the spectacular Source of the Oum er Rbia river. Overnight at Hotel Atlas Zayane at Khenifra, then over the top of the High Atlas to Imilchil and overnight at Auberge Amellago, then on to Hotel Kanz Erremal in Merzouga. I'd take three days on this which is so much more interesting than just blatting down the busy main N13 road which most bikers take in one day.

Google Maps version of the above route.

Happy to help more.
 
Six of us (3 riders and wives) fancy a tour of Morocco in Spring 17.

Considering an organised tour where the ferries and hotels are pre-booked for us and want to use our own bikes and not hire.

There are a lot of companies offering these types of tours so I am wondering what you would recommend from personal experience.

Thanks:thumb2

Speak to Hanna at motoadventours
http://www.motoadventours.com/

She'll sort you out.
 
The Marathon des Sables is happening between the 7th and 17th April 2017: http://www.runultra.co.uk/Events/Marathon-Des-Sables

My thoughts on a route was to stay near to Merzouga on the 13th April, from past experience, how does the MdS affect the roads etc in the area? Already booked my hotel, so no worries on having a bed then!

Given that these crazy fuckers are running across the dunes, i'm not sure how you think it will impact you?? Didn't effect me this year - :thumb2
 
The runners stay in tents but there's bound to be hotel rooms taken up with support personnel and watchers. Nevertheless there's more than 70 hotels running in the western lee of Erg Chebbi.

When I used to follow the Dakar I remember one particular night in Er Rachidia when we just couldn't get a room anywhere. Eventually we got one double room to share between five bikers and all their gear. Happy days.
 


Back
Top Bottom