To welcome the new year, I decided a trip was in order. I opened up sky scanner in December, and saw that return flights to Morocco, were £28. Booked, for seven nights. I confirmed two nights at a hostel in Marrakech, with loose plans to travel down the coast but only a few Tiktok videos for guidance. As always, the trips most cherished and influential experiences come from the people I was lucky enough to share them with. I extended my trip and ended up spending twelve days in Morocco, in an experience I truly felt so absorbed in. I saw bustling cities, mountains, waterfalls, vast deserts, stunning beaches, sunsets, and even a sunrise or two. It didn’t come without its challenges, its scary moments, and a few tears: in what follows I reflect on transport and safety, detail my highlights and give some advice to any other solo traveller thinking about visiting Morocco.
Transport
My twelve days in Morocco took me over 800 miles, travelling from Marrakesh, to Imlil, Essaouira, Chefchauen and back to Marrakech, with pit stops in Fes and Tangier. I used taxis, buses, and trains, all were cheap, accessible and easy to navigate.
Inner city taxis were usually cheap especially in Marrakech, although I did find I was occasionally paying way more than you would expect, but nothing that was worth haggling over. Most taxis don’t have a meter so make sure you agree a price before getting in the car. As a more general point I don’t feel I did as much haggling as I’ve heard people do for taxis or almost anything in Morocco. A few long distance journeys myself and friends I travelled with attempted to but it didn’t quite follow the script we expected and just gave up. Outer-city taxis can be shared, which is great if you’re travelling alone and on a budget. As is usually the way if stay in hostels however, you often find people doing similar routes to you and then taxis can be cheaper than respective bus tickets. Outer-city taxis can be shared with other people going to the same of a similar place, which is great if you’re travelling alone or in a small group and on a budget, but it does often take longer as you have to wait for other people to share the cab with.
The longest travel day which was around 13 hours from Chefchauen back to Marrakech cost £24 for two busses. I booked through CTM, for this and other bus journeys throughout Morocco and enjoyed travelling on them. I love a travel day anyway, I can feel responsibility seep from me as I step onto public transport as I can’t be expected to do anything productive when travelling at such speed and tend to use it as a way to decompress. Busses were usually on time, close to empty, at a nice temperature and when required, made a nice amount of stops for toilet breaks. The website was easy to navigate and in a country where cash is king, it was a nice way to spend a bit of money on my card.
Trains were also comfortable and clean. On the long journey from Marrakech to Fes refreshment trollies regularly made their way through the carriage, everyone had a seat and it even had a working toilet, more than can be said for the majority of Northern Rail services at the minute. Overall, public transport in Morocco felt affordable and accessible, especially covering such large distances in short times.
Safety
Before visiting, I’d heard a range of opinions on whether Morocco was a safe country to travel alone, especially as a woman. Both horror stories and five star reviews from travel bloggers, influencers, from friends who had visited and even with regards to dress code I couldn’t seem to get a straight answer. During the, albeit brief, packing and researching process, there was a level of uncertainty that I don’t think I had felt when travelling around Europe. My trip started in Marrakech, and for the most part I’d say I felt generally safe but keeping certain precautions like I keeping walking around at night to a minimum, and only really being in the Medina alone in the mornings. I walked to the YSL gardens outside the city walls and again felt safe alone during the day. There were a few moments in which I felt vulnerable, but as is with any trip. The journey from the airport to accommodation is usually a good feeler. My inbound flight was delayed around three hours meaning I arrived into Marrakech about 11pm, which already puts a bit of an edge on the situation. I took a bus to the entrance of the medina which, until this point, was easy to navigate on google maps. I shortly realised I was seriously under prepared for the maze of the medina that stood between me and my hostel – a glaring preparation issue on my part. Maps is quite difficult to navigate with ghost entrances and pathways, but regardless of whether you get a bus or a taxi, you’ll still have to navigate this as neither can take you directly to the inner city riads. I walked to my hostel in the dark, through the bustling heart of Marrakech in all its glory. Groups of people making music, the smell of street food in the cold air, vendors that would soon become predictable by their merchandise. It was bussling, and yes, somewhat scary. A few strange looks and a few men shouting but nothing that was really life threatening. In the daytime it felt safe but over-stimulating, very intense, busy with bikes in the souks, men with snakes and monkeys in the medina, always something trying to be sold. It just also has a harshness, acts of kindness were often tied to sale and service. It brought out a skepticism and a coldness that I don’t like, especially not travelling. This said, honestly I didn’t find the merchants too aggressive, just intense and overwhelming. Marrakesh really is an experience city though, with a lot to see and do, and good food to eat. For me it was a crazy start and end my journey though the rest of the country in which I did have a very different and more relaxing experience.
