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- Morocco – Everything You Need To Know Before You Go
- Essaouira- Morocco’s Surf and Art Town
- 16 Things to Do and See in Fes – Morocco’s Ancient City
- Akchour Waterfall – Morocco’s Lost Paradise
- Volubilis – Morocco’s Ancient Roman City
- A Trip to the Sahara Desert in Morocco
- Morocco 2.0 – Sometimes a Place Deserves a Second Chance
- Chefchaouen – Morocco’s Blue Pearl
- My Experience in Fes – The “Real” Morocco
- 20 Things to Do and See in Marrakesh
- 16 Fun Things to Do in Tangier
- Bungee Jumping at Victoria Falls
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Morocco is vibrant, fragrant and chaotic. It’s an intense sensory overload that travelers will either love or hate.
Exploring Morocco is an assault on all the senses that will inevitably come with both positive and negative experiences. Not everyone will love Morocco, but no one will be able to leave without a very memorable sensory experience.
I traveled to Morocco for 3 weeks in 2014, and while I loved some aspects, I certainly didn’t love it because I had some pretty bad experiences with safety, specifically in Fes. When I returned to Morocco for a few days in October 2018, my friends and family were very surprised. And to be honest, so was I. Very rarely do I travel to the same place twice because why would you when you could see something new instead? But I’m so glad I gave it another chance.
Why I Gave Morocco Another Chance
I decided to travel back to Morocco because I REALLY wanted to go back to Chefchaoeun (the blue city) and Akchour waterfall, which had been the most beautiful waterfall I’d ever seen.
I was also in love with the street photography, architecture, textiles and treasures. The people watching and street photography in Morocco is some of the best in the world.
Morocco is a very photogenic country and it inspired me to become a better (amateur) photographer on my first trip years ago. My photos of Morocco are captivating and stunning, and despite my poor experiences, my photos made me want to go back and give Morocco another chance.
I also went back because I happened to be in Spain, which is a very quick and easy boat ride to Tangier. And Tangier was new to me.
Morocco 2.0 Experience
After traveling Europe for 3 weeks, I was really happy to be back in Morocco. While I absolutely adore Europe, if you’re from a western country, the difference in culture really isn’t that vast and it’s really expensive to travel, especially as a budget traveler. However, when you go to a place like Morocco, that’s when you really feel like you’re somewhere completely different. And that’s what I live for when I travel. And it’s much more affordable.
I only had one day in Tangier, which left me wanting more. But, it is a bigger city (the third largest in Morocco) and it is touristy, given its proximity to Spain, so I did encounter some similar annoyances as I did in Fes and Marrakesh on my previous trip.
Chefchaouen really captured my heart and I really wish I could’ve stayed longer. The people are so different in the smaller towns in comparison to the larger cities like Fes, Tangier, Casablanca and Marrakesh. Chefchaouen was so much safer, I didn’t encounter any obnoxious touts or scams, it’s significantly cheaper to buy textiles and souvenirs, and the people in the medina are actually genuine, lovely and super laid back.
While I didn’t return to Fes, due to a lack of time, I would also give it another chance. However, on my recent trip to Morocco, I met quite a few local Moroccan men who said they didn’t like Fes and that it was dangerous and very unfriendly, even for them. One of them was horrified that I had gone to Fes alone. That being said, I’ve also met people who LOVED Fes, so it really comes down to your personal experiences.
Positive Results
I’m so happy that I gave Morocco another chance because I really loved it the second time and I would happily go back a third time. Sometimes it’s worth facing your fear to attempt to replace bad memories with good memories.
I also learned that when you travel to Morocco, you really need to visit some smaller towns, in addition to the cities, to get the full experience. You also need to be prepared with street smarts, knowledge of popular scams and a thick skin to counteract it all.
FOR MORE INFORMATION ON TRAVELING MOROCCO
What to Know Before You Go to Morocco
What To Know Before You Go to North Africa And The Middle East
Thank you so much for sharing your experience! I’ve been dying to go to Morocco, and now I’ve got second thoughts big time.
You really are a brave soul
Yeah… there are better places in my opinion. It seems like people either love it or hate it. But I haven’t met any women who love it. Turkey is amazing if you havent been!
We went to Morocco as a group, so we didn’t have all this problem. But as a single woman living in Turkey, I have to say, I do experience the same things as you did in Morocco. And I know what you mean by countries messing you, I’m too aware of men now and when I went back to London, I was shocked at myself when I was on the tube and evaluating everyone which was on there, like a maniac.
Oh man, that’s awful too! But I’m glad it’s not just me