I heard so much about scams in Morocco before I visited, throughout my journey, from travellers and locals it did become hard to trust, yet I found outside the bigger cities I met more genuine and kind local people notably in Imlil and Essaouria. Still in these places I didn’t really go out late at night, I didn’t feel there was a huge draw to their nightime economy. Although restaurants and cafes seem to get going later in the day, they seem to stay consistently busy throughout the day into evening, which helped to set a nice schedule to explore and also sleep. I did go out to drink with friends I made in hostels in Marrakesh, Essaouria and Chefchauen, but it made a nice change to feeling as if I had to be active throughout every day and night, as is often a pressure with backpacking.
Practical travel tips .
Going back to dress code, I stuck to generally covering my elbows and knees, nothing with cleavage, however at the beach or more tourist destinations I did have my arms out. I think this was generally a good rule and although I was still obviously a tourist it felt respectful. Also It was cold at night and sometimes throughout the day so if you are visiting around January just make sure you have some decent evening clothes.
One of my biggest pieces of advice would be to make sure you have enough data an your e-sim. Trying to find bus stops, train stations and hostels with no data is never fun. I recommend maya Esim, I always use them they’re cheap, reliable, easy to set up and top up and they notify you on data usage which I find really helpful. I continually underestimate how much data I need for my trip and 3GB was not enough for me for a week. Over the ten days I did need more than 5. The riads I stayed in often had wifi but at weak connections in the bedrooms. Most cafes and restaurants will also have wifi, although I did find them slightly hit and miss. It’s just better to have the data.
A reflection.
As with every trip I feel I’ve come back refreshed. At risk of sounding wanky – solo travel I find, offers me a chance to meet myself at my most authentic version, to make connections with people and present myself with no preconceived notions of who I am. It was a different kind of trip for me, one that didn’t centre a bar crawl or a capital city, highlighted a beauty in nature, in mountains, and beaches. Contrasting to the chaos of Marrakech. Although I found peace there at times, walking round the busy streets alone, armed with headphones and sunglasses the world seemed to move around me whilst I walked by. Truly Morocco has influenced me as a solo traveller, I always through of myself as not a very outdoorsy person but the highlight of my trip was the day hiking in Toubkal’s national park, it is something I will never forget, the day came perfectly, offering solace and connection in a time I feel like I needed them most. The peace and kindness of the mountains, doing a hike with friends I made along the way. We shared our hopes, dreams, fears, in a way that only feels natural to do when travelling. Affirming in many ways what I’ve thought about since I started travelling, that it always seems we meet the right people, in the right place. After having such an amazing experience in Albania over the summer where I made more stable travelling connections, it felt easy of me to want to travel back there in January. Sometimes it’s important to realise that some great things were meant to be just that – unrepeatable moments. Theres something special about navigating a new place for the first time again, with no expectations, knowing no one. For me it’s what maintains the magic of travel. The spontaneity that I’m lucky to have whilst still in University, and the cheap £28 flights once again opened doors to beautiful experiences, memories, connections and reflections. It confirms again that this is how I want to spend the next chapter of my life, and makes entering my last ever semester of University seem a little less daunting.
Catch you later, Lil 🙂